HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN MENHADEN. 461 



10. No. 



] 1. They come nearer the shore on the flow of the tide and move ofi' 

 on the ebb. 



12. On bars and in coves. 



13. Four and a half to five feet. They swim nearly to the top of the 

 water. 



14. It does. 



15. They come before they are mature, and we find the one and two 

 year old fish with the oldest. 



16. They are seen on the coast from April till June, from 4 to 10 inches 

 in length. 



17. They leave in November by degrees. 



18. They go southward. 



19. Somewhere south, I think. 

 26. I think they float. 



29. Yes. 



30. Don't think the parent fish devours them ; birds eat them. 



31. Lampreys are sometimes found attached on the outside. 



32. Quite considerable. 



33. I have not noticed any. 



34. None in this vicinity, except small gill-nets. 



42. There are but few caught in this vicinity. They are used on the 

 spot. 



63. Statement of G. Henry Seldon, Kiitsale, Westmoreland County, Vir- 

 ginia, August, 1874. 



1. Alewives. 



2. More abundant than any other fish. 



3. Diminished very much within the last ten years, particularly in 

 the small rivers. 



4. From 5,600 to 6,000 barrels taken in 1873 by one establishment in 

 this vicinity. This is about the average number of barrels taken each 

 year. 



5. The capture has a tendency to affect their abundance. 



6. They appear in Chesapeake Bay about the 10th of March. The 

 main body arrives about the 15th of April. The first fish are the largest. 

 They come in quick succession. 



7. They appear in schools, but swim low. There is therefore no 

 ripple seen, and their arrival is known only by their capture, and the 

 attraction of birds. 



8. They come up the coast from the south ; their movements are very 

 swift, passing to the headwaters of the bays and rivers, where they are 

 seen to linger a short time to spawn ; then returning, they leave our 

 coast and go to the coast of New England. 



9. They are never known to fail. 



