DISTRIBUTION. 



The distributron of fish after the collections are made is no easy 

 task. They require great care in the handling so as to have them in 

 proper condition for shipping. Any fish showing signs of bruises or 

 injuries of any kind must be taken out and returned to the river, 

 the remainder must be kept in water sufficiently cool to permit them 

 to harden so that they may be ready f6r the next change; then the 

 water into which they are placed when brought in by the collectors 

 must be gradually reduced in temperature, as they are frequently 

 taken from water whose temperature would register from 90 to 100 

 degrees, and the change to that of from 60 to 65 degrees, a tempera- 

 ture necessary for shipping them, would be apt to prove fatal if the 

 change was not gradual. After these preliminary steps they are 

 placed in charge of a messenger and are transported in the baggage 

 cars on passenger trains, one messenger taking all he can care for 

 safely, or that will be given room in the car, so that they may not 

 interfere with the regular duties of the baggageman. It is expensive 

 work to transport fish. They can not be carried safely without a 

 messenger accompanying them, because frequently, in fact, nearly 

 always, changes must be made from one line to another, occasioning 

 delays of one or more hours, which would be fatal unless the fish had 

 the necessary attention. The water must be disturbed so that it may 

 become oxygenated, they must be carefully watched, and water aerated 

 by use of a dipper if they show signs of distress. Then when the 

 water into which they are to be placed is reached the temperature of 

 water in can must be. regulated again to bring it near that of the 

 river or lake for the same reasons. Ice is nearly always used in ship- 

 ping the fish, as they carry better in water of low temperature. 



As a rule the fish are carried free of charge, except a fee to bag- 

 gagemen, but generally the messenger accompanying them pays his 

 fare, although there are some generous exceptions to this rule. On 

 the whole, when the per diem of messenger, his expenses enroute, 

 telegraph service, ice and hauling are considered, a trip rounds up 

 with a considerable expense bill. 



The board has had the matter of general distribution under con- 

 sideration for several seasons with a view to determining the advis- 

 ability of supplying private ponds unless all the conditions relating 

 to the probable results are made known to the commissioners, such 

 as the nature of the pond and the water, as to size and quality, and 

 their suitability to the requirements of the fish asked for. In fact, 

 it has been a question in our minds whether or not only public 

 waters should be supplied, except in cases where the applicant defrays 

 the cost of the i^lant. The limited amount which we have to cover 

 the cost of collecting and distributing must be used economically to 

 get the public waters supplied, and while we have made a practice 

 of supplying private applicants so far as we could, we can not supply 

 all, that would be a physical impossibility. It is evident that many 

 who apply do not know what they want when they ask for fish. 

 Our greatest demand is for black bass, and there can be no greater 

 mistake made than to undertake the cultivation of black bass in a 



