The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1873-07-17
A Model Fish Farm.

One of the most successful fish farms in
the United States has been established i'm
mediately adjoining the Beaumont Deer
Park, near New Hope, Bucks county, Penn,
and so satisfactory have been the results
obtained that improvement on somewhat
gigantic scale are now made. The spot
known as the farm comprises about seven
teen acres of land, and was selected be-
cause of its natural adaptation to the pur-
pose. At the head of the tract, on the road
side, is the famous bingham Spring. which
flows out from among the roots of a giean-
tic oak tree l.. a limpid stream equal by
actual measurement, to over 3 200 gallons
per minute, the spring branch passing
down the valley through the length of
the farm. At this spring was first erected
small dam for water power supply, and
near by was erected stone breeding house.
30 by 60 feet, capable of accommodating u
Matching troughs by 13 feet each. Into
and through these were passed the clear
spring water and thence into a series of
ponds, where the fish are now kept, being
in classes according to age.
The process of Matching is interesting
indeed. A long narrow trough, say sixty
feet long, has u stream of water passing
through it, with numerous "ascents" re-
sembing falls, as in natural stream. The
and is covered with pebbles in imitation of
nature again. The fish Chamber up this
trough from the large pond below, deposit
their eggs, which fall through the bottom,
are taken out and placed in the Matching
troughs. As soon as they are about an
inch in length they are placed outside in
series of pounds by 81 feet, where they
are fed with chopped meat-liver, lights,
and soft meats-and as soon as they be-
gin to eat they begin like pigs to fatten and
grow, and it is astonishing to note how
rapidly. Each Matching is kept in a sep
arate trough and thence transferred further
and further from the Matching house, until,
upon reaching one to two pounds, they are
ready for market.
Mr.. Thompson, one of the propretors,
states that he began two years since stock
ing the farm. He found eighty-siX full
grown trout in the stream. He bought
$4,000 eggs and 1000 yearling fish. He
then caught with fly l,200 trout at White
Haven, Pa, which We're kept alive and
brought to the farm in barrels. He deter
mined, despite the adverse decision of old
anglers that salmon would not thrive in
spring streams, to try the experiment of
their culture. He procured some ova and
treated them just as he did trout, and the
result has confirmed his most sanguine ex-
pectations. He says they are as hardy as
any fish he ever saw. His feed to them
also is chopped meat. He ignores curd or
sour milk, claiming that it makes the fish
weakly and puny. Those [ saw in the
ponds, on the contrary, were hardy, lively
fellows, and they darted and flashed about
in the water at almost lightning speed.
The increase of the fish under the treat
ment adopted has been prodigious indeed.
AS shown above, only 2,2S6 fish were
originally placed in the ponds, and yet
within two years there are about 100000
fish, large and small, on hand, there having
been $4,000 salmon just hatched, 1000
nearly two years old; 100, 900 trout hatched
this year, and the remainder at different
ages. An examination of the Matching
house and the several ponds showed the
fish in three different grades. These ponds
were fifteen in number, six being by 81,
for small fish six others, 10 by 40, for
yearlings, and three more, lG by 125, for
Older fish. The water is about four feet
deep, being admitted at one end and passed
out at the other, thus making 1t a literal
running stream at all times. The stock
now on hand comprised:
This years trout 100 600
Last years trout 5000
About two years trout $4,000
About two years ess salmon 1000 1000
In Matching trOughs 100
Total 2O5 900
In addition to these there have been sold
this year about 10000 pounds of trout, the
fish commanding in the New York market
81 per pound, with the demand beyond the
supply.