Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1851-09-11
VOLUME VIII. NO. 81.
Fish Breeding.

A curious branch of husbandry is practiced
in France, in the valley of the Soane. A char
acterst1c feature of this part of France is the
vast number of small lakes or ponds by which
the surface is studded In one department, that
of Saone ct Loire, there are actually upwards Of
1000 of these sheets Of water, principally lying
to the east of the Swiss side of the Saone. A
century ago the number is said to have been
nearly double, but the proprietors are now drain
ing and turning the bottoms Of their lakes into
corn-feds and meadows The sheets in ques-
ton are for the most part shallow, 1ushy ponds,
with marshy borders. They are of all sizes,
from mere pools to lakes of so to 100 acres
in axssAts aaa tAeBsslass~s4 uezr c-r;asr anrt in
the agriculture ofthe district, many of them be.
ing alternately dried and reflled, the proprietor
raising corn one year in the precise spot in
which he caught fish the preceding summer
It's mooted point in the district whether the
superlices in question are most profitable in the
shape of ponds or fields. The opinion generally
gaining ground appears to be in favor Of an oc-
casional change from one element to the other
in favor in fact of making the ponds playa
part inthe routine of cropping, and refreshing
and nvigorating the land at certain intervals, by
turning water upon it, and rearing carp and
perch above it. The small ponds are common
ly used for rearing the fry which are destined
to acquire their full growth in the larger sheets
of water. The plan of operation in its outline is
as follows; at the commencement Of winter
from ten to fifteen carp are turned into each
small pond, great care being taken that no pike
manages to slip quietly in along with them.-
The next year the water nurseries are dried, and
thousands of young carp are found sprawling in
the mud The fry is called la teuiLte, and is let
loose in larger ponds in the ratio OF about 200
little fishes to an ncre. Here the creatures pass
the second year oftheir life, attaining size of
about four or FIVE inches. In this stage they are
called carpillions or alvns, and are subject to
the same treatment as before, the pond being
again drained, and its occupants turned out into
a still larger piece of water. In this third dwell
ing place they take their final Development
They are flung into it in the proportion Of about
$50 carpllions per acre, and are taken out again
in one, two, or three years afterwards, according
to the size Of the fish required. The carp fatten
fast in rich, muddy waters sleeping stagnantly
in the bosom Of fat fields and stiff alluvia Soils
The ponds sprinkled among the woods are the
wrost feeding places. Into the small ponds
some dozens of small pike are let loose, destined
tel keep down the young carp, so that the large
fish may have the advantage of the best possible
eeding' The final fishing generally takes place
early in the sping. The water is drained off.
and the fish are caught by hand or by hand
nets. They are usually sold upon the spot,
either by the hundred Or by weight to the a
gents of fshmongers in the neghboring towns,
occasionally to the tradesmen Lyons, by whom
they are cartcd off in casks pierced with holes
and halfflled with water The critical time
for the interests of the fsh-breeder is the drain
ing or the water, lest the creatures die in the
mud the critical time for the fsh-mongar is the
carting them home, lest they die in the cask. 1t
is common practice, after pond has been
fished for three successive years, to drain it
thoroughly and to SOW maize or oats for as
many seasons as the earth has been under wa
ter, Near Chalons three years water and three
years crop is the rule. The larger ponds yield
from 600 to 5000 carp annually.-.Sci. I'm.