TRANSMISSION OF SALMON EGGS TO AUSTEALIA, ETC. 839 



The 50,000 ova you were good enough to forward to Victoria came 

 duly to hand, and were forwarded by me in insulating cases (your own 

 boxes being stripped of all covering to get them into the steamer's ice- 

 house at San Francisco). By means of abundant supplies of ice and the 

 precautions I had taken, and with the assistance of Mr. A. S. Webster, 

 of Sydney, the ova arrived in perfect order at Melbourne, where they 

 were taken charge of by Sir Samuel Wilson, the gentleman who was to 

 bear the whole cost of the experiment. 



Judge of my surx)rise at reading in the Argus, the leading journal of 

 Victoria, a letter n-om Sir S. Wilson, in which he ignores you, Mr. Web- 

 ster, and myself. I inclose you this letter and my reply to it. 



Sir S. Wilson is, I believe, annoyed at his having overlooked your 

 services, or at my having called attention to it. It does not matter 

 which, as you will jn-obably receive proper acknowledgments by the 

 same mail in which this letter goes in. 



Having distributed nearly the whole of the ova you have so kindly 

 sent, at my own jiersonal cost, and with an infinite deal of pleasure to 

 myself, and my third term of office expiring on March 5 next, I shall 

 not have another opportunity of oflicially communicating with you. You 

 may rest assured of my warm sympathy for you in your great and good 

 enter] )rise. 



I am. dear sir, yours, 



J. 0. FIRTH. 



The Hon. Spencer F. Bated, 



Chief of Fish Commission^ Washingtoji, D. G. 



B. J. Creighton to S. F. Baird. 



San Francisco, Gal., February 5, 1878. 



Dear Sir : In reply to your inquiries regarding the shipment of 

 salmon ova from San Francisco to New Zealand and Australia, I regret 

 that I am unable to give you the details as fully as I could wish, owing 

 to my inability to follow it throughout. 



The City of Sydney, with 500,000 eggs from McCloud River, sailed 

 hence October 10, 1877, at noon. The eggs were deposited in an ice- 

 chest made specially for the purpose by the Auckland, New Zealand, 

 Acclimatization Society ; but it was found after the ship sailed that the 

 waste of ice was so great it would hardly last the voyage ; and Cap- 

 tain Dearborn took the boxes out and deposited them in the ship's 

 ice-house, surrounded by ice, wiiere they remained the residue of the 

 voyage. I attribute the success of the shix)meut in great measure to 

 Captain Dearborn's care. It Avas impossil^le to pack the eggs in the 

 ship's ice-house at the outset as they arrived too late ; the ice-house 

 was full before they were put on board. 



