44 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 
station for an exhibit, and the resulting fry were returned to the 
Potomac River. The eggs retained for incubation at the hatchery 
produced 13,639,175 fry, all of which were deposited on local spawn- 
ing grounds. 
he conditions during the season were especially favorable to 
pound-net operations. The high water temperatures in March ap- 
peared to cause the shad in their upstream migration to leave the 
deep-water channels, which are unobstructed by nets, and seek the 
shallower water of the flats, thus coming in contact with the pound 
nets set to intercept them. In 1915 similar conditions prevailed, 
and that season and the one under discussion represent the only 
marked variations in the collections of shad eggs at this station in 
a long period of years. 
Another factor bearing on the shad work in the Potomac River is 
the apparent increasing indifference of certain fishermen to the 
necessity for cooperating with the bureau by saving for propagation 
the eggs from the spawning fish taken by them. | Most of the fisher- 
men render this service willingly, realizing its value to them and to 
their industry, but the high prices paid for shad in recent years 
have evidently created among a certain class of fishermen a feeling 
that the only important consideration is to get the largest number 
of shad to market in the shortest possible time. This attitude has 
undoubtedly resulted in the loss of a very considerable number of 
eggs, and if it continues it may become advisable to invoke the aid 
of the Maryland and Virginia authorities. Since the shad fisher- 
men are licensed by the State in which they operate, it would seem 
that a regulation might be put into effect that would require all 
fishermen taking shad on the spawning grounds within certain areas 
and in working distance of the hatchery to assist employees of the 
bureau in conserving the ripe eggs under penalty of a revoked license 
for failure to comply. 
The first shad eggs for the Edenton (N.C.) hatchery were secured 
on March 28, and on May 5 the season ended with a total collection 
of 21,710,000 eggs. As at Bryans Point, climatic conditions were 
unfavorable for the best results, the fluctuating water temperatures 
being particularly annoying. A considerable reduction in the ex- 
pense of collecting eggs was effected during the season by closer 
cooperative relations with the fishermen, a situation that the bureau 
has constantly endeavored to foster. One of the difficulties in ob- 
taining shad eggs in this region is the large number of pound nets 
used. As such nets are lifted at infrequent intervals, the eggs of 
fish taken in them are seldom fit for incubation. Eggs of the shad 
appear to be at their best when taken from fish caught between 
sundown and midnight. For this reason gill nets, which are set on 
the ebb tide and lifted at half-hour intervals, constitute the most 
dependable source of egg supply for the Edenton hatchery. 
The Edenton station also propagates pond fishes, mention of which 
is made on page 63. 
PROPAGATION OF GLUT HERRING, EDENTON (N. C.) STATION. 
The propagation of glut herring was taken up last season for the 
first time at Edenton, and the results obtained may warrant a con- 
tinuance of the work. Some opposition was made by local fisher- 
