The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1873-02-28
EMPORIA NEWS.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY %, 1873.
PROPAGATION OF FISH.

1
Prof. Spencer F. Baird, United
States Commissioner of Fish and
| Fisheries, gives, in letter to Gen.
Garfield, very interesting account
of the experiments taken under
his direction. Congress made an
appropriation of 81, 900 in aid of
the experiments set on foot to
stock our rivers and lakes with the
best class of fish for food. The
appropriation not being available
last year until June, little was
done in the Introduction OF
shad. Professor Baird, how
ever, secured the services of Mr..
Seth Green, of Rochester, and Mr..
William Cliff, OF Mystic, Connect
lieut., well known experts. Mr..
Green obtained and carried West
a large number of young shad,
placing a portion in the Allegheny
river, at Salamanca, New: York,
and another large portion in the
Upper Mississippi, near st. Paul
Mr.. Cliff obtained a number from
Connecticut, the season being later
there, and planted these in the AL
legheny, and in the White river,
near Indianapolis. To test the
practicability of transporting
young, shad, Mr.. Gift started fort
the Rocky Mountains in mid sum
mer, and succeeded in reaching
Denver with several thousand
young fish, whicl-xere planted in
the headwaters of the Platte.
1t is believed that the stocking |
of the Mississippi, will be a snc-
cess. DR.. Daniels has stocked the |
Alabama river by Transporting i'm
pregnated eggs from the Savannah
river Shad are found in consid-
cradle numbers at the hot springs
in the Ouchita, at NeoshO Falls,
Kansas, at the Falls of the Ohio
at Louisville, and in the Wabash.
1t is believed that the Mississippi
and its tributaries will swarm with
them within five years. In Con-
necticut, by careful propagation,
the supply of shad has been i'm
mensely increased. In 1871 the
was about 5O,000,000; in
1872 they increased to 9l,000,00O.
Professor Baird proposed to begin
early this season, working all the
the Atlantic rivers, commencing
with the st. Johns river, Florida,
and ending at the Connecticut.
The young fish can thus be taken
along the lateral railroads and
planted in all the Southern and
Western streams. 1t is proposed
TO attempt the same with the great
lakes, if authority be obtained,
and the commissioner believes the
will be successful, as
the minute crustecean on which
the shad feed, is found in them.
The details of the experiments in
spawning salmon are interesting.
Formerly our rivers were full of
hem; now they are almost un-
known.
The only Matching place belong
ID, when the commissioner begun,
% the Canadian government,
which, however, charged $40 in
gold per thousand. This was al
most prohibitory. Mr.. Atkins, -,
iormer fish commissioner of Maine,
then undertook the task of spawn.
ng. In 1871 some salmon were !
caught when they first entered the
.ivers and held until the spawning
season. This last year the larger
resulted in obtaining
bout 600 good salmon, and now
Mr.. Atkins has at Bucksport, on
he Penobscot, a mile and n half
If eggs, valued at, according to the
Canadian scale, $4,000, the cost
If which was about $4,000. Half :
IF them belong to the United
States. The German "Fishercl
Verien," in response to inquiries,
Prof. Baird that in token !
If regard for us, 100000 eggs !
would, at the proper season, be !
ient US free. Half million more
we're purchased, and the services :
If Rudolph Hessel, the most ex-
,erienced German fish culturist, {
secured to accompany the spawn.
They were expected to leave Bre-
men on the 18th inst. The weight
If the eggs is estimated at 1000
49, ~ 4
Mr.. Livingstone Stone, of New
hampshire, has been for some time
IN the Pacific Coast, experiment t
ng on the same matter. He has q
his quarters on the {
McCloud river, California, but was g
only able to obtain from 10000 to i
$4,000 eggs. These have been J
shipped East, and are now at t
Bloomsbury, New Jersey, in charge 6
IL DIR. Slack. There is great in
crest felt in this experiment, as !
,he Pacific waters are relatively of s
much higher temperature than in
which the young salmon are to be
placed. Prof. Baird gives some
details relative to the propagation
Of the white fish, and asks an adj
dttional appropriation. He thinks {
that all varieties of salmon, Euro
pean, etc, can be made available,
and that many delicious fish not
known to our waters can be sue