The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-06-30

with good fishes, and improving mat ters generally, we. of course, encounter more or less opposition from the ignor- ant. No one is more ignorant of the nature and habits of fish than the av- craze fisherman. They belong to a class from whom it is absolutely inn possible to get any satisfactory infor- nation. Their minds are filled with myths and superstition. I am happy to say. however. that we have com pletely converted the shad and herring fishermen of the Potomac and Susque- hanna rivers and Chesapeake bay. They are firm believers in the good work being done by the commission, and as a result of our teaching they have all learned how to remove the spawn from the shad they take; how to keep it fresh and from spelling until they can reach one of our stations or hatcheries; and to deliver the spawn at the station we maintain at Havre de Frace, Md, and other points on the wa ters I have mentioned
 Nearly every shad one meets floWa- days on these waters is a spawn taker. ... "The fishermen realize that if this spawn is allowed to go to waste, or is thrown back into the water. where it is likely to be devoured by other fish, he is paving. the way to the ultimate ex- tinction of the shad, when, by taking it to the commission station, wherelit is matched and the young kept safely un- til they are old enough to take care of themselves, he will have more shad to catch and sell next season. Thus, in ttlligent cooperation and good feeling on the part of the fishermen for the commission officials, have operated to keep the Potomac, the Susquehanna and the Chesapeake teeming with good fish, whereas in other streams ignor- ance and opposition have operated to- gether to reduce the number of fish in some rivers, almost to the point of ex- tinction.''
 Speaking of the fads that have taken the country by storm several times, during which a great run was made on certain fish, Mir Titcomb said: Some fifteen years ago German carp were in troduced indiscriminate1y in all the ponds, lakes and rivers in the United States, many of which should have been kept free of carp. However, like the English sparrow, they are here to stay, and so we will have to make the best of the matter. The Illinois river appears to have been better adapted for carp than any other stream in America, and they have since thriven amazingly. not only in the Illinois river, but all over that state, which is to-day the great carp region of America. The reason of this is that the carp is sometimes a vegetarian, and as the Illinois is 8 muddy, sluggish stream, flowing. through a low, rich region, and fre- quently overfowirg and covering vast stretches of country, the carp have found things better suited to their wants there than elsewhere, because, during these frequent overflows, there is a vast deal of green stuff under wa ter for. them to eat. In Germany the farmers have habit of. drawing the Wters of one carp pond off into another btsin, and raising a crop of corn, beans or onions on it's bottom, and as soon as the crop is harvested, the water, carp included, is turned back in again, and the carp feed on the stalks, roots, etc, of the crop just gathered.
 'grhe value of the carp as food and game fish in this country seems to be matter of doubt Just at present there. is an interesting controversy in pro- gress between the sportsmen and the fish dealers. The former assert that the carp, in addition to being a poor food fish, lazy, sluggish, and without a single game quality, destroys and de- yours the spawn and young of the black bass. The dealers reply by citing the example of certain hotels in New York, the Waldorf-Astoria, for example, where Illinois carp appear on the menu at seventy y-five cents a plate, and fresh Atlantic mackerel at sixty-hve cents. I think the sportsmen are mistaken in the bass matter. The bass cover up and conceal their nests and spawn so we'll that the carp cannot find them, and I take notice that in the Illinois river, where carp are more numerous than elsewhere, the black bass are on the increase. Washington Post.