﻿14 
  REPOET 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  Bills 
  for 
  numerous 
  new 
  hatcheries 
  in 
  various 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  

   have 
  been 
  introduced 
  in 
  Congress 
  and 
  referred 
  to 
  the 
  Commission 
  for 
  

   recommendation. 
  On 
  most 
  of 
  these 
  a 
  favorable 
  recommendation 
  has 
  

   been 
  made. 
  A 
  feature 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  bills, 
  which 
  is 
  regarded 
  as 
  unde- 
  

   sirable 
  and 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  uniformly 
  objected 
  to, 
  is 
  the 
  provision 
  that 
  

   a 
  proposed 
  hatcher}^ 
  shall 
  be 
  established 
  at 
  some 
  particular 
  point 
  in 
  a 
  

   given 
  state. 
  To 
  limit 
  the 
  Commission 
  in 
  this 
  way 
  ma}^ 
  preclude 
  the 
  

   possibility 
  of 
  building 
  a 
  successful 
  hatchery 
  because 
  of 
  unsuitable 
  topo- 
  

   graphical 
  conditions 
  and 
  water 
  supph^, 
  and 
  is 
  almost 
  certain 
  to 
  involve 
  

   a 
  larger 
  outla}^ 
  for 
  site 
  and 
  privileges 
  than 
  would 
  otherwise 
  be 
  required. 
  

  

  ECONOMIC 
  ASPECTS 
  OF 
  NATIONAL 
  FISH 
  CULTURE 
  AND 
  ACCLIMATIZATION. 
  * 
  

  

  The 
  question 
  is 
  often 
  asked, 
  "Does 
  government 
  fish-culture 
  pay?" 
  

   or, 
  "Are 
  the 
  economic 
  results 
  of 
  national 
  fish-culture 
  commensu- 
  

   rate 
  with 
  the 
  cost?" 
  The 
  people 
  who 
  entertain 
  doubts 
  on 
  this 
  point 
  

   are 
  mostly 
  those 
  who 
  have 
  not 
  taken 
  the 
  time 
  or 
  had 
  the 
  opportunity 
  

   to 
  familiarize 
  themselves 
  with 
  what 
  has 
  been 
  attempted 
  and 
  what 
  has 
  

   been 
  accomplished 
  b}^ 
  the 
  national 
  and 
  state 
  fish 
  commissions. 
  

  

  Much 
  evidence 
  can 
  be 
  adduced 
  to 
  show 
  that 
  the 
  fish-cultural 
  opera- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  general 
  government 
  are 
  of 
  direct 
  financial 
  benefit 
  to 
  the 
  

   country 
  at 
  large. 
  The 
  results, 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  some 
  species, 
  have 
  been 
  

   so 
  striking 
  and 
  so 
  widespread 
  that 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  almost 
  as 
  supereroga- 
  

   tory 
  to 
  refer 
  to 
  them 
  as 
  to 
  discuss 
  the 
  utility 
  of 
  agriculture; 
  in 
  the 
  

   case 
  of 
  other 
  species 
  there 
  can 
  be 
  no 
  doubt 
  of 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  work, 
  

   although 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  only 
  occasionally 
  possible 
  to 
  distinguish 
  the 
  efl'ects 
  

   of 
  human 
  intervention 
  on 
  the 
  fish 
  supply 
  from 
  those 
  due 
  to 
  natural 
  

   causes. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  important 
  results 
  of 
  the 
  Commission's 
  efi'orts, 
  

   which 
  have 
  previously 
  been 
  cited 
  in 
  the 
  reports, 
  may 
  appropriately 
  

   be 
  again 
  referred 
  to, 
  if 
  only 
  to 
  draw 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  continuance 
  of 
  

   the 
  results. 
  

  

  The 
  leading 
  river 
  fish 
  of 
  the 
  eastern 
  seaboard 
  is 
  the 
  shad. 
  No 
  other 
  

   anadromous 
  species 
  has 
  been 
  more 
  extensively 
  cultivated 
  and 
  none 
  is 
  

   now 
  so 
  dependent 
  on 
  artificial 
  measures 
  for 
  its 
  perpetuation. 
  Inasmuch 
  

   as 
  the 
  principal 
  fisheries 
  are 
  in 
  interstate 
  or 
  coastal 
  waters 
  and 
  the 
  

   movements 
  of 
  the 
  fish 
  from 
  the 
  high 
  seas 
  to 
  our 
  rivers 
  and 
  back 
  to 
  the 
  

   high 
  seas 
  place 
  it 
  bej^ond 
  the 
  claim 
  to 
  ownership 
  which 
  might 
  be 
  urged 
  

   by 
  the 
  various 
  states 
  were 
  the 
  shad 
  a 
  permanent 
  resident 
  within 
  their 
  

   jurisdiction, 
  it 
  has 
  seemed 
  especially 
  desirable 
  and 
  necessary 
  that 
  this 
  

   species 
  should 
  be 
  fostered 
  by 
  the 
  general 
  government 
  for 
  the 
  benefit 
  

   of 
  the 
  entire 
  country. 
  The 
  shad 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  species 
  whose 
  

   artificial 
  propagation 
  was 
  taken 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  Fish 
  Commission, 
  and 
  its 
  

   cultivation 
  is 
  to-day 
  a 
  leading 
  factor 
  in 
  fishery 
  work. 
  Almost 
  every 
  

   large 
  shad 
  stream 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  site 
  of 
  hatching 
  operations, 
  and 
  during 
  

  

  a 
  Extract 
  from 
  a 
  lecture 
  by 
  Hugh 
  M. 
  Smith, 
  deputy 
  commissioner, 
  entitled 
  "How 
  the 
  Government 
  

   maintains 
  the 
  fish 
  supply," 
  delivered 
  before 
  the 
  Geographical 
  Society 
  of 
  Baltimore, 
  January, 
  1903. 
  

  

  