15 
Fortunately the Spring Grove bass plant is of such a nature that 
rearing ponds, bountifully supphed with fry and fingerling food can 
be maintained. 
In the Spring Grove rearing pond there are at this time 50,000 
fingerlings, grown from the fry stage. Some of these may be ‘dis- 
tributed in the fall; the balance will go out as yearlings in the late 
spring. 
For the current season there has been hatched and distributed from 
the Spring Grove hatchery about 7,000,000 pike pereh, 1,000,000 large- 
mouthed. black bass fry, fingerlings, yearlings and a Ene 
and several thousand rainbow and brook trout. This does not express 
the full capacity of the plant, which is still in a state of development. 
When such further improvements have been made as are planned the 
output will be greatly increased. ; 
The problem of distribution of fish from a hatchery is everywhere 
an item of large expense, because hatcheries in the first instance are 
located with reference to the quantity and quality of the water supply. 
Other conditions, apart from distributing facilities must be taken into 
account. Fortunately, your commission was able to locate a hatchery 
where all conditions were favorable to the hatching and rearing of fish, 
and in addition, where an economical distribution was assured. 
The Spring Grove hatchery is within a quarter of a mile of the 
railroad station and four miles from the Fox Lake region. Our fish are 
largely shipped by rail to Fox Lake, where they are taken by the game 
wardens and distributed from their launches. Those waters of this 
region that are not reached by the wardens with their boats are stocked 
with shipments made by train. 
In Lake County alone there are fifty-two good fish lakes that are 
taken care of at small cost by the 8 spring Grove hatchery. 
In McHenry County, w here the hatchery is located, there are a large 
number of good black bass and pike perch lakes. The fish for stocking 
these waters are for the most part taken from the hatchery by men inter- 
ested in the fish waters of their respective localities. 
From the appropriation made for developing our fisheries plants, 
a sufficient sum was taken to build a retaining station at Savanna, where 
the fish taken from the back waters of the Mississippi River may be 
held for distribution. This is a most important point and furnishes a 
great number of good fish for the waters of the northwestern part of the 
State. 
An appropriation’ was made by the last Legislature for a suitable 
fish ear, to be used in distributing fish throughout the State. The car 
has been in commission all summer, but the greater part of the work of 
distribution by car will be made during the late summer and fall, 
The car is used largely for distributing rescued fish from the 
Havana station on the Illinois River and the Savanna station on the 
Mississippi River. At each of these places suitable retaining tanks have 
been built and such other equipment has been provided, necessary for 
taking and distributing fish. 
From the Savanna station millions of fish. rescued from land- 
locked lakes and sloughs, are chiefly distributed throughout the north- 
