Part 18 (1/2)

”Here,” the man said, after he had answered a dozen or more queries

”I'll show you just how it's done and you'll learnthan I could tell you in a week of talk”

He led the way to a large pond not far from the hatchery, which was connected with a small stream, the water of which was almost entirely fresh

”It's a little early yet for the autumn run,” the fores to be taken We'll have a look, anyway”

”Are there any chinook in there?” queried Colin, as feeling a little proud of the knowledge he had acquired thatthe varieties of salot to go away up the river to spawn and wouldn't be in shape if we tried to use the here, the hatcheries for chinook and silver salmon are away up the river”

”Run by the State or the Government?” queried the boy

”Both,” was the reply, ”and quite a few are ed by commercial fish companies who are as anxious as any one to see that the annual sal depends upon it”

At his request one of theup some of the salmon in the pool to see if any of the his oilskins--picked up a tin pail, holding it between his knees In aa ripe female salmon

”Noatch,” the foreman said to Colin, ”and you can see the whole perforgs ran doard the head Then, holding the fish head upward, he pressed it slightly, and the eggs ran out fro the bottoot the eggs when his assistant came in with aupon the eggs Both s and hlyadded to help the mixture Then he took the pail to the faucet

”But you're washi+ng the ain!” cried Colin, as the foreman filled the pail ater

”It's had plenty of tis were poured into a flat pan and washed several times

”Noe'll put just a little water in the pan,” the foreman continued, ”and leave it here to swell”

”Why should it swell?” asked Colin

”The egg isn't really full when it comes from the mother fish,” the foreman answered, ”the yolk rattles around inside the shell, but after it has been ins to suck up water, and in about half an hour it's full”

”What happens next?” queried Colin

”That's about all We put the eggs in frames so that the water has a chance to circulate freely, and then we go over the fras thatdoes it take before a fish comes out?” Colin asked interestedly ”About a couple of weeks?”

”Weeks!” was the surprised answer; ”we look for hatching to begin in about five s is picked over once or twice a week That keeps dead eggs fro tiether Those in that trough right behind you are just hatching, they're fro run Most of thes in the tray”

Colin looked in and saw, as the fores left in the tray, while in the shalloater of the trough beloere hundreds of tiny fish, like transparent tadpoles still fastened to the yolk of the egg Some, which were just hatched, were less than three-quarters of an inch long, and scarcely able to ht of the yolk about the center of their bodies A few had consue part of the sac

”It'll take theet rid of the yolk,” the fore the boy's question, ”and if they were in a natural stream they would be able to look after therubs and worms and small pieces of liver Fro thehs clean When they are five or six months old we set the here?” Colin asked, as, after aspent in the station, they walked toward the pier

”No,” the fore fish every year and that keeps us busy enough”

”Well,” said Colin, shaking hands, ”I'ed, and I really feel now as if I knew so about a hatchery And I've had a share in one experie he found the professor getting out fishi+ng-tackle