38 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



Put-in-Bay Islaud, 5,190,000; Kelly Island, 2,880,000; East Sister Island, 

 1,260,000; Toledo, 140,000; total, 39,050,000. 



Herring. — The first herring eggs were taken November 12, and the 

 last November 20. From Putin-Bay Island were received 31,000,000; 

 from North Bass Island, 22,000,000; total, 53,000,000. Both kinds of 

 eggs were, as a whole, of poor quality, owing to the difficulties under 

 which they were obtained. 



The work of penning live fish was a failure. There were penned only 

 82 fish, over one-half of which were males. 



Only 15,000 lake trout eggs were collected during the season, and 

 they were in such poor condition that but few of them hatched. 



In the hatching, extensive and careful experiments were made with 

 cone-shaped tubes as compared with the straight ones in general use. 

 Eggs taken on the same day by the same person were mixed in a tub, 

 and McDonald jars with open tops were fitted with the two styles of 

 tubes and filled with these eggs. The percentage of loss was found to 

 be much less with the cones than with the straight tubes. The per- 

 centage of loss after eye-specks were formed in the eggs was almost 

 nothing with the cones, while it was considerable with the straight 

 tubes. Like experiments were made with pike-perch eggs and with 

 like results. 



The cones were made at the station of tin, 6 inches long and 1 inch 

 in diameter at the large end. Sections inches long were cut from the 

 lower end of the straight iron tubes, the cones centered and soldered 

 on, after which all was coated with asphaltum. 



Pike perch. — The season for collecting eggs of this species was 

 very good, and 293,845,000 were obtained from the following grounds : 

 North Bass Island, 80,580,000; Put-in-Bay Island, 61,030,000; Port 

 Clinton, 100,725,000; Catawba Island, 3,400,000; East Sister Island, 

 21,700,000; Sandusky Bay, 20,350,000. 



Of these, 248,965,000 were placed in the station, and 44,880,000 in 

 the Sandusky station of the Ohio Fish Commission for the pike-perch 

 season, the United States Commission having taken possession April 5. 



On April 15, a series of experiments was commenced for the purpose 

 of preventing the sticking together of adhesive eggs. Following the 

 directions of Prof. Jacob Reighard, of Michigan, in 1 quart of dry corn- 

 starch, dissolved in 5 gallons of water, was placed, after impregnation 

 and 3 minutes interval, 1 gallon of pike-perch eggs. In another vessel 

 was placed finely dissolved swamp muck in a solution of about the 

 consistency of porridge, 2 quarts of this to 10 gallons of water, and in 

 this were put 3 gallons of eggs. The spawn-taker making this experi- 

 ment brought in 1 gallon of eggs in starch, and 2 gallons in muck. He 

 reported that it was more work to keep the eggs free with the starch 

 than under the former plan of constant stirring until the adhesive 

 tendency disappears; as in the one case the eggs need attention only 

 while being freed, while in the other they must be almost constantly 



