10 THE EEPORT UPON No. 13 



that on account of the warm summer the water in the great lakes was later 

 in cooling off, and in consequence of this the trout came on the spawning grounds 

 later than usual. They did not catch the usual quantity in October, most of them 

 securing only a few good catches. If correct, this was a good thing for the trout. 

 There is no doubt but that both trout and whitefish are becoming less plentiful 

 each year, and something should be done at once. There are three things that 

 might be done to save this very valuable fish: 



1st. — Establish enough hatcheries to take care of all the spawn that is now 

 destroyed. 



2nd. — Provide a close season that really protects. 



3rd. — Stop all commercial fishing for a number of years. 



As to the first, there is no doubt that the 'hatcheries are a success, as far as the 

 hatching is concerned, no matter what becomes of the young fry afterwards; 

 and surely they stand a better chance of coming to maturity than the spawn would 

 if deposited naturally, this being at the mercy of the weather and all the other 

 enemies that abound in the waters of our great lakes. 



Take Lake Erie as an example. It is to-day the greatest producer of fresh 

 water fish known, and has been for years, and none of the lakes have been fished 

 to the same extent, and in none have so many young fry from the hatcheries 

 been planted. We know that Lake Erie is peculiarly adapted for fish life, but I 

 cannot give the whole credit to that; if the rest of our waters were as. prolific, 

 we would never hear of the scarcity of fish. 



2nd. We all know that the present close season does not protect and no season 

 of thirty days will, if applied to the whole Province, the spawning season .varying 

 in different localities. We should have a close season suitable to the different 

 waters, or one long enough to cover them all. From the 15th October to the 31st 

 December would, I believe, protect both trout and whitefish in all the waters of 

 the Province. 



3rd. This is something, I hope, that will never be necessary, and is hardly 

 worth mentioning at this time, but if something else is not done it will come. 



The much abused carp of a few years ago is coming into his own. It is 

 not long since your Department was being urged to offer a bounty for the 

 destruction of these fish. To-day more men are willing to pay a fee for the 

 privilege of catching them than we have room for, and this change has taken 

 place in about five years. The men now engaged in fishing for carp only are not 

 making fortunes, but are doing well, especially those who have built ponds in which 

 they place these fish when plentiful and hold them until the scarcity, when good 

 prices are obtained. Carp are going to be the cheap fish of the future; they in- 

 crease very rapidly, are easily caught at certain seasons,, stand shipping well, and 

 arrive in distant markets in good condition. 



I know the danger when I start telling fish stories, but here are two that 

 you can believe: One haul of a seine in Rondeau Harbour produced twenty-two 

 tons; another man on Lake Erie has shipped nearly one hundred tons of carp, 

 all out of his pond. If this kind of thing keeps up, the price will never be very high, 

 and will be of great benefit in these days of the high cost of living. 



Game Fish. 



Anglers from nearly all parts of the Province report good catches, most of 

 the complaints coming from the Muskoka Lakes. I have heard some complaints 

 about illegal net fishing, but not as many as in former years. You will no doubt 



