﻿LXXII 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  By 
  such 
  an 
  arrangement 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  to 
  obtain 
  general 
  and 
  statis- 
  

   tical 
  information 
  of 
  the 
  greatest 
  value 
  to 
  the 
  Government 
  for 
  purposes 
  

   of 
  legislation 
  and 
  record. 
  The 
  compilations 
  from 
  the 
  blanks 
  will, 
  if 
  so 
  

   desired, 
  be 
  sent 
  to 
  the 
  Treasury 
  Department 
  for 
  publication. 
  

   I 
  have 
  the 
  honor 
  to 
  be, 
  yours 
  very 
  respectfully, 
  

  

  SPENCER 
  F. 
  BAIRD, 
  

   Commissioner 
  of 
  Fish 
  and 
  Fisheries. 
  

  

  The 
  Hon. 
  Secretary 
  of 
  the 
  Treasury, 
  

  

  Washington, 
  D. 
  C. 
  

  

  A 
  circular 
  with 
  numerous 
  questions 
  was 
  prepared 
  and 
  sent 
  out 
  to 
  

   fishermen 
  and 
  owners 
  interested 
  in 
  cod, 
  halibut, 
  and 
  other 
  ground 
  fish- 
  

   eries. 
  A 
  copy 
  of 
  this 
  circular 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  supplement, 
  page 
  

  

  CXI. 
  

  

  C.-THE 
  INCREASE 
  OF 
  FOOD 
  FISHES. 
  

  

  27.— 
  BY 
  PROTECTIVE 
  MEASURES. 
  

  

  In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  reasons 
  mentioned 
  in 
  previous 
  reports 
  for 
  enacting 
  

   protective 
  measures, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  ascertained 
  that 
  a 
  very 
  slight 
  pollution 
  

   of 
  river 
  water 
  by 
  the 
  refuse 
  from 
  gas 
  factories 
  is 
  fatal 
  to 
  sbad. 
  In 
  re- 
  

   sponse 
  to 
  a 
  request 
  from 
  the 
  Commissioners 
  of 
  the 
  District 
  of 
  Columbia, 
  

   in 
  May 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  year, 
  I 
  directed 
  Colonel 
  McDonald 
  to 
  investigate 
  

   this 
  subject. 
  The 
  following 
  is 
  extracted 
  from 
  his 
  report 
  : 
  

  

  I 
  respectfully 
  transmit 
  herewith 
  a 
  report 
  of 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  experiments 
  made 
  in 
  obe- 
  

   dience 
  to 
  your 
  instructions, 
  with 
  the 
  object 
  of 
  determining 
  the 
  extent 
  of 
  the 
  injurious 
  

   or 
  deleterious 
  influences 
  exerted 
  upon 
  young 
  shad 
  confined 
  in 
  water 
  containing 
  differ- 
  

   ent 
  proportions 
  of 
  the 
  waste 
  products 
  from 
  the 
  ammonia 
  works 
  in 
  West 
  Washington. 
  

  

  The 
  sample 
  experimented 
  with 
  was 
  furnished 
  by 
  the 
  Board 
  of 
  Health, 
  and 
  was 
  ob- 
  

   tained 
  from 
  the 
  above-named 
  works. 
  A 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  original 
  solution 
  has 
  been 
  re- 
  

   tained 
  for 
  reference. 
  The 
  result 
  of 
  the 
  experiments 
  shows 
  that 
  this 
  waste 
  product 
  

   exerts 
  a 
  distinctly 
  deleterious 
  influence 
  when 
  present 
  in 
  the 
  water 
  to 
  the 
  amount 
  of 
  

   one-fourth 
  of 
  1 
  per 
  cent 
  or 
  in 
  the 
  proportion 
  of 
  1 
  gallon 
  to 
  400 
  gallons 
  of 
  Potomac 
  River 
  

   water. 
  No 
  experiments 
  were 
  made 
  w 
  r 
  ith 
  solutions 
  of 
  less 
  strength 
  than 
  one-fourth 
  of 
  

   1 
  per 
  cent. 
  If 
  we 
  consider 
  only 
  the 
  direct 
  effect 
  on 
  young 
  shad 
  which 
  have 
  not 
  yet 
  

   begun 
  to 
  feed, 
  it 
  is 
  probable 
  that 
  the 
  area 
  of 
  injurious 
  pollution 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  

   Potomac 
  River 
  does 
  not 
  extend 
  very 
  far 
  from 
  the 
  point 
  at 
  which 
  the 
  waste 
  products 
  

   are 
  discharged 
  into 
  the 
  river. 
  

  

  Before 
  coming 
  to 
  any 
  definite 
  conclusion, 
  however, 
  we 
  must 
  take 
  into 
  consideration 
  

   the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  very 
  young 
  shad, 
  which 
  have 
  not 
  yet 
  begun 
  feeding, 
  are 
  much 
  less 
  

   sensitive 
  to 
  injurious 
  influences 
  in 
  the 
  water 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  than 
  the 
  same 
  fish 
  

   after 
  their 
  sacs 
  have 
  been 
  absorbed 
  and 
  they 
  have 
  begun 
  feeding. 
  We 
  must 
  further 
  

   consider 
  that 
  the 
  minute 
  food 
  upon 
  which 
  the 
  young 
  shad 
  feed 
  is 
  much 
  more 
  sensitive 
  

   to 
  injurious 
  influences 
  (especially 
  those 
  exerted 
  by 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  coal-tar 
  products) 
  

   than 
  are 
  the 
  young 
  fish 
  which 
  feed 
  upon 
  them. 
  

  

  Other 
  investigations 
  point 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  conclusions, 
  as 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  

   following 
  quotation 
  from 
  the 
  Popular 
  Science 
  Monthly: 
  

  

  Messrs. 
  C. 
  Weigett, 
  O. 
  Sacro, 
  and 
  L. 
  Schwab 
  have 
  investigated 
  the 
  effects 
  on 
  fish- 
  

   eries 
  and 
  fish-culture 
  of 
  sewage 
  and 
  industrial 
  waste 
  waters, 
  and 
  find 
  them 
  very 
  

  

  