CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 



119 



cultiirists as Livingstoa Stone aud J. G. 

 Woodbury ; Mr. Shebley, in consequence, 

 knows California conditions and knows 

 how to raise fish. The hatchery depart- 

 ment has many employees who have 



William H. Shebley, in charge fishculture. 



"grown up"' with the work. One of the 

 employees, Mr. E. W. Hunt, field super- 

 intendent, has served the commission for 

 thirty-five years ; two others have .served 

 more than twenty-five years ; four, more 

 than fifteen years, and six for more than 

 ten years. The efficiency of the depart- 

 ment can be partly traced to the fact 

 that the men engaged in fishcultural work 

 are all experienced men. 



INCREASING DEMAND FOR TROUT 

 FRY EXHAUSTS HATCHERY RE- 

 SOURCES. 



Easy access to the streams aud lakes 

 afforded by the improved highways and 

 the increasing use of automobiles, and the 

 added thousands of people who are avail- 

 ing themselves of the opportunity to fish, 

 are factors that have combined to make 

 an ever-increasing demand on our hatch- 

 eries for fish for restocking. Each sea- 

 son sees a marked increase in the number 

 of people who seek recreation in our 

 mountainous districts, and the consequent 

 drain on the trout in our lakes and 

 streams has been very great, particularly 

 during the past five years. To meet the 



need, the department of fishculture has 

 exhausted its resources. Every available 

 dollar has been devoted to fishcultural 

 work, and j-et the demand increases. 



Only a partial solution is possible as 

 a resBult of the reduction of the bag limit 

 from fifty to twenty-five. It may be that 

 a shorter fishing season will have to fol- 

 low in order that depleted streams and 

 lakes may be afforded a chance to recover 

 their former condition. 



Every state in the Union where there is 

 game fish to be found is confronted by the 

 same problem. In most cases the condi- 

 tion is being met by an increased angling 

 license to provide more funds for enlarg- 

 ing the output of the hatcheries. This is 

 the remaining remedial measure left to 

 California. 



FREE FISHING FOR ALL. 



For fifty years the Fish and Game 

 Commission has been stocking the lakes 

 and streams of the state with trout. That 

 any of these stocked lakes and streams 

 should become private property, with con- 

 sequent restriction of fishing, would be an 

 injustice. Several years ago the actions 

 of certain riparian owners caused the 

 commission to advocate the passage of a 

 law providing that boards of supervisors 

 could, if necessary, condemn a right of 

 way along a stream for the use of fisher- 

 men. This law was passed. In recent 

 years there have been many attempts by 

 private individuals to close public fishing 

 on certain lakes and sell fishing privileges 

 for as much as $10 a day. The one thing 

 that has saved these lakes from becoming 

 private preserves has been the fact that 

 the state has annually stocked them, and 

 consequently the fish do not belong to the 

 riparian owners. Likewise, the importa- 

 tion of trout fry from other states has 

 been discouraged, in order to prevent like 

 developments. It seems reasonable that 

 those who would make private gain from 

 fish should utilize artificially constructed 

 ponds, rather than publicly stocked waters. 

 The commission positively refuses to stock 

 with trout fry any waters of the state 

 which are not previously declared in 

 writing by the owners to be open to the 

 general public for fishing purposes. 



The Fish and Game Commission be- 

 lieves in championing the people's rights. 

 This is substantiated by the attitude on 

 proposals for making private fish pre- 

 serves out of streams and lakes stocked by 

 the state and by the action taken during 

 the last legislature, when the attempt was 

 made to place fish and game administra- 

 tion under a subsidiary division of the 

 E>epartment of Agriculture. 



