Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1886-01-07
The Family Fish-POnd.

There are many artesian wells scat
tered all over the Western country, and
most OF them many miles from any
lakes or streams or fish markets Ii is
my opinion that nearly all of the flow
ing wells will furnish enough surplus
water 10 supply a pond that viii supply
family with fish. A very small stream
will furnish enough water for some
ilHds | would recommend carp as be-
ing the fish that would most likely be II
success. ~ they require less care than
aay other lisa. | do not consider them
tlisssvers best q; tisii. because of late
years | have been used ID eating The
very best kinds our country affords. but
| do remember when my mother cooked
the suckers and sinners | caught with a
bent pin. They were the best fish there
WAS IL would undoubtedly be the same
with a family raised on carp They
would be The same to them as sinners
W. re 10 me.
My opinion has often been asked hew
"a carp pond could be constructed for
family use. The pond can be made
in any shape to suit the locality, but
would prefer egg shape if the location
was just as web adapted for it. The
pond would breed flies Of great many
kinds; one of them would be mosqui-
Toes. Tae lara OF ala fiies Is tho best
food for Young fish. | have bred them
by the bushel, but SOME of the mosqui-
toes would be apt to take wing before
the pond got we'll stocked with young
| fish. and TO protect the family in a
measure | would advise building the
pond TO the leeward of the house of the
/ prevailing winds of their locality. If,
for one instance, the pr vailing wind
was from the west, the pond should be
built on the east, northeast or southeast,
because if the pond We're placed directly
east Of the house it would make a les
for them under which they could easily
reach the house They can beat any
sailing craft before the wind, but on
! the wind they are nowhere in the race
as they bave no keel. The whole human
family should be thankful to the Crea-
/ tor for not putting a keel on theuH and
if their bowsprit had not been quite So
sharp they might not receive SO msay
hn ndkerehief salutes from the verandas
of the Long island hotels. but would
he just rs useful and ornamental The
pond can be built with pillow and
scraper- Ii should have deep place
in the center and very shallow on the
edges. II YOU have square sides the
/ young fish would have no protection
from the old ones. When scraping is
commenced, carry the earth AS far back
/ as you intend making the lower outside
of your embankmept Keep scraping
until the pond is four to six feet in the
centre Ii the locality is such that the
ice freezes very thick the pond should
| be made deeper, and holes Kept open
through the ice during the winter to
keep the fish from sutfncating II the
emhankment was raised three feet and
! pounded down aud sodded or sown to
grass the water could be raised so that
but three feet in the centre would have
10 he exeavaied in order to have pond
six feet deep
! The pond should be sowD with some
kind of grass or water plant. with the
exception of about fifty or seveuty-fye
feet square in the center. The grass
and water plants make the spawning
ground. breed food and protect the
young. The ponds should not have
any other kinds of tlsh in them. and il
the grass gets TOO thick it can be raked
! cut. SETH GREEN.