﻿XCII 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  for 
  another 
  season 
  by 
  getting 
  the 
  supply 
  of 
  water 
  elsewhere 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  

   experiments 
  thus 
  far 
  conducted 
  in 
  penning 
  shad 
  seem 
  to 
  indicate 
  that 
  

   this 
  is 
  not 
  an 
  advisable 
  meaus 
  for 
  obtaining 
  eggs. 
  

  

  Fish 
  Hawk 
  assistance. 
  — 
  In 
  the 
  early 
  work 
  preparatory 
  to 
  opening 
  the 
  

   season 
  the 
  Fish 
  Hawk, 
  under 
  the 
  command 
  of 
  Lieut. 
  L. 
  W. 
  Piepmeyer, 
  

   rendered 
  assistance 
  at 
  Battery 
  Station 
  by 
  dragging 
  the 
  seine-haul 
  and 
  

   clearing 
  it 
  of 
  obstructions. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  shad 
  work 
  of 
  this 
  steamer, 
  

   however, 
  was 
  done 
  on 
  the 
  Delaware 
  Eiver. 
  

  

  As 
  stated 
  elsewhere, 
  on 
  May 
  23 
  the 
  vessel 
  was 
  in 
  the 
  Delaware, 
  and 
  

   from 
  this 
  date 
  to 
  the 
  10th 
  of 
  June 
  the 
  fishing-shores 
  were 
  visited, 
  in- 
  

   formation 
  relative 
  to 
  the 
  work 
  was 
  gained, 
  and 
  eggs 
  were 
  collected 
  to 
  

   the 
  number 
  of 
  10,604,000. 
  From 
  these, 
  8,063,000 
  fry 
  were 
  hatched 
  on 
  

   board, 
  all 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  deposited 
  in 
  the 
  Delaware 
  River. 
  At 
  the 
  time 
  

   the 
  Fish 
  Hawk 
  arrived 
  on 
  the 
  Delaware, 
  the 
  fish 
  had 
  evidently 
  been 
  

   spawning 
  for 
  some 
  time 
  ; 
  and 
  with 
  an 
  earlier 
  start 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  

   season 
  could 
  have 
  been 
  much 
  increased. 
  

  

  Lookout 
  assistance. 
  — 
  On 
  May 
  8 
  the 
  hatching 
  equipment 
  was 
  taken 
  on 
  

   board 
  the 
  steamer 
  Lookout, 
  commanded 
  by 
  Mate 
  James 
  A. 
  Smith, 
  and 
  

   on 
  the 
  13th 
  the 
  vessel 
  proceeded 
  to 
  Battery 
  Station 
  to 
  assist 
  in 
  the 
  

   operations 
  in 
  that 
  vicinity. 
  This 
  was 
  done 
  by 
  tending 
  gill-boats, 
  trans- 
  

   ferring 
  spawn-takers 
  to 
  and 
  from 
  suitable 
  points, 
  and 
  in 
  collecting 
  and 
  

   transferring 
  shad 
  eggs, 
  thus 
  handling 
  1,406,000 
  eggs. 
  

  

  From 
  May 
  17 
  to 
  June 
  5 
  the 
  Lookout 
  was 
  engaged 
  in 
  two 
  trips 
  to 
  the 
  

   Delaware 
  River 
  and 
  one 
  in 
  the 
  upper 
  part 
  of 
  Chesapeake 
  Bay, 
  procur- 
  

   ing 
  eggs 
  and 
  investigating 
  the 
  fisheries, 
  particularly 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Dela- 
  

   ware 
  above 
  Philadelphia. 
  Many 
  fishermen 
  were 
  interviewed 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  

   condition 
  of 
  the 
  fishery, 
  and 
  the 
  spawn-takers 
  were 
  kept 
  busy 
  in 
  visit- 
  

   ing 
  fishing-shores 
  and 
  gill-boats 
  to 
  obtain 
  eggs. 
  The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  

   eggs 
  taken 
  by 
  the 
  Lookout 
  during 
  the 
  season 
  was 
  4,400,000 
  ; 
  and 
  from 
  

   this 
  number 
  2,115,000 
  eggs 
  and 
  454,000 
  fry 
  were 
  transferred 
  to 
  Battery 
  

   Station, 
  and 
  340,000 
  fry 
  were 
  successfully 
  planted, 
  190,000 
  being 
  put 
  

   into 
  the 
  Delaware 
  River 
  and 
  150,000 
  into 
  the 
  Chesapeake 
  Bay 
  and 
  its 
  

   tributaries. 
  

  

  Experiments 
  in 
  planting 
  shad. 
  — 
  In 
  1884 
  a 
  shipment 
  was 
  made 
  to 
  the 
  

   Colorado 
  River 
  of 
  the 
  West. 
  This 
  experiment 
  was 
  repeated 
  in 
  1885, 
  

   and 
  848,000 
  fry 
  were 
  planted 
  'in 
  good 
  condition. 
  Should 
  these 
  attempts 
  

   at 
  stocking 
  this 
  region 
  result 
  successfully, 
  the 
  fry 
  deposited 
  in 
  1884 
  

   would 
  probably 
  reappear 
  as 
  mature 
  fish 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  of 
  1887 
  or 
  1888. 
  

  

  The 
  reasons 
  for 
  selecting 
  the 
  Colorado 
  River 
  for 
  stocking 
  were 
  as 
  

   follows 
  : 
  

  

  1. 
  The 
  Colorado 
  is 
  free 
  from 
  alkaline 
  salts 
  and 
  of 
  a 
  suitable 
  spring 
  

   and 
  summer 
  temperature 
  ; 
  the 
  other 
  physical 
  conditions 
  are 
  also 
  favor- 
  

   able. 
  

  

  2. 
  The 
  Colorado 
  empties 
  into 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  California, 
  which 
  extends 
  

   south 
  for 
  700 
  miles 
  before 
  reaching 
  the 
  open 
  ocean 
  ; 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  thought 
  

  

  