El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-08-24

market on an extensive scare -selected
parents being induced 70 oreea IN
snau1n on willow roots tied at the edge
Of the water Similar Work IS now be-
! ing down in our own country ne" va
rieties being developed from Japanese
stock by certain socletles % a pnfiu,
in large cities. New YORK. PhIade!-
nhia and baltimore have their aquari-
nm Societies. and Chicago Fish Fan
ciers' club In the interest," OF these
organizations Magazine SatiS4 me
Aonari1In," is published. Exhibitions
are given periodically, and prizes are
awarded. only a short time ago the
philadelphia Aquarium soclety oLIeIeq
a blue ribbon for scaIeless AIlhs eIali
telescope" goldfish -
goldfish can undoubtedly be done (say
the experts) with any OF the Important
food or game species-not, however,
with a view to developing ololoslc
curiosities but for their lIlpLo .Si.s...
in size. food quality, ana harolness
1t is altogether likely that slhnlIdr eA-
nerirnents will be undertaken later on
bv private individuals and concerns,
and in the not-distant future we may
have competitions among amateur
trout cuIfIIrists, with prizes awarded
for the largest and most beautifully
colored brook trout ... -
THE enthusiasm and ingenuity OF
amateurs may lend important sneip N
1tT,ost nractical consequence. While
the population Of this country IS
steadily and rapidly growing our
natural fishery resources are desuneu
slowly, but surely. 70 oimInlsn;
cordingly. we shall be obliged IN the
fufure TO depend more and more upon
artificial culture, and fish oreeolnS
as a private commercial enterprise will
eventually obtain large importance. II
follows, then, that we must learn now
to produce the best fishes possible
We must improve them just as we nave
Improved our domestic animals.
one of the most important oo)ects
Of the contemplated experiment sta
ton will be to develop haroy ana 1 T,1
ease-resistant races of hshes. Inc
cultivation of finny species, as OF 90
nestle animals, predisposes to maiadles
from which the wild are pracucaIIy
free. Thus IL is that serious losses are
caused by epidemics among young
fishes and brood stock at the federal
and state hateheries, The experts nave
already found out a good deal about
the causes and cures Of these diseases;
but it Is important that they should
It will surprise most people to
learn that fishes are subject to nearly
every disease that afflicts human pc
ings Among them might be men
toned boils, a malay similar 10 snldtl
pox, liver disease, fatty degeneration
Sers and sleeping sickness. If fishes
ESCAPE pneumonia and whoeping cough
it is because they have no lungs
Cost of Hntcheries.
Reckoning the cost Of ma1ufac-
ture." etc, the output of the 81 fed
eral hatcheries, eggs and fry rep
resents a commercial value of at least
81, 600, 600 annually. This property Is
constantly imperiled by epidemlcs. Inc
bases and trouts are particularly
liable to germ infections. Not long
ago at one of the stations OF the fish
cries bureau prospective output OF
!. 100000 yearling brook trout was re
duced to one-fifth within few weeks
by an ahscure bacterial disease
The most serious and destructive OF
the diseases with which the fish cul-
turists have to contend is cancer, which
affects the thyoid gland of salmon ana
trout It makes frightful ravages IN
the government and state hateheries
At one of the -.ew York state hatch
cries an epidemic Of this malady not
long ago killed $500 brood trout. and
in the following summer DESTROYED 5000
more. practically depopulating the
This is matter of special and pecu-
liar Importance, because there IS no
certainty that cancer in fishes may not
have a direct relation to cancer in
human beings. There is no more rea-
son for supposing that people contract
the disease as a result of eating in
fected fishes than there is for imaSin-
ing that the fishes are infected through
the pollution Of water from human
! sources. But it is noticed that the
finny victims of cancer are native to
/ regions where the malady is most prev
alent among human beinEs-that Is 70
say. in mountainous. well-wooded ana
! we'll watered districts. For example,
cancer prevails TO an alarming extent
in the Adirondacks.
Making Fish Immune to Disease.
The successful efforts of plant
breeders in obtaining races of plants
immune to disease suggests similar
! possibilities where fishes are con-
cerned. With this idea in view, an
experiment in breeding a race OF brook
trout proof against bacterial infection
is now being made at Worthwhile, Mich.
where 10000 fry have been placed
to take and fertilizc eggs from such
| specimens as survive in the presence
| Of a large number that have succumbed
! and thus to obtain "immunes" which
will be distributed to other trout
, Matching stations To secure i'm
as such may require selection through
| a series Of generations, but the eventual
/ result can hardly fail to be successful.
There is connection, as yet not
| well understood. between cancer and
| water. A case reported 10 the recent
| international cancer congress was that
| of a certain count and countess in
| WuFitenberg who both died of can
/ Ger. It came out that nearly every
body in that particular neighborhood
\ succumbed 10 the same malady. The
| story reached the ears of the German
! kaiser. who has cancer in his own fam
/ lily, and he, being greatly interested,
| sent his personal physician, Dr. Stick
| er, to investigate. DR.. Sucker visited
/ the estate. found there a pond 1000 feet
/ long by 600 feet wide, on one side Of
| which was the castle, while on the
! other were farm buildings, and around
! one end a village of the counts retain
ers-the butcher. the baker. the shoe
/ maker, etc. It was learned that in the
/ last ten years 20 persons in the village
J and castle had died of cancer-eigh1
| of these from cancer of the stomach
| Further inquiry disclosed the fact that
water pumped out of the pond was
used both in castle and village fol
/ drinking purposes, without filtration
! But the most interesting circumstance
| of all was that carp. taken from the
pond with a seine, proved to be af-
! flicted with cancer.
The moral of which. so far as il
! concerns the government work. is thai
/ the fisheries bureau must be sure that
l the fish 1t matches and distributes
! over the country are free from disease
! For reasons hygienic as well as eco
/ nomic, IL is of importance to breed dis
| eaSe-resfStant races. and this, as al