258 EEPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [22] 



Professor Baird, liowever, from the first, suspected that the fish seen 

 dead and floating iu such immense numbers at sea were Tile-fish, 

 and he immediately instructed his correspondents in the principal sea- 

 ports to collect all possible information bearing on the subject. The 

 following letter was sent to Mr. Eugene G. Blackford, New York State 

 fish commissioner, a gentleman well and favorably known for the in- 

 terest he has always shown iu mattci-s connected with the scientific 

 study of Ameiican fishes : 



" My Dear Mr. Blackford : I wish very much you would gather 

 up all the information you can in regard to the occurrence of the dead 

 fish, and also any indications observed which may lead to a definite con- 

 clusion as to what kind of fish they were. So far as I can judge from 

 Boston and New York papers, they, in part, at least, were Tile-fish. It is 

 possible, their api)earance being almost concurrent with, or but slightly 

 subsequent to, the great storm off George's Bank, that the commotion 

 of the waters may have killed the fish by concussion and started them 

 shoreward. It is a thousand pities that fishermen and others have not 

 sufficient intelligence or curiosity on such occasions to bring specimens 

 home and have them carefully examined. The fact that there was no 

 evidence of disease, but, on the contrary, the fish were palatable and 

 sound, would suggest that the cause of death was rather a mechanical 

 one.* 



" Washington, March 24, 1882." 



At the same time, however, that the above letter was written to Mr. 

 Blackford, a specimen of the dead fish was being forwarded to Wash- 

 ington from Philadelphia, accompanied by the following letter from 

 James W. Eich to Professor Baird : 



" Dear Sir : I send you by exi^ress to-day a sample of the fish picked 

 up off' Nantucket, about 70 miles southwest. They appear to be differ- 

 ent from any fish I have yet seen, and I cannot find any old fishermen 

 that have seen anything just like them. We sailed through some 60 or 

 70 miles of them, and they appeared to be rising to the top of the water 

 all the time. Their eyes and blood were as bright as could be when 

 taken on board. I see several vessels have passed through them as cod- 

 fish, but they are different from the ordinary codfish. I shall be pleased 

 to hear from you when convenient, as I would like to know what the 

 fish are and where they come from. 



" Philadelphia, March 24, 1882." 



The receipt of this specimen, which proved to be a Tile-fish, solved 

 the problem in regard to the species to which the chief part of the dead 

 fish belonged. Eeferring to this, the New York Times remarks: "It 



* This letter appeared in several of the leading New York dailies and also in other 

 newspapers. 



