402 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



matter was made to Congress by the American Fish-cultur- 

 ists' Association, a meeting of that body was held, at the re- 

 quest of Professor Baird, for the purpose of considering the 

 best method of carrying out the intention of Congress. This 

 took place in Boston on the loth of June, and was attended 

 by the following State Commissioners : Dr. Fletcher, of New 

 Hampshire ; Messrs. Reed and Dexter, of Rhode Island ; and 

 Mr. Brackett, of Massachusetts ; and by Dr. Slack, of New 

 Jersey ; Mr. Bowles, of Massachusetts ; Mr. George Sheppard 

 Page, of New York; and Mr. Livingston Stone, of New Hamp- 

 shire members of the Fish-culturists' Association. 



Reference was made during the meeting to the enterprise 

 of Mr. Charles G. Atkins, of Maine, who is at present engaged 

 in obtaining living salmon on the Penobscot River, and plac- 

 ing them in a large pond of one hundred and fifty acres, un- 

 der his control, near Bucksport. Here they will be penned 

 up until the end of October or the beginning of November, 

 when their spawn will be ripe, and when the eggs will be 

 collected and impregnated by what is called the dry process. 

 After this the adults will be let loose to find their way to the 

 sea, and probably back again next year. The United States 

 Commissioner was advised to furnish means to Mr. Atkins to 

 enable him to extend his operations on the largest possible 

 scale, so as to make sure of obtaining all the eggs that can 

 be procured at short notice on the Eastern coast. 



It was also thought expedient that some one should go to 

 the Western coast, there to make arrangements for establish- 

 ing a hatching-house on a large scale, so as to procure eggs 

 of the Western varieties. 



In regard to shad, it was considered too late to do much 

 in the southern waters of the Mississippi Valley, but that 

 there was still time to commence the experiment in the 

 northern tributaries of the Mississippi River, as the eggs of 

 the shad in the Hudson and Connecticut were then about 

 ripening, and could be obtained in great quantity. It was 

 proposed, therefore, to place many millions of these in a large 

 number of the streams in question, and also to try the experi- 

 ment of their introduction into the waters of the great lakes. 

 It is, of course, not certain that the shad will be able to live 

 in freshwater the whole year round, but it is thought not im- 

 probable that they may find sustenance and protection in the 



