BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 339 



can exhibit, and compare it with the efforts in fish-culture made by other 

 countries rep: esented in the Exhibition. We shall very soon become im- 

 pressed by the tact that whilst in Europe fish-culture, if not exclusively, 

 at any rate principally, occupies itself with the Salmonidw (salmon and 

 trout), America also raises artificially other kinds of fish. We find that, 

 besides the Salmonidw, America raises, on a large scale, fish belouging 

 to the Clwptidm and the Cyprinidce, and even codfish (Gadidw). As 

 regards the last-mentioned species, this seems almost incredible. AVhen- 

 ever I have taken the trouble to protect a codfish, when still in the egg, 

 and as a young fish, I found that in that condition it was worthless for 

 me, because, to make it grow as it should, it must return to its own ele- 

 ment, the sea; and there to find him again at a later period seems just 

 as hopeless as the desire of Polycrates that the waves of the ocean should 

 return to him his golden ring! And still, correct as this reasoning may 

 appear, the Americans will prove the whole thing to us, even if you 

 should wish it, in dollars and cents ; whilst the happy fishermen of 

 Gloucester, Mass. would soon convince you of the contrary, if you were 

 to tell them that their increased cod-fisheries were simply caused by 

 accidental circumstances, and not by the energetic work of Prof. Spen- 

 cer F. Daird and the United States Fish Commission. 



The fact that such a conservative class of people as the fishermen have 

 so soon become convinced of the favorable results of the artificial breed- 

 ing of codfish, finds its very simple explanation in the circumstance 

 that those codfish which from the very beginning have been experi- 

 mented with belong to a gray variety, whilst so far almost exclusively 

 reddish codfish were caught in those regions. The year following the 

 first experiment numerous young codfish of the gray variety were caught; 

 likwi^e in the following year, when they were considerably larger; and in 

 the third year even the greatest doubters had become convinced. Satsi- 

 factory proof had been furnished that codfish placed in the sea either 

 • emain iu the same region, or, at any rate, return to the neighborhood 

 where they had been originally placed by the fish-culturuts. 



I have specially cited this example with the view of illustrating what 

 in my opinion, is the proper meauing of the term "rational application.'? 

 It takes the form of "care of the Government," "matter belonging to 

 the Government," not of private initiative or private industry. I ask, 

 what private individual would have furnished the money to place mill- 

 ions of young codfish in the sea ? And if such a man had been found, 

 his future heirs would justly have called him light-minded, and he 

 would have run the risk of being placed under supervision of proper 

 persons as being a spendthrift. But when the Government makes 

 these experiments and makes practical application of the results of such 

 experiments on a large scale, it encourages not only an important 

 branch of industry, but the increase in the number of fish caught will 

 prove a benefit to the general public. The chairman of the American 

 division said to me, " In our country we would as little think of leaving 



