The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1874-05-28

quiet, retreating to the deep water-not verv
deep however. for in the drought of August
ana september, the greatest depth in the pond
| Is twelve feet. and in the inclosure where the
salmon We're kept the past season only nine
fect. In such a shallow pond. with such dark
water and bottom, the suns rays eXcrta pow
ef1ul influence in midsummer. At one time the
| temperature of the water at the bottom reached
y deg. +. Yet this excessive heat has no per
ceptibe effect on the health of the salmon.
Durlng all this time the salmon eat nothing.
| In fact there is little room for doubt that their
| stay in the rivers is one long fast lasting from
| SIX to twelve months. They do seize the sports
man ny, but it is probably not for the purpose
! OF 1000, but rather akin to the action of turkey
or buli rushing after red rag. 1t is 4 com
| mon oplnlon among sportSmen that salmon will
not rise to Il fly i'll still water, but this has been
plainly di>proved at Bucksport. On several oc-
ca>ionS IN May, September and October the
ulil was nlade for the purpose of testing the
matter, and the salmon in the pond We're found
10 take lle NY with as much eaGerneSS in the
| llNorife pools of the Canadian salmon rivers.
These We're, so far as known, the first instances
OF salmon being caught with the 1lv in the Pc
nobscot RIVER. not because their habits are UNI
llkH those Of their brethren in other rivers
but probably because they have not been t4hed
1or enough IN the right places.
The salmon are not allowed, to range over the
Whole pond, which has area of sixty acres
bllt are confined in a cove containing about ten
acres 10y a strong net. whose top is attached to
Il
| chain. Out of this cove runs the brook where
the Matching house and spawning shed and
other fixtures are situated. When October
comes, amt the salmon exhibit the uneasy. roy
ING disposition that preSages the spawning sea
son, new and smaller inclOsurc is made near
lhe outief with Il passage into il from the large
lnclosure, so contriyed that the salmon readily
pass through from the larger into the smaller,
but can not lind their way back. Thus, by the
last Weel. in October a considerable part Of the
salmon already collected within 4 of
about an acre, in close proximity to the brook
y dam and gate regulate the flow of water, and
the tall rains have now raised the pond to such
a level that when the gate j. open a plentiful
supply OF water rllsheS out. Until this time a
grating ha~ been kept in front of the gate to
prevent the salmon from entering the brook
prematurely, but this is now removed and the
fish allowed TO pass through The gate at their
pleasure.
Having once passed the gate, the salmon fail
over drop which etfeetually prevents their re-
turning to the pond and are then in long mar
row Sluicc, which leads them some two hundred
lect down the stream INTO small pen, from
which they are dipped when wanted. Here the
whole breadth Of the stream is occupied ~
similar pens, used for asserting and keeping the
salmon during the spawning season; and close
1T hand is Il rude shed built to shed the opera
tors while 1t work. 1t is during the last week
III October that the first salmon enter the brook
After the lst of November the occurrence there
of an immature fish i very rare. BY this for
tunatc circumstance the labor attending the
FANNIE -, - i'',., u. @ ~ ''oH
.nnm -, sha .n,nns !, hnnJ tb,, iii,;, " e.
repeated handling that would be necessary We're
part of the fish coming down the Slurc 10 be-
immature. Both sexes come together. They
are now rs easily distinguished aS are the cock
,n h,i,t aIo, .'' h! 1 i"m i Ky n,,pp '''s
furnished with a hook that shuts into cavity
IN the roof OF the moull-characteriStic~ that
1o, Wv, Nh Iiti' itrn, hot', m'' te', W.
N netm ~ ~, .m. 'A tii'
narI, ~ anJ ,,L l He","H Is
,,,a+,,, 9, w. tht +,1 it a. -" '''
t ~ ~ ',,,' ~. .1'it'u' @
1 ,,io a.. iI,'rS,. ~ ,'ir i.'n"T III
| NM I'M, I'm, ,i,,, @ ~, - ~ t''
i '' WV '''>' ''' ~ ''' '> '''''''-
Tb t,l,;,,,o of .,,.,,, .,,,,,,,,,l :. ,,,...l from,
ny ~ II W., t;I i1
Wlh " ~ i,t. HIT ~ ~ uoNNn ~ - !i'
ShaI NV, n'n & Inua 'i, p,ents 'Nt >PaM iIalg
,i1 - " "rs 1,i, 1 ti tii''lis o. "a g"
f,,aI xi,,n,, . tl, n,aIl, - ,,-;, r'a
III ~ iht ,, ,t ;ii " 7 III -
1T ~ "ii''D' 'i' lei's dIoul IN
'''"'IT' ;II , n' ,'i 'iuI @ i;i n"}''!.u
l s .'V lIi 80" r'G' IN
& N77 m,,, "A y, ',''iE, l''.al =
b"' ~" r ~ t tho ~ i'o"''N "0i'
IN, NtlSht "i 'lie isii'
From tour to SIX men form convenient
"perateT WHO >lll 81 llStGtEr MiRpG'l RHhtI IRG
uau before him. First female salmon is taken
in hand and her eggs pressed ont into the p:n
without any water other than that contained in
the vScid fluid that comes with them from the
fish In clear water the eggs would soon lose
the capacity If tecuntlation. but i'll their natural
fluid lhrv retain it for a long time. As soon a>
the fish has welded all her eggs She is >lipped
into bag and weighed. placed on Il bench and
measured marked hy attaching 4 small stamp
ed metal tag to the back tin, and placed Ill one
of the pens, where She soon recovers from her
exhaustion, and whence in due course of time
She is turned out INTO the brook or cartcd down
TO the river The eggs are also weighed. and
then replaced before the operator, who now
takes a male salmon and presses his milt into
the same pan This is the most important part
of the whole process, tor without The fecund;.-
linz Influence Of the mIt the eggs would never
develop into fish. 1t was formerly the practice
10 let eggs and mil fail from the fist. into The
dish Of water; but the mlt. when in water.
lose, the power Of acting upon the ,egs ry,9l
Quicker than the cce, lose the capaciN of bring
acted upon, and it thus often happens that tn,
intimate contact essential was not effected soon
enough 10 nl~urc fccundation. From thi> cause