“To increase the number of fish which are incubated from the eggs,” replied Earl. “The salmon lay their eggs in the sand and gravel in the bottom of the rivers and creeks. The eggs stay there until they hatch out. While they are incubating the other fish eat them, in spite of the fact that the large salmon try to conceal them by covering the eggs with sand. Then, again, as soon as the small fish comes out of the eggs, they are in turn prey for the larger fish. You can accordingly see why a very small part of the eggs ever bring forth fish which grow to any size. The hatcheries take the eggs and hatch them out, as you will soon see, in small basins. They hold the small fish for some time and then plant them in the streams. In this way the young fish, called fingerlings, have more of a chance for their white alley.”