TWELFTH ANNUAL MEETING. 59 
condition inherent in the constructions ; is compelled to travel 
a circuitous channel, and usually is delivered from the fish-way 
in such a sluggish current that it offers no sufficient invitation 
to the fish to enter and ascend it. As before stated, the difficulty 
of a limited capacity for water is inherent in all of these fish-way 
constructions. 
The attention of fish-culturists and fish-way builders has been 
heretofore chiefly directed to different devices for controlling 
the velocity of the water in the fish-way. All these devices may 
be referred to one or two general forms: 
First—In what is known as the “step” or “pool and fall” 
fish-way, the water is brought down from its elevation by a 
series of short drops or falls with intervening pools ; the pools 
being of such dimensions in comparison with the volume of 
water entering them, as to bring it practically to rest after each 
drop, so that the whole volume of water is eventually delivered 
from the lower end of the fish-way, with no greater acceleration 
than it obtains in falling from one pool to the next. This form 
of fish-way is very common in England and upon the Continent. 
Possibly some examples of such constructions may be found in 
the United States, but I have no information of any. 
Second—In what Mr. Atkins terms inclined plane fish-ways, 
the descent of the water is effected by a regular inclination of 
the floor of the fish-way, instead of by “steps” or “pools and 
falls.” ; 
In order to control the tendency to acceleration under the 
action of gravity, the base of the incline is made very long in 
proportion to the height, and by a series of alternating transverse 
or oblique partitions, the water is constrained to follow a narrow 
tortuous path with continual changes of direction; the friction 
developed in its movement being sufficient to overcome the 
tendency to acceleration. 
Of this second general form we have many examples in the 
United States, especially in New England. The common rec- 
tangular fish-way, the Brackett, the Foster, Pike’s, Atkins’, 
Swozey’s, Brewer’s, and Roger’s, are examples of the various 
designs that have been employed, each differing in minor details 
of construction, but all belonging to a common system. Most 
