White Pine news. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1920-1923, 1923-08-05

Ud0J OAk
strang waters in White Pine coun-
ty. far from parent, guardian or
or any personal acquaintance
whatever, and to be thus bereft is a
greater sorrow to them than any
hody not having a personal acquaint-
ance with them or with any fish
and their ways will realize. These
a~partcular fish had a personal ac-
k~uaintance with A. G. Powell, the
game warden who raised them from
earliest infancy and fed them every
day. They knew him personally
from any stranger, as well as other
animals know their masters, N
would come to him in their fish
troughs at the White Pine hachery,
I'D Murry canyon when they would
give a stranger a wide berth, and
they were only baby fish at that.
Not only would they flock to "a
part of the troughs where the war
den would place his hand in h
water and show their affection by
following him about from one end
of their troughs to another, but to
further prove their desire for i!lal
care when a few thousand of them
were nut in larger and deeper res
eryoirs at the hatchery they would
hang about the shore at the spot
where they were put in, not ventur-
ing into the wilderness of the deeper
water and further regions OF dismal
doubt. watching for the same Mr..
Powell to come and keep them COM
pany and to feed them when he took
a notion, or when, according 70 his
formula, such substantial refresh
ments were due.
The places to which Mr.. Powell
has taken these interesting young
fry are and far between.
Thew comprise the majority of the
running water IN White Pine coun-
ty-eyerything from a rivulet with
the water volume of q drinking
tain up to the navigable sort for
which Uncle Sam would appropriate
millions on pork barrel river II
harbor improvements if there were
such Improvements that could be
called feasible in White Pine coun-
tv. But of the latter the number IS
so few as to have attained the van
ishing point in the territory in cues
tion. So the streams here mentioned
will not include any of that amb1-
tious class.
These are the places where the
fish were taken: White river. Hor'
ton creek, Steptoe, Duck, Ferry,
Timber, Bird, Indian, East, Cleve,
Taft, Mccoy, Bassett, Piermont, Kali
(mazoo, Muncy, Baker, Lehman.
make, strawberry, Silver, Niger
and quite a few others.
The number thus distributed in
clude around 100000 rainbow trout,
far more than that many black
speckled and something under 90
600 %steelheads. Under 100000 yet
remain in the troughs. as the plant
ing season is almost over for this
year.
AS taken out they average in
length from one to three inches and
are as lively and able to make their
own way in the world as n fish
three times their size.
Not many people in Ely realize
that there is such an interesting
feature for local visitation as the
hatchery. BY going and enjoying
half an hour in looking it over TN
der the guidance of Mr.. Powell they
would learn a whole lot. Most OF
these fish are brought here as spawn
in the winter time and are placed
in the troughs under a roof, where
they hatch out, n from that time
on until they are planted in the
county's numerous streams they
nave to be fed. They Will eat most
anything, but their rations consist
principally of finely ground liver,
clabbered milk, eggs and sometimes
they lunch on bread crumbs. They
are even so %voradious that they feast
on each other, being cannibals at an
early age. Often dead or wounded
ones, thus attacked il the savagery
of their brethren, are found floating
at the top Of the water in their
troughs. The little terriers bite
each other in the head, possibly to
pluck out their eyes, as it Is SAID
fish eyes are great bait for their
elders, Their ranks are supposed
to be depleted when they get in the
streams to which they are moved in
similar fashion by larger ones of
their species. That is understood
to be the reason why they are so
timid when placed in strange waters.
They have the further fear of bod
lily harm from water snakes, which
prey upon them constantly. At the
hatchery, in the outdoor pools
much poaching is done by these
snakes. One day Mr.. Powell caught
six snakes in the act Of summing
themselves on a little sandbar, and
all he did to them was to pick Ave
Cf them off with his 80 rife, which
he keeps handy for the purpose, and
the last known he was hot on the
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