17 
and capable of self.defense and self supporting are the 
fry. I have the pleasure of personally knowing many 
of Ohio’s foremost fishculturists who have spent years 
in propagating fish, studying and becoming familiar with 
the habits and devising ways and means to check the 
rapid decrease and to replenish depleted waters. Many 
of the commercial fishermen appreciate and recognize 
their efforts, and while the fishermen are gradually 
covering, with killing nets, nearly all the territory where 
fish visit—for scarcity of fish means more twine—they 
cheerfully suggested plans and ideas to aid those who are 
so deeply interested in preserving our food fishes. 
The following notes of interest I have gleaned from 
wholesale fishermen along the various lake ports. Of 
whitefish, ten out of sixteen fishermen believed that 
twelve pei cent, of the fish deposited in the lake by the 
Commission were captured with gill nets before they 
reached one pound in weight in the deep water off the 
Pennsylvania shore. Twenty per cent. lived to maturity, 
and this could be increased fifteen per cent. more if the 
young fish were treated like we raise little pigs—deposited 
in pens in suitable water around the islands until old 
enough to take careof themselves In 1857,0n the south 
shore of the lake, during almost every strong northeastern 
gale the spawn of whitefish was cast up on the beach in 
such immense quantities it was often strewn to the depth 
of 2 or 3in., several feet wide, for miles along the shore. 
The general complaint, although reluctantly admitted, is 
that the meshes of the rapidly increasing gill nets are too 
small, they are destroying whitefish weighing less than 
ilb., while the leaders of the pound nets are increasing to 
such an alarming extent as to seriously interfere with 
navigation, let alone keeping back the fish en route to 
their spawning grounds. All fishermen agree that the 
natural spawning grounds of the lake are at the mouth of 
the Detroit River. Whitefish, pickerel, bass, saugers, 
sturgeon and other food fishes pay annual visits to this 
