National Republican., 1883-10-31
DISTRIBUTING CARP.

Tho First shipment OF the seHson Made
Yesterday-How the Fish are Trans
ported.
The shipment of young fish to oil parts of
tho United States by the fish commission was
inaugurated last evening by the departure
for Louisville, KY, of one Of the commits
sion's new cars, freighted with 15,0i0 Ger
man leather carp, the propagation product of
ono pond in tho Monument lot. This pond
was drained off Monday morning and tho
large fish put in the ponds, adjoining, the
small ones being removed to the old armory
building, which is now occupied as the com
missions shipping depot.
The new car was inspected by REPUBLI-
CAN reporter just before its departure yester-
day. 1t is in charge Of Mr.. j. Frank Ellis,
with Mr.. f. p. Burket as assistant. and Robert
Timburs as cook. The interior is arranged
for dining, sleeping, and cooking, with storage
room for 500 half gallon tin pals. The carp
are transported in tho latter, about eight fish
to each pail They arc carried in long lock-
ers along the cars sido. The water in tho
pals is replenished, sometimes every
twelve hours, and often only every forty
and vessels is regulated by steam pipes and
cold air forced into the lockers from q large
ico'box in one end of tho car Fresh air is
supplied by q patent apparatus which re-
ceives its motive power from the car wheels
while in motion. At one end of the car is
the kitchen and dining room, and at
the other the Office and superin-
tendents room. For tho use of visitors
and other members of tho crew
six berths and as many lockers are con
veniently arranged along the car, and can be
folded out Of sight during tho daytime. Be-
side the crew, Mr.. VIM. Smith, superintend-
ent of the United States botanical garden,
to Louisville. The 392 pals
of carp which left yesterday
will be distributed in the state of kentucky.
The car and 1000 of the fish will be placed
on temporary exhibition at the Louisville
exposition, after which it will return to
Washington and distribute another large
supply TO the states and territories on the
| line Of tho Northern Pacific railway.
The fish commission have two more cars.
One of them is at Wilmington, Dol, and will
be here next Monday or Tuesday. The other
is being rapidly constructed. These cars are
models of beauty, ease, and comfort.
The distribution of carp will continue un-
ceasingly until the middle of JGnury. After
! that time the same cars will begin distribut-
ing white fish from the propagating ponds in
the lake region, and when that work is COM
| pleted it will be time to distribute young
shad from the hatcheries at the Washington
navy yard and Havre de Grace, Md. Among
the visitors who inspected the car and
its contents yesterday were Justices Harlan
and Fields, of the supreme court, and Judge
French, of the court of Alabama claims
They were shown through the car and ship
| ping depot by Superintendent Mcdonald who
remarked to Justice Harlan, that "the Ger
man leather carp takes the place among fish
that the hog docs among animals"
Applications for young carp are constantly
being received from all portions of the coun'
| nv m N H.
stantly being asked the commissioners. To
answer the latter, they are preparing PAM
phlet, which will contain, among other things
the following description of the carp:
"The carp is pond fish, and is especially
adapted to small bodies of still and muddy
water. They are not, properly speaking, {
game fish. They can be wintered in cellar
with proper caro-. They are quite hardy,
and can be kept alive out of water, if in mass
twenty-four hours There are three species
of the carp-the scale, leather, and mirror
AS food they are equal or superior to catfish
suckers, perch, and all the common nativ'
varieties. They are fit for the table from DC
tober to May. Carp will thrive in ditche
or cranberry bogs if free from turtle
or snakes They grow rapidly in warn
water and very slowly in cold. They viii
live in water so shallow that their back
sometimes protrude They are sluggish
fish, and care nothing for running water
and pigs are on a farm, and will soon become
accustomed to coming to certain spot on th
edge of the pond every day and eating from
your hand. Kitchen refuse is good food fo
them and they will rapidly fatten and grow
on such diet. Salt meats and alkali are in
furious. Fish thus fed sometime grow to tn
weight of from so to 75 pounds each. l
properly cared for five-year-od carp will
spawn 10000 eggs annually. Tho carp will
not destroy other fish. Their worst enemie
are frogs, minks, mud cats, turtles, snakes
catfish, trout, and other fish. Th
value of carp is shown by tn
fact that they are sold by private fish cul
turists at So per pair, or $S5 per 100. A one
acre pond will produce 1900 pounds tn
first year. and $500 pounds each year there
after. In Europe they are sold in the market
at rather high prices.
Several gentlemen in this city have signi
fed their intention of constructing ponds ant
raising these edible fish for table use.
| on, /. SI