CARP , DA CE AND MINNO W. 
413 
And when the timorous Trout I wait 
To take, and he devours my Bait, 
How small, how poor a thing I find 
Will captivate a greedy Mind ; 
And when none bite, the Wise I praise, 
Whom false Allurements ne’er betrays. 
If (too intent on Sport) I fast, 
Good Fortune gives me repast ; 
My Friend it serves me to invite, 
In whom I more than that delight; 
Who comes more welcome to my Dish 
Than to my Angle was my Fish. 
Not only must we recognize their claim to a place in our esteem, but we 
must, in our far-reaching plans for the preservation of life in our waters, 
provide for them, not only for themselves, but for the sake of the common 
species which are dependent upon them for food. 
These fishes are of importance also for bait, and an excellent essay upon 
the use of minnows for bait, written by Mr. D. W. Cross, was printed in 
the American Angler for April, 1883. 
The Asiatic Carp is the king of the Cyprinoids. The tribe takes its 
name in fact from the genus Cyprinus , of which the Carp is the best known 
form. Linne thus described it in 1758 in his “ System of Nature:” 
Nobilis piscis scepius piscinis edticatus , circa anno 1600 in Angliam intro¬ 
duces. We all have heard the old saying, that turkies, carp, hops, pickerel 
and beer came into England all in one year, which is by no means a 
statement of fact. It was known in England as early as 1696, when if 
was alluded to in the “ Boke of St. Albans” as “a dayntous fysshe, but 
there ben but few in England.” It came to Denmark in 1660, and to 
Sweden in 1560, and was cultivated in Germany and France as early as 
1258, in Austria in 1227. Cassiodorus in the sixth century spoke of the 
Carpa of the Danube as a costly fish of delicate flavor, and supplied to 
the tables of princes. No one knows when or how it came to Europe 
from its original homes in Persia, China and the far east, but it seems 
probable that it moved by slow stages, from pond to pond, and from tribe 
to tribe, the beginning of the movement dating back beyond the beginning 
of the Christian era. 
The acclimation of the Asiatic Carp in America has been wonderfully 
successful. As it often happens, the conditions here seem to be more 
favorable than in Europe, and in our southern waters, color, activity and 
growth continue throughout the entire year, the fishes soon attain a 
remarkable size. 
