REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF l^SH AND FISHERIES. XXXVII 



Notwithstanding the uuftivorable couditions the aquaria were kept 

 fiilly supplied with most of the commercial fishes of the Gulf and the 

 South Atlantic Ocean, with many of the ornamental species and all 

 of the fishes of the IVIississippi Valley, and with a numb(!r of ^almonidm 

 propagated by the Commission, such as the brook trout, rainbow trout, 

 steelhead, and (luinnat salmon. In September fish-cultural work was 

 taken up, and two consignments of 10,000 salmon eggs shipped from 

 California were hatched. This feature of the exhibit was particularly 

 interesting to the people of that section of the country, as it was the 

 first time that the eggs of any of the Salmonidw had been artificially 

 hatched in Tennessee. This was only rendered possible by the sinking 

 of a well near the Government building, which furnished a steady flow 

 of excellent water at 59° throughout the summer. At the close of the 

 exposition the fishes on hand were planted in suitable waters in the 

 vicinity or transferred to some of the stations of the Commission. The 

 aquaria material, including the machinery, was shipped to Omaha. 

 During the absence of the representative from Nashville the exhibit was 

 at different times under the direction of L. G. Harron, W. P. Sauerhoff, 

 and E. J. Conway. Mr. Conway was in charge at the close of the expo- 

 sition and attended to the packing and shipping of the exhibit. A 

 report of the part taken by the U. S. Fish Commission in this exposition 

 will be found on pages 329-339 of the appendices to this report. 



On July 27 the assistant in charge of the Division of Fish-culture was 

 appointed representative of the United States Fish Commission on the 

 government board of management for the Trans-Mississippi and Inter- 

 national Exposition, to be held in the city of Omaha, Nebr., in accord- 

 ance with act approved June 4, 1897. The board was not organized 

 until September, when the allotment of funds and space was made, the 

 Commission receiving $20,000 and5,027 square feetof space in the north- 

 west corner of the Government Building. Subsequently all allotments 

 were changed, owing to the passage of a joint resolution by the House 

 and Senate on December 18, the appropriation from the Government 

 exhibit being reduced from $150,000 to $137,500, so that the amount 

 available for the Fish Commission was $18,333. 



As the live-fish exhibit at previous expositions had proved the most 

 attractive feature, it was decided to devote $10,000 and 4,000 feet of 

 space to the erection of a suitable aquarium. The plans and specifica- 

 tions for this were prepared by Mr. George A. Schneider, who also 

 superintended its construction. 



The aquarium is a grotto-like structure, 140 feet long by 26 feet 



wide, arranged in the shape of a i | with arched entrances at the 



short arms and a rotunda at the turning points. The entrances are 

 semi-circular archways supported on colonnades, embellished with 

 ornamental work, soffit and face, and flanked on each side by wings 

 in a rich pilaster treatment of the renaissance style. An ornamental, 

 semi-circular grille, with the seals of fhe United States and the State 

 of Nebraska, is inserted in the arch, the top of which terminates in 



