274 Roosevelt Wild Life Bulletin 



For a number of years there has been complaint by anglers that 

 salmon fishing in one of the most famous original landlocked salmon 

 lakes was going bad, notwithstanding the operations of the State 

 hatchery. A notice apeared in one of the papers to the effect that it 

 was proposed to plant " Canadian Sea Salmon " there, apparently to 

 offset the decline of the native salmon. This announcement elicited 

 remonstrance from several persons interested in that lake. An article 

 of this kind having attratted the attention of the Commissioner of a 

 neighboring state, who had also thought of importing the Canadian 

 fish to remedy the unsatisfactory conditions in the water of his state, 

 wrote the author : "' At the present time, it is, so far as I am able to 

 learn, impossible for us to get any great amount of real landlocked 

 salmon. A few years ago attention was turned largely to planting 

 western chinook salmon in our waters. They are certainly sea- 

 going fish, as much as Eastern or Canadian river salmon, with the 

 added drawback that their life is short and their reproduction is 

 limited. 



" There is no need for me to elaborate on their habits, which you 

 know better than I, but I am discouraged in trying to create a 

 permanent fishery by raising them. We are endeavoring to get all 

 the eggs possible from the salmon taken from our lakes, that is the 

 Eastern variety, but for the past few years we have at no time 

 secured over 70,000 eggs, which is a very small amount compared 

 with what we would like to have. 



" I find that it is now possible to obtain the Eastern Canadian 

 River Salmon from the Canadian Government, and it certainly 

 seems to me that our chances of success with these fish are as 

 great, if not greater than with any other species available. Is it 

 not probable that while a percentage of these fish when planted will 

 find their way back to the sea, as large a percentage of them may 

 be expected to remain in the waters? Would not our chances of 

 success with them be greater than with the Western Salmon and 

 while I personally should very much prefer to raise real native land- 

 locked salmon, does not the fact that they are not now available in 

 any adequate numbers make it advisable for us to try the Canadian 

 fish?" 



The situation in that State and elsewhere is as follows : 



In the first place no effort was ever made to ascertain whether the 

 quota of young salmon annually returned to native waters was in 

 excess of those which would result from natural reproduction. No 

 attempt was made to ascertain the cause of the decline. 



Stocked waters elsewhere failed because nowhere was a self- 

 sustaining stock produced. Had the life history of the landlocked 

 salmon been thoroughly learned and the lesson heeded the present 

 situation might have been obviated. 



Much money and energy had been expended in trying to 

 acclimate the salmon in other waters. The hatcheries on original 

 waters failed to maintain the natural stock in those waters, and 

 the same obtained in the case of most other waters. Those which 

 have not already failed are faihng. Still, in some localities it was 



