The Saint Paul globe., 1897-06-05
is MAKING A CONSIDERABLE
AMOUNR OF WORK FOR THE
a-~ mSH COMMISSION.
LAKES ITO BE- REsT0cKED
REQUIRING NO I4TT-TLE Off.
GIAE ATTENTION.
SOUTHERN MINNESOTA WATERS
Especially Are Receiving Immediate
Attention Mt the Hands of the
State Commission.

With the present high stage of water
in the streams and lakes Of the state,
due to the recent rains, there is devolv-
ing upon the state game and fish COM
mission a great pressure for the sup
ply of lakes with fish, which in
recent years, while they have not lost
their identity, have suffered consider
ably from the apparent drying up Of
the country.
In many case lakes which were for
merly magnificent sheets of water by
the lowering Of their level, especially
where the outlets were shallow chan
nels without any marked descent.
have been reduced to a condition of
stagnation that was fatal to fish habi-
tatlon. The return of good stage of
water, however, has restored hope in
the minds of the neighbors of these
ponds that the old days are return
ing and an almost constant demand is
being made on the state game and
fish commission for stock to supply
these lakes.
Executive Agent Fullerton has been
pressed strongly in a number of such
cases where he is reluctant to take
action before the next meeting of the
commission, in view of the possible
transient character of the present
stage, but where lakes, in spite Of the
lowering of their level, have kept such
a stage and such a circulation that
there is no apparent doubt of their
ability to sustain the life of the finny
creatures an effort will be made to
restock them where it is evident that
the depletion of the reserves has been
due to human visitation and not to
natural causes.
This is a matter of considerable i'm
portance, especially to Southern Min
nesota, where the population easily ac-
cessible to the lakes has been larger,
and where, for that reason, any losses
by reason of seasonable droughts have
been more conspicuous. The Northern
lakes, as rule, have their regular
clientele Of fishing parties year after
year, many of whom come from long
distances, but the demand on the fish
stocks has not been as heavy as in
the more thickly settled sections. 1t
is these lakes which Mr.. Fullerton will
endeaVor to reStock in order that the
people of these section of the state
may have a good supply.
lie has. already given assurances to
Representative J. H. Manchester. of
Lake Benton, who, by the way, is in
the city now looking after the con-
signmentjQ Qto- place a large number of
black bass in the pretty sheet of water
IN LinceinI county which, in. contradis-,
tinction to- the village, is known as
Benton Lake. Heron Lake, in jack
son county, will be the depository of a
considerable number of young fish also.
for while the loss there has not been
SO marked as in some of the other
iakes' 1T seems time take hand, and
before the lake is depopulated an ef-
fort will be made to restock it. There
are number of lakes, also, in Murray,
Far1bault, Blue Earth, Nicollet and
Sibley counties. all of them within
easy reach of large centers of popula-
tien, which will receive the attention
Of the commission at an early date,
and the supervisor of hatcheries will
be kept pretty busy all summer no
doubt, in the distribution Of the fish to
such lakes.