Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1865-11-10
The fish in the Early Settlements.

of the different kinds of fishes to be found
in the various streams. ponds and lakes of
Vermont, We have had no distinct published
history, and we have had to depend solely on
the account of Professor Zadock Thompson,
which be has embraced in bis Natural HE
tory of the State and published with bis civil
history and gazetteer. Mr.. Thompson was,
doubtless, q good naturalist, and bis descrp-
tons, 90 far as he investigated, were gene
rally correct. But his Investigations were
not sufficiently extensive to do justice 10 the
whole subject, bein- quite too exclusively
confined to the waters OF Lake Champlain.
And even of some kinds of the fish of those
waters he has left ue but imperfectly inform
ed. His accounts of the pixies, and the dis
tinctions between the pike and pickerel, are
confused and uncertain. Under the head of
The Common Pike, he gives us picture of
q fish not perceptibly differing from the COM
mon pickerel, and under the head of Picker
el, he gives a description of nearly the same
fish. and, indeed, admits it to be about the
same. He also describes what he calls the
pike-pe-cb, but neither the first nor the last
are anything like the kind of fish brought
here every Spring from Lake Champlain,
and sold under the name of pike. His &C
count of the fishes found in the streams of
the interior appears nos to have been made
. from personal observation and it is conse-
quently still more imperfect. HIS Dace Of the
Lake is different fish from any other dace
family of our rivers, which be has barely |
mentioned. and the leading member of that |
family here, the red-hn, he has omitted en-
tirely. There is another fish in our streams |
which be has wholly overlooked. This is a |
dun colored fish, with red longitudinal |
stripes, sometimes or 10 inches long, and |
weighing from one-quarter to one-half a |
pound. 1t has been called pike-sucker, but
bears very little.ressemblance to either pike or
sucker, and is evidently distinct species of
our river fish, yet remaining to be properls
named
The fish in our rivers and ponds, at the
time of our first settlements, were of yery
few kinds. Indeed, there could have been
but three kinds, the trout, the sucker and
the dace, IT We count, as most do, the pike
sucker among the latter. The pickerel, the
perch, black bass, horn-pout and eel were
brought from abroad, and put into our
streams and ponds at much later period.
and too often to the destruction of more va
luable FISH, In the trout family is generally
reckoned BY nsturalists the Longe or Longe
trout. which, however is quite different
nsh IN all except its general appearance
and IN this the resemblance is 90 perfect
that but for one or two characteristics the
two would generally be pronounced one and
the same fish. One of the distinguished cha |
racteristics is the different shapes Of their
lalls. The true trout's tail is square, or
Iorms nearly straight line across its extre- =
nifty, while the Longe has always q forked q
" swallow tail. The Longe has never bet n a
oan6 y TIE ystfr Of this section OF the I
-. bst @ay q the large and deep ponds e
aaght weighing from two to forty weight. 9