32 KKI'OKT OF (X)MMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHEKIES. 



Sr. JoiiN.sitrKY Station, Vkkmont. 



Mr. John W. 'rilcoinl), the .supcriiitiMulciit of this station, having 

 hc(Mi appointed in chai'oe of the Division of Kish-cultuiv of the U. S. 

 Fish Commission, at Washington, 1). C, he was succeeded on February 

 15 ))y Mr. E. N. Carter. 



During the sunnner preparations were made for the collection of 

 brook-trout eggs in the waters controlled by the Laurentian Club in 

 Canada, in Lake Mitchell at Sharon, Vt. ; Darlings Pond, Groton, 

 Vt., and Ko\es Lake, Chittenden, Vt. At Darlings Fond, where the 

 run of fish has heretofore been ver}^ large, the opposite conditions pre- 

 v^ailed. The collecting season was uiuisually dry throughout New 

 England and also in the Province of Quelx^c, where, in the Lauren- 

 tian Mountains, the lumbermen reported the water in the streams as 

 lower than it had been since 1847. Owing to the excessive drought 

 the trout did not run as early as usual, and in many instances the eggs 

 were inferior in quality. In the Province of Quebec 6,000 trout were 

 handled in one stream, ])ut the ovaries of the females seemed diseased 

 and the few eggs secured were of inferior (juality. In the Laurentian 

 Mountains most of the fish spawned around the shores of the lakes late 

 in the season after the ice had formed on the surface, and there were 

 ver}' few places where the lish ascended the streams to spawn. 



At Lake Mitchell the first eggs were secured October 9 and the last 

 on November 16. Of the 324,129 collected, 150,300 were shipped on 

 assignments and the remaining 173,829 were transferred to the St. 

 Johnsbury Station to be hatched. 



At Darlings I^ond the spawning season extended from September 

 30 to November 11, and resulted in the collection of 156,000 eggs, 

 15,000 of which were shipped on assignments. The remainder were 

 hatched at St. Johnslniry. 



From Noyes Lake 53,930 eyed eggs were secured, and after shipping 

 25,000 to fill assignments, the remaining 28,930 were transferred to 

 St. Johns))ury and hatched, producing 22,601 fry. The work at this 

 point began late' in the season — October IS — and lasted oidy five days. 



In addition to the eggs secured at the different field stations 250,000 

 domesticated-trout eggs were purchased of commercial fish-culturists; 

 a consignment of 10,U00 was received from Carolina, R. I., in 

 exchange for 35,000 wild-trout eggs, and 39,500 were obtained b}^ the 

 same method from East Freetown, Mass. An assignment of 8,000 

 domesticated-trout eggs was donated by Mr. L. B. Handy, of South 

 Wareham, Mass., to be used for experimental purposes. All of these 

 eggs were hatched at the St. Johnsbury Station, and the fry Averc dis- 

 tributed with those derived from the field station in May and June, 

 only 5,802 being retained for rearing. 



While the results fi-om the domesticated-trout eggs do not compare 

 favorably with those from the eggs of the wild brook trout, very good 



