44 HOME FISHING AND HOME WATERS. 



tions made there will be of great value to the 

 beginner. 



Many failures occur through the impression that 

 fish culture is so very simple. This is a great mis- 

 take, as to conduct it successfully requires constant 

 attention, the same as any other business. The 

 value of experimenting and making practical tests 

 cannot be too highly estimated. There are so many 

 things which to your vision look clear and practical, 

 which an actual trial will prove to be useless. The- 

 oretically they may be true, but practically failures. 

 I have many times caught an idea which seemed to 

 be just the thing, and must prove a success, and 

 found I was wrong, so that my usual plan now is, 

 when I undertake to solve a difficult problem, to 

 have several different experiments under way at the 

 same time, and among them will be some which I 

 had made up my mind would be certain failures, and 

 many times some one of these would be just the 

 thing I wanted. 



There are many waters where it is impossible to tell 

 whether certain fish will live without putting some 

 in and giving them a trial. For instance, if one 

 wishes to stock a stream that is impregnated with 

 some kind of mineral perhaps iron or sulphur he 

 would have no way of knowing how strongly the wa- 

 ters were impregnated, or just what degree of strength 

 the fish could endure. In this case I would advise 

 placing a few fish in the waters in question as a sure 

 means of ascertaining. Of course, there are certain 

 kinds offish which, if deposited in waters having the 

 necessary temperature, depth, bottom, etc., will al- 

 most to a certainty thrive if placed therein. There 



