The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1881-01-27
riaH CULTURE

ferhng 10 The usnrpailohs Of tho iedef"l gov
ernmett and Ia cncroaobments upon ihe
rights OF Tho states, refers 70 tho distribution
Of Young fish for the feeding Of Tho people.
Now, wo sgreo With tle governor 10 the hD-
stract. Il Is really nm assumption ofanthofty
on the part Of tho general government 70
take any action in this matter, and OF con-
eross to make mopoyed appropriation 70 Old
in q, 10 collect spd distribute fish, but, while
Il may DO on infringement Of the
etter, and for arguments fske, fey the spirit
too, of tho Fundamental law, for the federal
government to do this thing, yet, While u 10
being .donc,.an Texas nor any other state
cannot prevent it, is IT not the part OF wisdom
on the part of our people to profit by the
liberalisy? Now that our rivers have been
stocked with salmon and sbad and our lakes
and ponds with carp, and the Legislature is in
session, ought not d law to be passed to pro-
tect these, fish from the despoliarion OF the
avAvicious and the gain seekers? Unless the
shad and salmon ale protected in their
spawning sesloAs, and the carp in The ponds
ana lakes are.gua7en,eed life by making. tia
penalty to seine or drain, why we might
lust as we'll never have been given these fish.
1t is hardly necessary for us to write dis
ouisj.ion upon the value of fish food as q
stimulus TO the brain and as a strengthentr
of the muscular system. Our readers GER
tainly understand this phase Of the question
| as we'll as we do, ard as TO the table COM
forts. the satisfaction given to the
epicure by plentiful supply OF
fish, why, what we might say
would be superfuous. Fish have
figured in the..world's history from the ear
lest days-to the present time. 1t was
whale, SO divine history tells us, that swal-
lowed ,Jonah. and Christ, with few fishes,
performed one of his grsndest miracles
Not only is fish an article Of food nearly, If
not quite as important, as beef, or pork or
mutton, or poultry. in 50 far as deiicacy Is
concerned, in all localities, but in some por-
tions of the globo it is almost the entire
meat food that can DO had. Here in Texas
we have an abundance Of streams, small riy-
ers, creeks and brooks, and with on ez-
tended coast line hor{ieFiug on
the gulf we have all the sea room we want
for those species of fish that need sell water
and fresh water both. A new country, as
Texas comparatively is, there are many peo-
MIA who cannot readily understand why
there should be laws TO protect tho iinny
tribes of the waters, bat if they will study
the question AMI see how, in thicaly settled
pejghborhoods and localities, that if~eve-y
man who sees proper to do SO can take his
seine at any season Of the year and drag the
water courses aud catch up the fish
by the car load, or drain lakes and
ponds, and at one time destroy every fish in
lake or.pond, they viii readily sec thst
these valuable fish, supplied the state by the
general government, at great expense, will
soon be destroyed entirely. These fish arc
peculiarly adapted for table use. They null
tiply and increase rapidly; they erowto large
size and they are Of favor and richness TO
taste to make them especially estimable
for food. Why, then, by vandalism, de-
stroy them entirely? Protect them in their
spawning seasons that they may increase in
numbers and give them chance to
live and I'll our waters, and IN little time
the fab products of our state will be source
of revenue to hundreds and hundreds, and a
pleasure to every one. In the sixteenth
legislature bill was passed to protect the
oysters beds on our coast, 1t was mos
wise and iudicious Bill, and we trust that II
will be vigorously enforced. in It's penalties
against the Goihs and Visigoths who may al
tempt 10 destroy the oyster fields from which
the people of our state draw their supplies.
When the fish bill came up before the six
teenth legislature and was passed,
under constitutional provision, any county
that so desired, could be exempted, and we
regret to say that Dallas county was one of
the exempted Itw done, we are satisfied,
on the spur Of the moment without considH
GRAFTON of what the effects might be in the
future, and we trust that the present 'legisls-
ture viii pass a stringent law for tho proiec-
ton of the fish interests of the state, TO en-
brace every county in It. Aside from the
sport that fishing affords and the pleas
ure those Of US able 10 indulge in the
psstimo derive from 1t, the sale
of Ash creates revenue for hundreds and
hundreds Of tho people in the state. and fish |
furnishes, too, food for thousands who, with
out this article Of diet, would probably 60
hungry. WIN not ther, the legislature do
something in the premises3 All ofthe older
states have acted in the matter, and il Is time
that Texas was upwiih the times and the
requirments Of the hour.