Wisconsin School for the Deaf - Tattler Yearbook (Delavan, WI)

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Nineteen thirty-eight Pagefifteen Fish and Fishing By HAROLD WE1NCOLD WISCONSIN has numerous lakes and rivers that have long contained a great abundance of Hah. As a fishing state, it ranks among the best in the United States. Its streams and lakes attract thousands of people every year. Millions are spent in the state by tourists largely lured by the fishing. In recent years the number of fish decreased rapidly. The people of Wisconsin became alarmed at this growing scarcity. They not only desired good fishing for themselves but they also knew that, when the tourists found no fishing in Wisconsin, they would naturally turn to other slates. This meant the state would lose hundreds of thousands of dollars. Natural reproduction can not now be depended upon. Modern civilization has brought too many factors destructive to fish life, so fish hatcheries were established by the state and proving their worth as the years went by. more and more were built. Today there are about thirty-five hatcheries in Wisconsin scattered all over the state at suitable sites. In these millions of fish are raised which are transported and planted in the waters of Wisconsin. Since 1935 this work has grown in leaps and bounds. In 1935 the distribution increased from around 80 million fish a year to over 500 million. Last year over a billion fish were planted in Wisconsin waters. This year as many or more will be distributed. Muskellungo has been the most highly prized game fish in Wisconsin because of its size and its fighting qualities. Many people come here just for the muskellunge fishing. The legal size limit is 30 inches. By studying the scales of the fish, it has been found that it takes from five to six years for a muskellunge to reach the legal size. Wisconsin, of course, wants to maintain ami increase the supply of muskies in our waters in order to give the pleasure of catching these fresh water tigers to as many people as possible. The raising of muskies in hatcheries is something which many states have attempted with indifferent success or failure. Wisconsin has succeeded and in 1936 distributed nearly seven million young muskies. Muskellunge rearing hus been a very difficult problem as the eggs are not easily handled and the feeding problem is a hard one but the difficulties have been conquered so we can look forward to more and better musky fishing in many Wisconsin waters. Bass, large and small mouth, brook, rainbow. and brown trout, wall-eyed pike and great northern pike are fish that are widely distributed throughout the state and which are eagerly sought after. All are raised by the millions in the state hatcheries and placed in its lakes, rivers and smaller streams. In Lake Winnebago is caught the armor plated sturgeon of which Longfellow wrote in Hiawatha. This fish grows to great size, but is scarce. It is caught through the ice in winter in I ake Winnebago. The state has many panfish such as perch, sunfish, bluegills. bullheads, crappies and rock bass. Del van Lake was long famous for its bluegills. Beaver Dam Lake once swarmed with bullheads. There is a story that when the early settlers around Beaver Dam wanted fish they removed the tail gate of their wagon box. backed the wagon into the lake until the water filled the box. Then they replaced the tail gate and drove home with a wagon load of bullheads. Besides all these game and food fish Wisconsin has other species called rough fish. The principal rough fish, native to Wisconsin, ure the bufTalo. suckers, red horse, sheephead, eel-pout, dogfish and garfish. The carp is not a native but millions of them are in Wisconsin waters. Rough fish are destructive to game fish. Garfish, dogfish, and sheephead are cannibals and destroy many desirable fish, nevertheless, the carp is the worst enemy though it is only a vegetarian. It stirs up (he mud which then blankets gamefish eggs that soon suffocate and die. Also waterfowl suffer on account of the carp that both eat and destroy aquatic plants, one of the principal food of wild ducks and geese. The history of the carp is interesting. They were imported from Germany in 1877 by the United States. Some were planted in Wise on-

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Page fourteen The Tattler prow rapidly after the opening of extensive lend mines in southwestern Wisconsin. Along the winding Mississippi are beautiful rolling lands, and in the Black Hawk War both Indians and the white people fought over them. In 1832 the Sauks. under chief Black Hawk, wore almost wiped out in the conflict and that ended the war. Black Hawk, a year before he died, proved his true loyalty to his people when he said to the white people. “Rock River was a beautiful country. I liked my town, my corn fields, and the home of my people. I fought for them.” Abraham Lincoln, Zachary Taylor. and Jefferson Davis were among those who fought in this war. With the Indian troubles over, cities in Wisconsin sprang up rapidly. Within a generation Wisconsin became u state, and the population grew from three thousand to three-quarters of a million. Although Wisconsin is a long way from the Atlantic Ocean where the American Revolution was in progess. the Northwest, composed of the territories of Ohio. Indiana. Illinois, Michigan. and Wisconsin, pluyed an important part in the struggle for independence. George Rogers Clark was its chief defender, and, although he himself never set foot on Wisconsin soil, yet his agents were active among the Indians as they were trying to overcome the influence of I anglade who was allied with the English. At the close of the Revolutionary War with the Treaty of Peace in 1783, Wisconsin became a part of the Territory of Wisconsin. However, the United tates didn’t take actual possession of it till after the War of 1812. Wisconsin had then been in the possession of France for ninety years and of England for twenty-two years. Before 1826 Wisconsin had been successively parts of the Northwest Territory. Indiana. Illinois, and Michigan Territories. In 1836 it became Wisconsin Territory. The members of the first legislature met in a two-story frame building in a village, now Belmont, on October 25, 1836. There were many things for the legislature to do, but the most important was to select a new site for the seat of government. Several places entered the contest, and at last Madison, then a beautiful place in the wilds between Lake Mcndota and Lake Monona, was chosen. In November 1838 the legislature met in the new capital. During Wisconsin’s twelve years as a territory, newspapers were established, banks were started, and a railroad was chartered. On May 21). 1818. during Polk’s administration. Wisconsin became the thirtieth state, and Nelson Dewey was elected its first governor, and in November of the same year Wisconsin cast its first ballot for president. Wisconsin had a part in the Civil War. and its regiments, loyal to the United States government. were called the Iron Brigade after they had proved their worth at the battle of South Mountain in 1862. One of them adopted for its mascot an eagle, caught by an Indian. Old Abe. screaming defiance amid the roar of cannon, went through battles and skirmishes and became a national figure. In Wisconsin the census of 1910 showed a large percentage of foreign-born persons. Perhaps no other state has as many different people of foreign birth. From its discovery until the lead-mining days, the population was mostly French. During its first years of statehood many Europeans, Germans and Scandinavians. being the most numerous, were attracted to Wisconsin’s fertile lands although many English. Irish. Scotch. Poles. Bohemians, Hollanders. Russians, and Welsh have since come to make Wisconsin their home. During the Civil War and the World War the descendants of these foreign sons of the state proved themselves in most cases real one hundred percent citizens. When Wisconsin became a state in 1818. it chose “Forward” as it motto. Its people from that time to the present have always endeavored to put the state to the front in industry and literature, and. just at present, it annually attracts thousands of tourists seeking rest and quiet in its great northern forests. Few, as they pass over its truly historic ground, realize the prominent part Wisconsin has played in every crisis of the history of North America since the coming of the white man.

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Page sixteen sin waters. Fifteen years Inter the authorities realized it was a mistake and attempts were made to remove them. The removal of carp has been continuing ever since without much success until recently. Large fish are removed by means of large nets during the fall and spring: small ones are taken by the use of small seines, traps and fyke nets all the year. When the carp are taken, other rough fish are also removed. Small carp are easier to capture than adult ones because the adults are wiser. Over sixty million carp have been removed from Wisconsin waters. The small carp are of no commercial value, but they can be canned and make useful food for mink. fox. and other fur-bearing animals raised in the state. Also they can be used as food for fish in the hatcheries. A canning factory, therefore, has been established for this purpose. Smelt is a new Wisconsin fish that first appeared in streams emptying into Green Bay several years ago. but today it is well known in Wisconsin. The smelt is a small delicate silvery fish, soft of flesh and weak of bone, but delicious food. They live in deep water, and although their teeth adapt them to feed on fish, they seldom do, but live on water insects and worms which inhabit the bottom of Address of By HAROLD WEINCOLD. fPO our Superintendent, Faculty. Members and friends: In behalf of the class of 1038. I wish to welcome you to the sixty-eighth commencement exercises. We feel the honor of being the first class to be graduated in thin fine new building. Now that we think of this as the last day of our school life, we wonder where we shall be at this time next year. It is hard to leave friends whom we have known for many years; with whom we have played and worked. We feel that the ties of friendship are no longer made of thread, but of steel. We shall enjoy with you this great moment which will never happen in our lives again. We appreciate your interest in us. The class of 1938 welcomes Colonel John The Tattler lakes. When spring comes, smelt migrate to shallow water in rivers bordering on Green Bay to spawn. They are easily caught then. The smelt has remarkable reproductive powers. The female spawns when two years old and produces 30,000 eggs. That is why the smelt seem to be increasing every year instead of decreasing, though caught by thousands of fishermen. Carnivals and jamborees have been organized for the smelt runs of the early spring. At these a smelt king and queen are crowned with due ceremony. Brilliant bonfires are made; newsreels taken, and radio addresses made to record and broadcast the progress of the night’s catch. Wisconsin is blessed with a great variety of fish and with lakes anti streams where they can live. In the raising and distribution of fish Wisconsin now surpasses any other state. The distribution is not made in the hit or miss way of the old days. Lakes are carefully studied to determine how much and what fish life they can support before they are stocked extensively. The stocking is done by experts from the fish commission. In a few years Wisconsin should once again have fishing like In the good old days of which old fishermen delight to tell. Welcome the President of the cU»» Hannan, the president of the Board of Control. We are glad to see him again for this school, having been under his guidance for many years, has but recently been transferred to the Board of Education. We are sorry in one way, but we feel that the school may find advantages under the new regime. Mr. John Callahan. State Superintendent of Public Instruction, has taken the place of Col. Hannan as our chief executive. We are huppy to have him with us for all wish to have the opportunity to become acquainted with him. Mr. Leisman. President of the Wisconsin Association of the Deaf is an alumnus of this school, and we are proud to welcome him as one of the speakers of the evening. Again we bid you all a hearty welcome.