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Black bass is one of the most prolific varieties of our 

 fresh water fish. Their natural increase is so great and 

 their growth so rapid that it never has been an object to 

 fish culturists to attempt their artificial propagation. 

 When the spawning season draws near, they select, guid- 

 ed by natural instinct, with great care for the purpose of 

 propagation certain portions of the river having a pebbly 

 or gravelly bottom. From these they remove carefully, 

 all sediment, weeds and sticks. This work completed 

 leaves a clear bright space in the bottom of the river, 

 circular in form, and having a diameter of about three 

 feet. These beds are readily distinguished by the casual 

 observer from the ordinary bottom of the river by their 

 brightness, the gravel having the appearance of being 

 washed or scoured. When the parent fish are ready to 

 spawn the female goes upon this prepared bed and de- 

 posits her spawn in a glutinous band or ribbon running 

 in various directions across the bed. She is followed by 

 the male who impregnates the eggs by the expression ot 

 his milt. 



Their care ot the young, (the exercise of which is 

 peculiar to the bass, sunfish and catfish) taken in connec- 

 tion with the tact that a large pair of bass will deposit 

 20,000 eggs, will give some idea of their fertility. Possibly 

 the fish are capable of reproduction when two years old, 

 having at that time attained the extraordinary length of 

 eight or nine inches, but this is mere conjecture, based 

 more particularly upon our knowledge of the size and 

 weight of the fish at that age. They frequently attain 

 the weight of five and six pounds ; in rare instances 

 seven and eight. They are unsurpassed in flavor by 

 any of the perch family. 



Some ponds have been stocked with the fry, but it re- 

 mains to be seen whether this will prove successful. 



