The Republican journal., 1903-05-14
WATCHING THE HERRING.
Queer Fish These in Their Dislike of
Cloudy, Cold Weather.

Cloudy, Cold Weather.
had been watching the herring for
an hour or more as they struggled
| through the sluce to the dam. The fall
| of the water over the gates was un-
usually heavy that day, as was also the
| run of herring. For a week they had
been struggling in from the sea, but to-
day they poured in by thousands. The
stream was clogged.
| Something their increased numbers
and greater rivalry, perhaps notice
ably excited the fish. They seemed cleo
tric with it. Perhaps this school had
been delayed by the cold April weather,
and now must reach the pond to lay
/ their eggs and were In hurry, for L
had never seen them scramble over one
another in quite this rush before.
| The unusual excitement was less
manifest in their mad rush upstream
! than in their still madder rush at the
! falls. On any running day a few OF the
stronger, bolder fish, finding their way
barred by a four-foot dam, try to cllmD
over through the edown-pourlng sheet OF
water. The vast majority, however.
not unlike, | suppose, the majority OF
men-coming to the impossible barrier,
, stop in the easy pen built for them
beneath the falls, and are content to be
scooped out, for picking and fishbait,
most of them, though few are carried
up in barrels to the spawning ponds.
But to-day it was different. Instead
of the usual few there were many fight
ing to get over. | had watched them
time and time again, but had never
seen one pass the four feet of sheer
falling water In Wild Life Near
Home have described how they would
dart through the foam into the great
sheet of water, strike it like an arrow,
rise straight up through it, hang an
instant in midfall, and be hurled back
and killed, often, on the rocks beneath.
To-day | felt new thrill as | watch
ed them Something of the evident
excitement among the fish possessed
me- | somehow knew that, as the
horsemen put it, '''The track was faster
to-day''-that the swimmers were on
their mettle, that a record would be
| broken.
The falls were all a-hash and a-glitter
with the dirting fishes. Not only was
there greater number in the contest;
there was also a much higher average
! lump than usual. Over and over again
one would get within half foot OF the
lip of the gate.
soon | noticed that it seemed to be a
certain fish that made this highest
mark. followed her as she fell back,
and, though it was impossible through
the foam and thick rush of other forms
to keep her in sight, yet | am sure that
each time she rose it was with pecu-
liar bound showing particularly long
1.-the body And each time she fell,
peculiar good luck attended, or else 1t
was that her superior sense and training
served her, for each time she landed
Just between or just beyond the rocks.
Again she flashed through the foam
and hung. fixed like silver arrow in
the dark water Just below the edge.
Again she fell. | was excited. Flash.
flash. flash a score OF the shining ones
shot into the falls, when over, above
them, flashed the long, 1.-the form of
the winner striking one of the weaker
rivals beneath her just as she reached
her highest mark, and bounding side
wise from her, glanced over the dam
and was gone.
The record was broken, and within
five minutes, by the same curious hap,
another turned her silver side over the
great hurdle and dived into the quiet
pool beyond.
1t is rather paradoxical state OF
things that creatures like these fish
hate cloudy, cold weather and rain and
will not leave the ocean willingly for
the shallow fresh waters unless the sun
shines and wind suits and the tempera-
ture is to their liking. There is some
reason for tie chickens staying in when
it rains: but what need have herring of
umbrellas?- Lore Sharpe in May
St. Nicholas.