Morning journal and courier., 1886-08-09
A CAPE COB ENTERPRISES.
Stocking a Fresh.Water Pond with
Saltwater EeIs.

[Fron the Cape Cod Item.1
Do you remember last summer letter
| wrote about eel farming? It seems the arti
| Gle attracted some attention because of the
queer industry it described, and to this
| season, at request of the editor, visited this
place again, and am prepared to report. Per
| haps you may not remember that [ then
stated that two gentlemen on Cape Cod had
purchased fresh water pond of several &C
res and stocked it with fresh-water eels.
The fish, unlike most others, are much at
home in fresh-water as in salt; in fact you
will always find them in fall and winter in
| all fresh-water creeks that have connection
with the ocean in any way. At that time,
and since, these gentlemen have put into the
| ponds sixty barrels of eels. Now, barrel
will average to hold 2, 300 fish, SO we may
safely count at the present time there are no
less than 140, 900 eels in the pond which have
grown double, yes, quadruple their size since
they were put in.
The flesh of an eel grown in fresh water,
contrary to the opinion of those who have
only eaten them grown in their native
waters, is very pleasant and agreeable, and
why should it not be, when consider that
all fresh water fish peculiarly delicious
eatings The prejudice which you find on the
seacoast is not shared away from it, and
dealers who have purchased these fish have
been eager to have fresh supplies, which
There is comical part to the story after
all. Last fall, when the demand for eels
began, the owners started for their mine,
prepared to bring forth the treasure, when 10
and beholdi not an eel was to be fo ind. Some
said that they had gone to warmer climates
for the winter; some that they had gone
to China, others that they had found
an outlet to the ocean, and it was good bye
eels.
Bakers folly became a standard joke. ga
prophet is not without honor save in his own
country" This proverb, SO old and yet so
true, was here. Common sense taught the
owners that the fish were safely housed in
the mud for the winter, and while regretting
years profit lost, they did not give up. 1
said profit lost 1 should have said put in the
bank-mud bank.
When spring came and the warm weather
thawed them out they came forth in thou
sands; huge balls of living eels rolled out of
the mud as big as bucket, twined in and
out ike-well, like nothing on earth or un-
der the earth, and when they were fed the
water fairly alive with those squirming,
snake-like creatures. Some idea of it may be
had by knowing that for meal ton of food
what is called on the Cape "horse feet"
was thrown into the pond. That was at
night; every shell was cleaned as nicely
as you could do it with care and pa
tience. Now didn't those fish weigh a ton
more?
To feed this enormous aquarium ten men
are employed with two ''lighters' gathering
horse feet, bringing 1000 at load. A
large pond or inclosure already holds 10000,
and this pumber will be increased to $4,000.
In July the owners will begin to take them
out and send them to market, and if they do
not meet with a lively demand 1 shall be
much surprised.
1t is rare sight to see this army of fish fed.
When the food is thrown into the pool you will
see them coming in all directions and in such
numbers that the water fairly boils with
them. They seem to be aware that the time
has arrived for dinner and by some sort of
intelligence they come from the furthermost
points of the pond. The men who prepare
the food frequently find themselves standing
several feet deep in a mass of squirming fish.
I think may safely say that nothing like it
was ever known before and the financial re-
suit will determine whether or not there will
ever be known anything like it again. am
not ready to offer any opinion on that point;
I will leave it for time to decide; but
still 1 can't refrain from saying, with
Colonel Sellers, "thsre's millions in it, !" more
or less.
will leave you to take your choice what
refer to-dollars or cells.