Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-24
FISH TN WATER MAINS
PIPES FREQUENTLY CLoGGED BY
MAMMOTH EELs.
The Employees of q Street Pumping
Station Go Fishing Twice
Week.

Twice each week the employees of the U
street pumping station go fishing 1t Is
more of a business than pleasure, for the
water mains of the city must be kept free
os fish, and, Notwithstanding the vigil of
these men, now and then, as the good
housewives of Washington know to their
sorrow, big eel gets into the house supply
pipe.
1t is to remedy this very thing that the
men of the pumping station go fishing, and
a reporter of The Star was present this
morning when the trap was sprung, and
score or so of great, squirming cells were
brought to the sidewalk The spot where
the men fish is a few yards west of the
pumping station. At this point the water
from the distributing reservoir passes Into
the pumping station, and is forced through
the mains throughout the city. The great
pipe which leads to the pump is protected
with wire screen in order to keep the fish
from getting through At times there has
been such large accumulation of the ~finny
tribe at this screen as to reduce the water
supply, and so as a matter of business and
precaution this hole Is regularly fiShed. and
the men never go away with fisherman's
luck
An ingenious colored employee of the
pumping station devised a means of catch
ing the fish which were a few years ago
emptied into the sewer. He carefully con-
structed with stout wire a conical-shaped
net, around which he secured a piece Of
common bagging. This is pressed over the
pipe which leads into the sewer and Sc
curely fastened. A wave of the hand tells
the engineer to turn on the blowoff, and
under the pressure of good many pounds
of steam the fish which have accumulated
about the screen are forced into the pipe
which leads to the sewer, and finally caught
in the trap at the end.
Witnessed by Crowd.
n,,,t bie
ing shortly after nine o'clock and watched
with great interest the modus operandi of
fishing through the streets of the capital
city. One good housewife who happened
along at the pumping station saw the
squirming cells, gave vent to an expression
of disgust and said:
"Ughi do we have to drink the water
these things live in?'
Yes, madam" answered the practical
Isaac Walton, they are all right, they're
cells"
"Gracious, 1 would as soon have snakes
in the water! What are you going to do
with them?''
I'VE are going to eat them for lunch"
The housewife left amid a chorus of
laughter from the colored contingent pres
ent, who eyed the few catfish in the net
with expressions of longing and devotion.
The reporter asked Engineer Boyd, who
has charge of the pumping station, If the
eels annoyed the department to any great
extent
Yes, 1t is the same trouble all over the
world wherever there is a water service
system Contrary to the general belief We
are not worried so much with the fish that
get into the pipes as fish. 1t is the spawn
which does the damage. The spawn of
the cells is very small and 1t enters the
pipes and matches and the cells which are
found in the service pipes Of cities are from
these very eggs. Matched and matured I'M
der the streets of Washington"
But do I understand you to say" In
terrogated the reporter, that there is no
device to prevent this thing?''
Filtration the Only Preventive.
There is none so far as 1 know except
filtration. One Of these days Washington
will have a filtration plant, and then there
will be no more fishing in the pipes
Are cells the only species of fish caught
in the pipes?' asked the Star man.
No. oftentimes we find black bass,
perch. catfish and sometimes carp. You
must know the class Of fish we have are
divided into two classes, those who come of
their own accord, following the water when
1t is muddy. and those which are caught
by the gravity pressure a the reservoir.
The record catch of the department is an
eel which weighed something like twenty
pounds. was five feet long and as large
around as a mans leg. All of the eels
caught this morning were of good size and
easily marketable. The men fish twice a
week. Monday and Fridays, and it is really
worth the trip to see the novel method in
astual operation.