﻿326 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  price 
  of 
  their 
  product. 
  Under 
  the 
  circumstances 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  possible 
  way 
  of 
  solving 
  

   the 
  greatest 
  question 
  wliich 
  now 
  exercises 
  the 
  oyster-growers 
  of 
  this 
  country 
  but 
  

   to 
  put 
  into 
  their 
  hands 
  a 
  method 
  by 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  Avhich 
  they 
  can 
  get 
  all 
  the 
  spat 
  they 
  

   want 
  on 
  their 
  own 
  lands 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  spawn 
  of 
  their 
  own 
  oysters. 
  

  

  The 
  advantages 
  of 
  the 
  method 
  of 
  using 
  the 
  cultch 
  in 
  concentrated 
  bodies, 
  giving 
  

   an 
  enormous 
  amount 
  of 
  surface 
  for 
  the 
  spat 
  to 
  adhere 
  to, 
  are 
  that 
  it 
  can 
  be 
  

   conducted 
  on 
  the 
  laud 
  owned 
  by 
  the 
  culturist 
  himself 
  and 
  with 
  the 
  spawn 
  thrown 
  

   oft' 
  by 
  the 
  oysters 
  belonging 
  to 
  him. 
  He 
  is, 
  therefore, 
  not 
  bound 
  by 
  any 
  arbitrary 
  

   oyster 
  laws 
  now 
  existing 
  to 
  conform 
  to 
  what 
  are, 
  generally 
  speaking, 
  very 
  inefficient 
  

   and 
  olten 
  absurd 
  conditions. 
  The 
  new 
  method 
  puts 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  power 
  of 
  the 
  culturist 
  

   to 
  rear 
  his 
  own 
  seed 
  for 
  planting, 
  and 
  if 
  he 
  is 
  so 
  disposed 
  he 
  may 
  put 
  down 
  an 
  

   excess 
  of 
  cultch, 
  which 
  he 
  can 
  sell 
  after 
  it 
  is 
  covered 
  with 
  spat 
  to 
  the 
  owners 
  of 
  the 
  

   open 
  beds 
  in 
  his 
  vicinity. 
  It 
  involves 
  comparatively 
  little 
  outlay 
  to 
  put 
  down 
  a 
  

   plant 
  which 
  will 
  accommodate 
  5,000 
  bushels 
  of 
  cultch, 
  or 
  enough 
  to 
  seed 
  from 
  20 
  to 
  

   30 
  acres 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  year. 
  Such 
  a 
  system 
  would 
  be 
  of 
  great 
  practical 
  utility 
  in 
  the 
  

   region 
  of 
  the 
  Chesapeake 
  Bay, 
  where 
  there 
  are 
  very 
  extensive 
  areas 
  upon 
  which, 
  

   with 
  very 
  inexpensive 
  excavation, 
  the 
  plant 
  for 
  conducting 
  this 
  method 
  of 
  culture 
  

   could 
  be 
  organized. 
  

  

  The 
  plan 
  of 
  the 
  small 
  establishment 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  preceding 
  pages 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  regarded 
  

   as 
  typical. 
  In 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  system 
  with 
  crowded 
  or 
  condensed 
  cultch 
  in 
  diff"erent 
  

   localities, 
  modifications 
  of 
  the 
  typical 
  plan 
  may 
  often 
  be 
  advantageously 
  employed. 
  

   For 
  example, 
  an 
  oyster-planter 
  may 
  have 
  a 
  large 
  pond 
  of 
  2 
  or 
  3 
  acres 
  thickly 
  

   planted 
  with 
  spawning 
  oysters 
  and 
  connected 
  with 
  the 
  open 
  water 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  a 
  

   narrow 
  canal. 
  The 
  pond, 
  if 
  it 
  has 
  a 
  firm 
  bottom 
  over 
  its 
  whole 
  extent, 
  may, 
  if 
  not 
  

   already 
  used 
  for 
  the 
  purpose, 
  be 
  planted 
  throughout 
  with 
  good 
  seed 
  or 
  "plants," 
  

   which, 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  two 
  years, 
  will 
  be 
  mostly 
  well-grown, 
  marketable 
  oysters. 
  

   In 
  such 
  a 
  case, 
  several 
  systems 
  of 
  canals 
  could 
  be 
  fed 
  from 
  the 
  siugle 
  largo 
  iuclosure 
  ; 
  

   that 
  is 
  to 
  say, 
  instead 
  of 
  having 
  only 
  a 
  single 
  canal, 
  several 
  zigzag 
  canal 
  systems, 
  

   each 
  3 
  feet 
  in 
  width, 
  might 
  be 
  made 
  to 
  carry 
  the 
  water 
  flowing 
  in 
  and 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  

   large 
  iuclosure, 
  instead 
  of 
  the 
  original 
  channel, 
  which 
  might 
  then 
  be 
  filled 
  up 
  and 
  

   closed. 
  Or, 
  if 
  it 
  were 
  practicable, 
  the 
  channel 
  connecting 
  the 
  natural 
  pond 
  with 
  

   the 
  open 
  water 
  might 
  be 
  utilized 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  purpose 
  as 
  artificially 
  constructed 
  

   canals, 
  provided 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  modifying 
  it 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  were 
  not 
  too 
  great. 
  In 
  

   some 
  cases, 
  by 
  digging, 
  filling, 
  and 
  dredging, 
  as 
  might 
  be 
  indicated 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  

   of 
  such 
  a 
  natural 
  channel, 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  prepared 
  for 
  the 
  reception 
  of 
  cultch. 
  Were 
  

   such 
  a 
  channel 
  wide 
  enough, 
  a 
  system 
  of 
  parallel 
  rows 
  of 
  light 
  piles, 
  the 
  rows 
  

   being 
  3 
  feet 
  3 
  inches 
  apart 
  and 
  running 
  lengthwise 
  throughout 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  

   channel, 
  might 
  be 
  used 
  to 
  support 
  the 
  receptacles 
  for 
  the 
  cultch, 
  the 
  latter 
  being 
  of 
  

   the 
  form 
  used 
  in 
  the 
  design 
  of 
  the 
  typical 
  system 
  and 
  supported, 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  latter, 
  

   upon 
  ledges 
  or 
  scantling 
  spiked 
  horizontally 
  to 
  the 
  rows 
  of 
  piles 
  just 
  below 
  the 
  

   level 
  of 
  low 
  tide. 
  

  

  In 
  other 
  cases 
  where 
  there 
  existed 
  narrow 
  points 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  canal 
  

   these 
  might 
  be 
  used 
  as 
  jetties, 
  still 
  further 
  narrowed 
  in 
  some 
  cases, 
  perhaps, 
  by 
  fill- 
  

   ing 
  in 
  the 
  sides, 
  after 
  which 
  a 
  system 
  of 
  parallel 
  rows 
  of 
  piles 
  with 
  their 
  horizontal 
  

   supports 
  of 
  scantling 
  might 
  be 
  constructed 
  between 
  the 
  jetties, 
  and 
  upon 
  which 
  the 
  

   receptacles 
  filled 
  with 
  cultch 
  could 
  be 
  supported. 
  In 
  this 
  way 
  the 
  fry 
  now 
  dis- 
  

   charged 
  by 
  spawning 
  oysters 
  from 
  coves 
  through 
  their 
  outlets, 
  sometimes 
  by 
  the 
  

   thousands 
  of 
  billions 
  annually, 
  can 
  be 
  caught 
  upon 
  cultch 
  and 
  permitted 
  to 
  develop 
  

   into 
  available 
  spat. 
  

  

  In 
  many 
  cases 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  digging 
  out 
  the 
  proper 
  channels 
  or 
  canals 
  to 
  be 
  xised 
  in 
  

   the 
  system 
  of 
  applying 
  the 
  cultch 
  in 
  concentrated 
  form 
  would 
  be 
  greatly 
  diminished 
  

   by 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  ground 
  upon 
  which 
  the 
  canals 
  were 
  dug 
  out. 
  If 
  the 
  level 
  of 
  

   the 
  earth 
  is 
  not 
  much 
  above 
  that 
  of 
  high 
  water, 
  so 
  much 
  the 
  better, 
  for 
  then 
  the 
  

  

  