FISHES OF THE FARM STREAM 



47 



Fig. 27. The common bull-head, 

 is much to be desired. 



A race of short-homed bull-heads 



garden, and have neglected most of the others. The back- 

 ward state of fish culture among us may be expressed by 

 saying that we have developed no means of growing natural 

 forage for fishes or of managing them in ordinary waters in 

 pure cultures under control, and we have hardly any valuable 

 cultiu-al varieties. 



Many of our wild fishes, however, are excellent: the 

 basses, and the perches, and the cat fishes, for example. And 

 for the most part they are very hardy and are widely distrib- 

 uted in our inland waters. If the fish fauna of any con- 

 siderable stream be carefully explored, doubtless a number 

 of good, bad, and indifferent kinds of fishes will be found. 

 Bullheads and sunfishes are nearly everjrwhere in permanent 

 fresh water: and what excellent materials for selection they 

 offer ! True the bullheads are nearly all head and horns, but 

 what flesh they have is excellent quality. What we need is 

 to develop a race of shorthorns among them. If such im- 

 provement of them were made by selection and care as has 

 been made with cattle and hogs, what fine table fishes we 

 should have: and everybody might have them in his own 

 water garden. 



Fishes are the dominant animal forms in all fresh waters : 

 in powers of locomotion they surpass all other aquatic 

 creatures. Their fighting powers are good. Consequently 

 we find them in full possession of the open waters, while most 



