162 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 
the alewife migit be offered, a fish which should thrive in all the rivers, 
ponds, and lagoons connected with the sea, whether in the warmer or — 
colder portions; and as they move in well-defined bands of vast num- 
bers of individuals, within narrow limits, it would add greatly to the 
food resources of the country. A very considerable expenditure of 
money on the part of European Governments, especially that of Ger- 
many, where the ordinary sea fisheries are restricted, would probably 
be amply justified in a few years, the fish being by far more valuable 
and worthy attention than the salmon and trout, and perhaps not ex- - 
cepting the shad. . 
From present information on the subject there are no other European 
sea fish, excepting the turbot and the sole, that would be especially 
important in America; possibly the fresh-water sterlet of Russia and 
the hucho salmon of the Danube might be introduced to advantage. 
This last-mentioned species remains thronghout the year in the Danupe 
River and its tributaries, and constitutes and excellent article of food. 
It might, perhaps, be quite advantageously planted in the Mississippi, 
where it would find an ample supply of the poorer sorts of fish, for the 
most part pot considered worth anything for market purposes. 
The artificial propagation of sea fishes has not yet been attempted on 
any experimental scale, although there seems to be no particular reason 
why avast increase cannot be accomplished in this direction, as with the 
anadromous or interior species. There is no question as to our ability 
to multiply salmon and shad to any desired extent, and the same gen- 
eral treatment might readily be applied to many of our coast fishes. 
The principal difficulty in the way would be the construction of the 
proper establishments, although the recent experiments of the U.S. 
Fish Commission, and that of Maryland, point out a reasonable method 
of accomplishing this, as will be referred to hereafter. It would be quite 
impossible to undertake to feed the young fish when hatched, as is done 
with trout; but the methods used for shad and in most cases for salmon 
hatching, could be made use of, namely, that of introducing the young 
fish into the water and leaving them to their own resources so soon as 
the yolk-bag is absorbed and the fish is able to feed itself. 
According to reliable estimates, not more than 1 egg in 200 hatched 
naturally in the waters produces a fish capable of feeding itself, this — 
representing by far the greatest expectancy of destruction in the num- — 
ber of eggs laid by the female. 
On the other hand, artificial impregnation and propagation should ) 
give us not less than 175, or even more yet, of the 200, a vast differ- — 
ence, which could not fail to tellin the result. In other words, the — 
proportional result of artificial hatching is 175 fold that by the natural 
spawning of the same number of fish. The young, when ready for in- © 
troduction into the water, could readily be placed in sheltered bays — 
and coves, and possibly fenced off for a time from the intrusion of 
larger fish, and kept there until they had attained a sufficient size to 
protect themselves to a considerable degree. 

