Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-11-08
A MILLION OF SHAD
Let Loose Into the Potomac by the FisI
Commission.

Let Loose Into the Potomac by the Fish
Commission.
At low tide this morning . gate was opened
and six-acre pond down near the monument
was drained Oh into the river. Along with the
water over million wr1gglinR
shad found their way into the
Potomac to make their temperance
few years hence at as many different
breakfasts and dinners. The work today was
under the supervision Of Col Mcdonald, the
fish commissioner, and DR.. Rudolph Hessel,
who is in charge Of the fish ponds A number
Of interested spectators were on hand to watch
operations and to get chance to see shad by
Wholesale.
After the gates had been lifted and while the
pond was rapidly joining the Drumming river
Col Mcdonald talked at some length with q
STAR reporter on the subject of shad culture.
COL M'DoNALD TALKS.
"This putting out of over million shad that
are big enough to look out for themselves, and
that in consequence will probably arrive at
maturity, is a very important event The shad
fishing today is on an artificial basis as truly as
are the grain fields Of the west. II you don't
plant wheat you won't have wheat, and it is
the same with shad. Our rivers are so COM
pletely blocked up with nets every spring that
very few shad can ever get up to spawn. and
If 1t were not for artificial culture the shad
fishery would soon disappear. But as it is the
shad catch this last spring was double in size
what it was in 1880 and it is constantly increas-
ing. The Potomac catch this year was
10000. Today we put back three times that
many, and, remember, these shad that 60 back
are not fry; they are well-grown fish. Hith-
erto we have only put in small fry, but our
plan now is to keep the shad in ponds until as
late in the fall as they can be kept safely and
then to turn them out into the river. Shad of
that size are worth fifty times the same num-
Der OF fry so far as their chances Of growing up
are concerned.
WHAT THE PRESENT PLAN IS.
'The plan now is to have big ponds on the
side of each of the shad streams of the country
and turn out lingering shad in the fall instead
of letting them 60 soon as they are Matched
in the spring. In my opinion this is one of
the most important moves the fish commission
has ever made. We making arrange
ments now for operating 10O-acre
pond on the Delaware next spring, and
we expect most valuable results. The expense
is practically nothing, and the number of shad
that can be raised simply depends on the size
of the pond One hundred and fifty thousand
to the acre can be raised without any trouble
on the natural food of the water and, with arti-
fetal feeding, this number can be greatly in
creased.
There is no doubt that in order to keep up
the fish supply of the country tho waters must
be farmed by the government just as the land
Is by individuals. The Agricultural Depart
ment aids in many ways, but the farmer does
the work on land; but on the water the
government has to do ali the work.
even to the Matching and distribution of the
fish. This work is of inestlmable value, too,
for wherever an edible fish is introduced into
the waters of this country or the number of
those already existing Is increased the economic
resources and the material wealth of the coun-
try are increased to that extent"