﻿390 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  [10] 
  

  

  brought 
  so 
  far 
  along 
  as 
  to 
  diffuse 
  themselves 
  through 
  large 
  bodies 
  of 
  

   water. 
  That 
  such 
  diffusion 
  actually 
  does 
  take 
  place 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  

   fact 
  that 
  the 
  oysters 
  lying 
  at 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  water 
  at 
  Cohasset 
  threw 
  

   off 
  embryos 
  which 
  swam 
  up 
  through 
  2 
  fathoms 
  of 
  water 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  reach 
  

   and 
  adhere 
  to 
  the 
  pole 
  buoys 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  immersed. 
  

  

  19. 
  Conditions 
  at 
  Fortress 
  Monroe. 
  — 
  At 
  Fortress 
  Monroe 
  the 
  oysters 
  

   which 
  are 
  attached 
  so 
  thickly 
  to 
  the 
  walls 
  of 
  the 
  moat 
  are 
  wholly 
  de- 
  

   rived 
  from 
  floating 
  fry, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  instructive 
  to 
  observe 
  that 
  on 
  the 
  

   muddy 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  moat 
  there 
  are 
  neither 
  old 
  nor 
  young 
  oysters, 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  ihe 
  conditions 
  for 
  their 
  existence 
  are 
  not 
  present 
  there. 
  Here 
  

   the 
  walls 
  of 
  the 
  moat 
  form 
  a 
  natural 
  collecting 
  surface, 
  and 
  as 
  the 
  tide 
  

   ebbs 
  and 
  flows 
  the 
  conditions 
  favorable 
  to 
  their 
  existence 
  are 
  present, 
  

   just 
  as 
  on 
  natural 
  banks 
  the 
  old 
  oysters 
  form 
  natural 
  cultch 
  upon 
  which 
  

   year 
  after 
  year 
  spat 
  falls 
  ; 
  then 
  as 
  the 
  bank 
  becomes 
  higher 
  and 
  higher 
  

   the 
  tides 
  sweep 
  the 
  surfaces 
  of 
  the 
  shells 
  clean 
  and 
  afford 
  the 
  spat 
  a 
  

   chance 
  to 
  survive, 
  but 
  at 
  the 
  expense 
  of 
  the 
  life 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  oysters 
  be- 
  

   neath, 
  which 
  are 
  finally 
  covered 
  and 
  smothered 
  by 
  the 
  young 
  growth. 
  

  

  20. 
  Nuclei 
  of 
  natural 
  banks. 
  — 
  As 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  discover, 
  

   the 
  nucleus 
  of 
  a 
  natural 
  bank 
  is 
  always 
  some 
  mass 
  of 
  cultch 
  which 
  ex- 
  

   isted 
  naturally 
  on 
  the 
  bottom 
  or 
  has 
  been 
  placed 
  there 
  intentionally 
  or 
  

   unintentionally 
  by 
  man. 
  This 
  may 
  be 
  illustrated 
  by 
  several 
  sets 
  of 
  fact 
  s 
  

   which 
  have 
  either 
  fallen 
  under 
  my 
  own 
  observation 
  or 
  have 
  been 
  com- 
  

   municated 
  to 
  me 
  by 
  reliable 
  persons. 
  In 
  one 
  case 
  a 
  heap 
  of 
  shells 
  

   thrown 
  down 
  on 
  the 
  bottom 
  in 
  Cherrystone 
  River 
  became 
  the 
  nucleus 
  

   of 
  a 
  well-defined 
  bank 
  or 
  reef 
  in 
  two 
  years. 
  In 
  another 
  case 
  a 
  dense 
  

   cordon 
  of 
  pine 
  brush 
  stuck 
  down 
  into 
  the 
  bottom 
  in 
  Mobjack 
  Bay 
  be- 
  

   came 
  the 
  nucleus 
  of 
  an 
  oyster 
  bank 
  or 
  reef. 
  In 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  2sTew 
  

   Haven 
  brush 
  stuck 
  down 
  into 
  the 
  river 
  bottom, 
  forming 
  a 
  dense 
  sort 
  of 
  

   chevausc-de-frise, 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  a 
  profitable 
  type 
  of 
  collector. 
  

  

  21. 
  Position 
  of 
  natural 
  banks. 
  — 
  Natural 
  beds 
  or 
  oyster 
  reefs 
  tend 
  to 
  

   have 
  their 
  long 
  axes 
  extend 
  across 
  the 
  channel, 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  noticed 
  in 
  

   several 
  places, 
  and 
  such 
  banks 
  also 
  become 
  longer 
  and 
  greater 
  in 
  area 
  

   if 
  properly 
  worked. 
  They 
  tend 
  also 
  to 
  become 
  higher, 
  so 
  that 
  eventu- 
  

   ally 
  at 
  low 
  tide 
  the 
  oysters 
  are 
  left 
  by 
  the 
  tide 
  for 
  several 
  hours 
  at 
  a 
  

   time; 
  this 
  is 
  due 
  of 
  course 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  last 
  generation 
  becomes 
  

   the 
  cultch 
  for 
  the 
  next 
  one. 
  Such 
  banks 
  also 
  doubtless 
  arise 
  upon 
  ridges 
  

   of 
  gravel 
  on 
  the 
  bottom, 
  or 
  are 
  developed 
  on 
  gravelly 
  shoals 
  running 
  

   out 
  from 
  the 
  shore. 
  This 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  several 
  

   which 
  I 
  have 
  examined. 
  In 
  all, 
  the 
  one 
  same 
  set 
  of 
  favorable 
  condi- 
  

   tions 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  present. 
  

  

  22. 
  A 
  firm 
  bottom 
  necessary. 
  — 
  A 
  fixed 
  bottom 
  or 
  basis 
  of 
  attachment 
  

   must 
  exist 
  where 
  oysters 
  are 
  expected 
  to 
  thrive 
  or 
  develop 
  spat. 
  

   Shifting 
  deposits 
  of 
  sand, 
  mud, 
  or 
  ooze 
  are 
  always 
  fatal 
  if 
  the 
  deposit 
  

   reaches 
  any 
  considerable 
  thickness. 
  A 
  firm 
  or 
  hard 
  bottom 
  is 
  therefore 
  

   a 
  prime 
  condition 
  in 
  oyster 
  culture. 
  If 
  cultch 
  is 
  thrown 
  on 
  a 
  soft, 
  

   muddy 
  bottom, 
  it 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  far 
  better 
  had 
  the 
  oyster 
  culturist 
  

  

  