J. PISCICULTURE AND THE FISHERIES. 437 



from the sea. The yield in the Delaware, the Hudson, and 

 the Connecticut was larger than usual, thus explaining what 

 became of the difference. 



SEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE FISH COMMISSIONERS OF 



NEW YORK. 



The seventh annual report of the Commissioners of Fish- 

 eries of the State of New York, transmitted to the Legisla- 

 ture February 1, 1875, contains a great deal that is interest- 

 ing and useful in connection with the measures for supply- 

 ing the rivers and lakes of the United States with food fishes. 

 A noteworthy feature of the report consists in the large 

 number of embellishments it contains, such as the New York 

 shad-hatching camp and the method of taking the spawn 

 from the fish ; plates representing the black bass, the salm- 

 on-trout, the brook-trout, and the true salmon, showing the 

 appearance of some of them at different ages. There is also 

 a plate representing the typical shad-hatching box, as invent- 

 ed by Seth Green. 



Under the head of " Shad Hatching," the Commissioners 

 report the hatching and turning into the Hudson River in 

 1874 of over 5,000,000 young shad; and they announce that 

 the yield of mature shad for the past year has been 100,000, 

 showing a steady increase in the number from year to year. 

 They state that larger hauls were made in the nets last sea- 

 son than have been known for many years, and that the fish 

 have been every where more abundant, this being accom- 

 panied by a corresponding fall in price, the prevailing rates 

 being one third of those that had ruled previously. They 

 think, however, that if they could procure a much larger 

 number of spawning shad, they could accelerate the period 

 when the price shall be as low as was ever known in the 

 country, and they attribute their difficulties in procuring 

 these to the great number of stake nets stretched across the 

 river at many points from its mouth up to Albany, which 

 thus impede the movements of the fish. They earnestly 

 urge that a close time be established, of at least from Satur- 

 day night until Monday morning, during which no fish shall 

 be taken, and the nets shall be raised, under a very severe 

 penalty. 



The shad-hatchinsr season of 1874 commenced on the 18th 



