Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1878-01-03

past year. The salmon fisheries OF the
State have been largely productive, that
Of the Penebscot being greater than for
tw ehty five years. In places where there
are tishways, the take of alewives has been
large and remunerative. A lively interest
in fish culture has been awakened among
all classes. as shown by the extensive de-
mand for brook trout. land-iocked salmon
and black bass to stock waters. The black
bass is applied in all cases as an antidote
to the worthless pickerel. 1t costs moro
to feed a pickerel than any other fish; 1t
costs more to make pound of pckerel
than pound of any other kind of fish.
The pickerel consumes everything that
swims or that It can swallow; they are
very destructive TO young water fowl A
better or more savory fish than the black
bass is rarely found. They grow rapidly
and are more easily bred than trout. But,
to protect them, there should be 4 heavy
peralty against netting.
As the great mass of the people are ig.
norant of the habits of fishes, IL Is stated
that in all cases where salmon, either
fresh water or ocean, or trout are required
TO stock water, it Is necessary that the
means be provided the year before they
are to be delivered, as these fishes all
spawn in October and November, and it
requires the whole winter to hatch them
preparatory TO distributing them 10 the
spring of the following year. II the de-
pleted rivers are to-be stocked with salmon,
and the Sebago salmon introduced into
the immense waste of unproductive waters
IN kennebec and other counties. it will be
necessary to furnish the Commissioners
with the means of obtaining the fish.
There is no market into which we can 90
and purchase the fry OF these fishes or
their eggs, when the Commissioners re-
ceive applications for them, They have the
promise of a small supply offish from Hon.
Harvey Jewel! Of Connecticut, and others.
The orders for black bass should be sen. to
! the Commissioners as early as possible
during the winter, that they may put them
on file, and make arrangements for their
capture In the spring. Now that the in
land fisheries Of Maine have become so
valuable resource Of the State, so i'm
portant an item in the receipts of our routes
of travel, our hotels and all places OF sum
i mer resort it is time that this crop was
fostered and Increased. We require a
good square law for the whole State, and
from the rrst of October TO the rst of
February, or March, or April. or May, just
a the Legislature shall decide there shall
be no fishing of any Kind whatever in any
Of our fresh water lakes, ponds and
streams, and that possession during that
period, whether on hotel or private table.
cred evidence of guilt, without regard TO
place where caught Let netting, or
spearin" or graphing, or catching In
traps. be constituted a serious offence,
punishable by both crime and inprson-
meut.
For the last four or five wears large num-
5erS of young salmon have made their ap-
pearauce in the Penobscot river at Bangor.
\ portion of the kenduSkeag river has
been full Of them, In dipping for smeits
at Brewer, sixty young salmon were
picked from among the captured smelts In
the course of two hours, and turned back
, into the water. One man fishing for suck
erS In the kenduskeag, caught sixteen
young salmon in two hours, and carefully
returned them to the water a. ain. Young
salmon seemed TO be present in considera-
ble numbers both above and below the
| dam in said water, and were taken occa-
slou1lly In the nets OF fishers for tomcod
below the falls. The salmon fishery Of the
PenobScot is estimated to be the largest
for many years, leaving no doubt in the
, minds of the most incredulous that the
work of restoration by planting and pro-
lection is an entire and unmistakable sue
cess. Many of the salmon were OF large
size. among them one weighing IS pounds.
A yerv good run OF salmon has visited the
1t. Croix the last year. ln 1878, some
thousands of young salmon were planted
in the st. Croix at Vancetoro'; in 1874,
10000 fry were hatched and turned into
Dsb>is stream. This contribution had \
marked influence in adding TO the number
making the good run of the year.
The Peuobscot Salmon Breeding works
at Buck~port have not been in operation
this year. In consequence there will be
no salmon fry or eggs to distribute the
ensuing year. Il is hoped next year to re-
sumo operations at Bucksport. The Com
missoners hope they may have 1t in their
power to cooperate with the L. S. Gov
ernment and our sister States Commission
ers. both at BHcksport for sea salmon, and
at Grand lake and Songo lock, for land
locked salmon.
Appended to the report OF the Commis-
sioners, is the report Of Chas. G.. Atkins.
of his operations a. Grand Lake stream, In
taking the ova of Schodc salmon for the
Associated States and the U. S. Govern
ment. He reports that the fish have not
only recovered from the decline observed
but have shown themselves nearly 40 per
.cent. more numerous than in 1875. The
weather this year was mild and favorable.
The water in the lake and stream was very
, low. The work of enclosing the parent
W
ing of fish and taking of spawn both came
to a close November %, at which date the
full fish to be caught had dwindled down
to one or two per day, and of the total
twenty tour full females handled on that
day, only one was unrpe. 1t appears that
in a warm season the ovares of the moth
er fSh mature more rapidly and the eggs
are laid earlier than in cold season.
|
number OF eggs this year, than sual, but
there has been Ia larger yield per fish, be-
ing 9S5. as against s0l in 1876 and TIA in
!; 1875. Mr.. Atkins had already. before the
close of the season, reached the cenclu-
sion that the fish of 1877 were more pro-
life than those of 1876; but he Is doubtful
whether the same can be said as to 1875
t that year the fixtures for catching the fish
were less perfect, and many fish came to
hand that had just begun to lay their
eggs, or had lai6 one third or even one
half OF them, and yet were classed as "ripe
fish" in the same category with those that
were quite full The eggs were secured
Ia good condition, and are now 10 process
of ipcubation in the matching house at the
spring. Grand Lake stream. He learns
that fishes were also plenter than usual
at Dobss stream. and that quite quantity
J 075.O00) of spawn has been secured there
by the Dobsis Club.-Kennebec Journal.
A country lady. having heard that her
son had gained in school, as prize, a
years subscription to a popular youths
magazine. wrote an anxious letter to the
publishers. She had never allowed her
; boy to read one sentence that was not
strictly true; it was the object of her life
, to keep him from fiction and falsity, and
she wanted to know IL the magazine was
free from these Objectionable features
= The answer was this: Dear Madame-If
, your notion is carried out strictly. there Is
but one publication that we can recon-
, mend-and, on second thought, we doubt
) even as to that. We were going to sug-
3 gest the New Testament, until We hap
: pened to recollect that onr Saviour therein
r is mentioned as speaking in parallels"
:, -Enamored Writing Master Ito young