Evening journal., 1892-06-27
FISH IN THE DELAWARE
The Rivers Value in Food Pro-
duction to Be Increased
THOUSANDS OF SALMON AND sHAD.

THOUSANDS OF SALMON AND sHAD
Great Increase In the Numbers and Price
of shad That are Annually Taken From
the stream Nuts for the sporting Men
and Angler salmon WIN soon Abound
In Great Numbers.
The Delaware river which annually
furnishes thousands Of fish of various
descriptions 20 the people living along It's
shores. and within days ride of IL, and
which also affords many days
Of sport to the pleasure.seeking
angler. is becoming more famous i'm this
every year The entire stream, says
Philadelphia paper is being restocked
by the fish commission of Pennsylvania,
while the United States Fish Commits
sion detailed one Of it's most
important Matching steamers, the Fish
hawk. TO the Delaware for two months Of
duty this spring About 300, 600 salmon
have been deposited in the headwaters
of the river
The water Of the Delaware in the
upper part of It's course Is very cold, the
river being fed by cold mountain brooks
and is well adapted Co the growth and
development Of salmon. Trout are
caught i'm the Delaware i50 miles be-
low its source, which indicates that the
coldness Of the water and the tempera.
ture necessary for the proper growth
and development OF salmon is about the
same as that of trout
The Delaware river from the New
York state line TO tidewater at Trenton Is
nothing but "a succession Of reefs and
pools. and I'm this respect is better
adapted for the growth of salmon than
any river south OF the New England
coast
The 100000 eggs from which these
salmon were Matched were obtained from
the United States hatchery in Maine by
the Pennsylvania Commission. These
eggs were distributed between the
/ hatcheries at Allentown and Cory Pa
100, 900 at each place neither hatchery
being able TO accommodate the entire
guam ity
The salmon which were deposited last
week win remain I'm the Delaware about
two years, and until they are about ten
inches in length, when they will descend
the stream and go out into the ocean
where they usually remain from two tt
three years. When they return from the
ocean they have attained n weight OF
from twelve 20 eighteen pounds. ThePenn
sylvaniaCommission was led 20 try this eX
pertinent from the success of a simila
plan by the New Jersey Commission n
1887 at which time the fish were place.
very low down the river. below thi
Water Gap. and returned from the sea n
1889 and 1890 and many salmon wer
caught I'm the Delaware ranging /
weight from twelve 90 twenty-five pound
each. They were principally caugh
In shad nets at that time, there bein
no law for their protection The ac
, passed by the last Legislature making
closed season for salmon and forbidden
their capture by apv other means tha
rod, hook and line, and also forbiddin
b the taking of fish under three pounds
weight will no doubt, protect the smell
from being taken out Of the river befoi
going 20 SEN In 1890 100, 600 salmo
had been placed in head waters of u
river and last summer number Of thel
were captured by parties ignorant ,
the name Of the fish at the time Of I'll
taking This shows that the fry had d.
veloped in the river during the shoi
period they were placed there
Besides the work done by the commi
p sion i'm stocking the Delaware with sha
8 and salmon its efforts have also been e.
e erted in the stocking of other large rive
q of the state, at the Erie hatchery
y present from 10000 900 20 90, 900, Ol
q pike-perch are being Matched Besid
D. this $4,000, 600 Of white fish ha'
2 just been hatched and planted
70 Lake Erie Several millions
& these pike-perch have been brought Ea
and placed in the Delaware. Susquehann
a Juniata, Schuylkill and Lehigh river
d and some of the larger ones in lowlaI
creeks of the state These fish attai n
weight of from fifteen 20 eghte'
pounds and are very good table fish,
u takes from three TO FIVE years after u
y planting of these fish for their develol
II ment TO be perceived.
, Besides these fish the commission ha'
= placed in the Delaware large numbers
z pike, strawberry bass, whitebass an
/ rock bass They have all been put
p the Delaware above the Water Gap. T
?; rock bass, which were first placed in q
IL river a few days ago. are already We
'e numerous OF the others, the depo'
has been too recent 10 show much resu
p as yet, although the pike-perch that we
III put in the upper part Of the river Il
l. years age are quite numerous. The Del
ware has been stocked with 'shad a
nually for the last seven years. The
b. struction Of fish weirs In the Delawai
\ and the introduction Of fish ways in I
= dam at Lackawaxen has enabled Z
/. people Of the upper valleys TO fish 81
I, cessfully for shad over 100 miles abo
+ that town. and has increased the sh
y production Of the Delaware from a val
w. $50. 600 in 1881 to from $500, 900
$1,000 annually in the last TIN
years
work of the $. =. G. G..
= The quarterly meeting of the manag
81, ] - a.. Eo.sof,r ~ pravnpff ION of Crup