REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 45 



chiefly, on artificial propap:«ition. The work, however, meets with 

 scant local support, and the lislicrmen, wlio arc the principal Ijcne- 

 ficiaries, show little disposition to cooperate. They have demanded 

 full market price for the l)rood salmon collected by the Bureau and 

 held for the ripening of their e<2:iis, and, in addition, they have asked 

 for a bonus for delivering- the lish in <2:ood condition. The cost of 

 the brood salmon some seasons has ran<!^ed from $6 to $7 apiece, and 

 other features of the Avork have also been expensive. The fishermen 

 have of late shown a tendency to ask hiijher and hi<2;her prices for 

 fish and a laroer premium for careful handling;. A i)roper spirit of 

 cooperation Avouhl seem to impel the fishermen, in their oAvn interests, 

 to suj^ply brood salmon to the hatchery at a nominal price and to 

 waive the charoje they have been making for proper handling. The 

 wisdom of continuing this work under existing conditions is ques- 

 tionable. 



From the Atlantic salmon obtained during the last fiscal year there 

 remained on hand at the s[)awning time in October 227 fish, which 

 yielded 797,610 eggs. This number Avas supplemented by 1,000,000 

 eggs obtained from the fishery authorities of Canada in exchange 

 for trout eggs. Both of these lots of eggs were incubated with normal 

 loss, and the resulting young, to the number of 1,550,000, were 

 planted in the Penobscot and other important streams of Maine. 



Shad hatching has been conducted as usual at the stations on the 

 Potomac River and Albemarle Sound. At both points the work was 

 prosecuted under very trying weather conditions. The spawning 

 season at Bryans Point began April 18 and continued until May 18, 

 during which 42,570,000 eggs were obtained from the fishermen, and 

 88.161,000 fry of excellent quality were hatched and planted. The 

 run of shad into Chesapeake Bay in the spring of 1920 was said to be 

 the largest in a number of years, and specially good catches w^ere 

 made on both sides of the lower bay, but the number of fish reaching 

 the spawning grounds was limited. 



At the Edenton station the first spawning fish were found on 

 April 1, and the season ended on INIay 12 Avith a collection of 21,667,- 

 000 eggs. The incubation period was marked by sudden and ex- 

 treme fluctuations in air and water temperatures, and rather heavy 

 losses of eggs and fry resulted. The output of j^oung shad was 

 16.286,000. The shad catch in the section of Albemarle Sound ac- 

 cessible to the hatchery w\as the smallest for many years, the effects 

 of the light run l)eing augmented by inclement Aveather, embargo on 

 express shipments, and Ioav prices, which caused many of the fisher- 

 men to withdraw their nets early in the season. The fullest coopera- 

 tion was accorded by the fishermen to the hatchery, and mainly to 

 this fact must be attributed the degree of success that was attained 

 under most discouraging circumstances. 



At the striped-bass hatchery, operated on the Roanoke River in 

 North Carolina as an auxiliary of the Edenton station, the 1920 

 season was successful. Between May 1 and 15, fish caught for market 

 by the commercial fishermen yielded 19.358.000 eggs, which produced 

 16.474.000 fr}', all of which were planted in local waters. 



The Bryans Point hatchery has continued to render efficient serv- 

 ice in keeping up the supply of yellow perch in the Potomac River. 

 From March 15 to 24, during which very wintry weather at times 

 5X700°— 21 i 



