HISTORY AND METHODS OF WHITEFISH CULTURE 215 



Iii the fall of 1871 a larger hatchery was erected further down the stream, and a 

 dam constructed, flowing over a large area, for the purpose of cooling the water. 

 My father's experiments led him to believe the eggs should be retained to such a 

 time as would seem to be more nearly the natural hatching time of the eggs spawned 

 in the Great Lakes. Through the courtesy of Mr. John P. Clark and George W. 

 Clark, he was able to obtain upwards of 500,000, a fair percentage of which was 

 hatched and planted near the hatchery and Detroit River. 



Again, in 1872 a fair number were obtained, hatched, and planted, a portion being 

 carried forward for the U. S. Fish Commission. An estimate, by Mr. Milner, of good 

 eggs, placed them at 66 per cent ; the first considerable shipment of eyed eggs was made 

 to California from the Clark establishment by Mr. Milner, the deputy commissioner. 



In 1873 the take was 800,000. Experiments were inaugurated with reference to 

 the growth of the fish. Eggs were hatched in spring water in sixty days, and by a 

 series of mixing the spring and ice-cold waters from the creek, it was possible to bring 

 fry out weekly. From January 15 to April 1 weekly hatch experiments were conducted 

 with regard to growth. Success was not very marked, however, till toward the last 

 of the hatching. The fry produced after March 15 seemed stronger,' and from this lot 

 we find that by June 18 those in the lake water had reached a length of li inches. 



As to the apparatus in use for transporting the eggs from the fishing-grounds on 

 the Detroit River to the hatchery at Clarkston, I quote from Mr. Milner : 



An improved case for the carriage of eggs long distances by railroad is another device perfected 

 hy Mr. N. W. Clark in 1872. It is a modification of the ordinary case containing circular cups, the 

 cups heing square, and in this form economizing space very much. The cups of tinned iron, ahout 4 

 inches square and 2 inches high, rest in trays with low partitions forming low compartments that 

 retain the bottom of each cup and hold it solidly in place. The trays are set within a square tin box, 

 in which they fit with moderate tightness, and are placed, when containing the cups, eight or ten in 

 a box, one above the other; this box is set within another box of tin large enough to leave an open 

 space on all sides, to be filled with sawdust ; a tube is inserted through the bottom of the inner box, 

 piercing the bottom of the outer one, so as to permit communication with the air on the outside; the 

 whole is then placed for protection within a strong wooden box, in the bottom of which is a frame 

 resting upon stiff springs which relieve the eggs from heavy jarring; rubber or cloth bumpers on the 

 sides of the box prevent lateral swaying and jolting. A cover is fitted on the inner box, which may 

 then be covered with sawdust to the level of the higher outer one, Avhen the cover of this is to be shut 

 down. The outside wooden box is fitted with handles and with a tight lid on hinges, which may be 

 locked. Small auger holes are bored through the outer or packing box and air may be admitted to 

 the whole interior of the egg case through the tube referred to in the bottom, the cups being pierced 

 with small holes, so that when placed they are directly over circular openings in the trays and a cora- 

 muuication of air is established throughout. 



The eggs may be packed in moss, in the ordinary manner, in the cups, which experience seems to 

 prove to be the best manner for long journeys. 



The fall of 1874 brought out the flannel trays for transporting eggs from the 

 fishing shore to the hatchery. These were used by Monroe A. Green and my father, 

 for carrying the whiten sh eggs to their respective hatcheries. A model of this carry- 

 ing tray and box may be seen in the Fish Commission exhibit. In transporting white- 

 fish and lake trout-eggs from fishing-grounds to the hatcheries, this apparatus has 

 been continually used to the present time, as no other carrying device has met with 

 the success and convenience of these trays. 



During the winter a small number of whitefish eggs were carried forward as an 

 experiment in the hatchiugof whitefish eggs, which were laid in single layers of woolen 



