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their way, and they never rest until they have reached 

 their proper spawning grounds. 



With all this class of fish, it is essential that the breeders 

 should reach the upper waters of the rivers, where alone 

 they can spawn and hatch their young. Were a dam or 

 any impassable obstruction placed across the river for a 

 single season, the entire yield of that year would cease, 

 and a new supply would have to be obtained. 



Shad being a migratory fish, spend the greater part of 

 their time in the sea where they find their lood, for, like 

 most migratory fish, they do not feed in the fresh water; 

 there they prey on shell fish or other small creatures, 

 which, while inexhaustible in number are wholly useless 

 directly to man. In February,March and April, May, June 

 and July, urged by the re-productive instinct they ascend 

 into the fresh water to deposit their eggs. Unlike sal- 

 mon however, they do not go far up our rivers nor require 

 special conditions of locality or temperature to complete 

 the procreative art successfully. They seek out some 

 rocky ledge where there is a gentle current, and uniting 

 in pairs press their vents together and extrude the spawn 

 and milt in a spasm of amatory pleasure. They build 

 no nests, the act of spawning is performed while the 

 loving pair are in rapid motion so rapid that they often 

 spring out of water and their fluttering along its surface 

 is clearly distinguishable. Their only precaution against 

 predatory animals is that they spawn at night. The 

 eggs are left to themselves to the mercy of their enemies 

 and to fate. The parents, as soon as they are through 

 this duty of their existence return lean and wasted to 

 the ocean to recuperate and enjoy themselves. 



Here is incredible wastefulness; countless creeping, 

 crawling and swimming creatures live upon those same 

 eggs. These sneaking enemies search the bottom and 



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