﻿416 
  KEPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  [36] 
  

  

  " 
  ' 
  September 
  8. 
  — 
  Cleaned 
  tank 
  ; 
  found 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  shells 
  and 
  about 
  a 
  

   peek 
  of 
  gravel 
  with 
  sets 
  on, 
  but 
  all 
  dead. 
  Tuere 
  were 
  no 
  sots 
  on 
  the 
  

   hanging 
  sheds. 
  The 
  reason 
  for 
  this, 
  I 
  think, 
  is 
  owing 
  to 
  laek 
  of 
  cur- 
  

   rent, 
  which 
  should 
  be 
  quite 
  strong 
  ; 
  there 
  is 
  more 
  danger 
  of 
  getting 
  too 
  

   little 
  than 
  too 
  much. 
  Lowered 
  salt 
  pond. 
  

  

  " 
  ' 
  September 
  Id. 
  — 
  Found 
  a 
  good 
  set; 
  the 
  hanging 
  shells 
  had 
  sots 
  3 
  feet 
  

   from 
  the 
  bottom, 
  but 
  the 
  shells 
  on 
  the 
  bottom 
  did 
  the 
  best.'" 
  

  

  I 
  need 
  not 
  comment 
  upon 
  the 
  preceding 
  paper 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Mather 
  fur- 
  

   ther 
  than 
  to 
  point 
  out 
  that, 
  taken 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  results 
  reported 
  in 
  

   the 
  preceding 
  paper 
  by 
  Brooks, 
  the 
  first 
  principle 
  of 
  the 
  theory 
  of 
  spat- 
  

   culture 
  proposed 
  by 
  me 
  is 
  experimentally 
  demonstrated. 
  That 
  principle 
  

   as 
  first 
  published 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  in 
  a 
  preliminary 
  account 
  of 
  his 
  new 
  sys- 
  

   tem 
  of 
  spat-culture 
  in 
  Forest 
  and 
  Stream, 
  October 
  22, 
  1885, 
  p. 
  249, 
  is 
  as 
  

   follows 
  : 
  

  

  " 
  Oyster 
  embryos, 
  under 
  ordinary 
  conditions 
  in 
  open 
  water, 
  diffuse 
  

   and 
  affix 
  themselves 
  throughout 
  the 
  three 
  dimensions 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  body 
  of 
  

   sea- 
  water. 
  This 
  is 
  a 
  w 
  T 
  ell-known 
  and 
  readily 
  verifiable 
  fact." 
  

  

  III. 
  I 
  also 
  stated 
  in 
  the 
  paper 
  cited 
  that 
  "The 
  spat 
  of 
  the 
  oyster 
  

   will 
  grow 
  and 
  thrive 
  with 
  comparatively 
  little 
  light." 
  In 
  further 
  proof 
  

   of 
  this 
  statement 
  I 
  will 
  take 
  the 
  liberty 
  of 
  relating 
  a 
  very 
  remarkable 
  

   observation 
  made 
  by 
  Mr. 
  E. 
  G. 
  Blackford, 
  of 
  New 
  York. 
  During 
  the 
  

   past 
  season 
  he 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  pipe 
  through 
  which 
  the 
  salt 
  water 
  was 
  

   pumped 
  from 
  the 
  sound 
  to 
  the 
  reservoir 
  on 
  the 
  hill 
  at 
  Cold 
  Spring 
  Har- 
  

   bor, 
  L. 
  L, 
  was 
  stopped 
  up. 
  Upon 
  investigation 
  it 
  was 
  discovered 
  that 
  

   the 
  occlusion 
  of 
  the 
  pipe 
  was 
  due 
  to 
  young 
  oysters 
  which 
  had 
  affixed 
  

   themselves 
  to 
  the 
  inside 
  of 
  the 
  pipe, 
  where 
  they 
  had 
  grown 
  until 
  they 
  

   had 
  closed 
  it 
  up. 
  In 
  the 
  narrow 
  space 
  inside 
  the 
  pipe, 
  where 
  only 
  a 
  very 
  

   small 
  amount 
  of 
  light 
  could 
  possibly 
  have 
  had 
  access, 
  it 
  hardly 
  seems 
  

   conceivable 
  that 
  oysters 
  could 
  have 
  thriven 
  ; 
  yet, 
  under 
  the 
  very 
  unfa- 
  

   vorable 
  conditions 
  above 
  described, 
  the 
  fixation 
  and 
  growth 
  of 
  young 
  

   oysters 
  actually 
  occurred. 
  This 
  observation 
  has 
  an 
  important 
  practical 
  

   bearing 
  on 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  cultch 
  in 
  solid 
  masses, 
  as 
  proposed 
  in 
  the 
  body 
  of 
  

   the 
  foregoing 
  paper. 
  

  

  IV. 
  Very 
  encouraging 
  success 
  has 
  been 
  reported 
  for 
  the 
  season 
  of 
  

   1885 
  from 
  Saint 
  Jerome's 
  Creek. 
  This 
  season, 
  at 
  my 
  suggestion, 
  the 
  

   suspension 
  of 
  shells 
  and 
  brood 
  oysters 
  a 
  little 
  distance 
  above 
  the 
  bot- 
  

   tom 
  was 
  tried 
  there, 
  galvanized-iron 
  wire 
  netting 
  being 
  used, 
  which 
  was 
  

   suspended 
  upon 
  stringers 
  supported 
  a 
  few 
  inches 
  above 
  the 
  bottom, 
  upon 
  

   short 
  piles 
  or 
  stakes. 
  On 
  this 
  the 
  shells 
  were 
  spread. 
  This 
  was 
  in- 
  

   tended 
  to 
  overcome 
  the 
  difficulties 
  encountered 
  in 
  the 
  utilization 
  of 
  an 
  

   oozy 
  or 
  muddy 
  bottom, 
  and 
  enable 
  the 
  operators 
  to 
  shake 
  the 
  netting 
  

   from 
  the 
  surface 
  or 
  from 
  a 
  boat 
  with 
  a 
  boat 
  hook, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  shake 
  off 
  

   any 
  sediment 
  which 
  might 
  gather 
  on 
  the 
  shells 
  used 
  as 
  collectors. 
  Mr. 
  

   Ravenel, 
  the 
  superintendent, 
  has 
  reported 
  that 
  "sets" 
  have 
  been 
  ob 
  

   tained 
  on 
  all 
  the 
  different 
  kinds 
  of 
  collectors 
  used 
  this 
  seasou. 
  lie 
  

   also 
  reports 
  that 
  since 
  a 
  freer 
  circulation 
  has 
  been 
  established 
  through 
  

  

  