Centennial Meeting. 15 



and to the trout. Since then, attempts have been made to hatch 

 carp, but no fish having the eggs enveloped in a gelatinous 

 substaoce has been managed as successfully as those whose eggs 

 are free. With us we hatch trout, salmon, land-locked salmon, 

 salmon-trout, grayling, whitefish, while with shad enormous 

 results have been obtained. It is nothing unusual for individual 

 states to hatch millions of each of these varieties, while of shad 

 as many as fifty millions have been produced at a single station. 

 In practical results I believe that our efforts will compare 

 favorably with those of any country, many lakes and 

 streams which had been depleted by overfishing and disregard 

 of reasonable protection, have been restored to productiveness, 

 better varieties of fish have been substituted in localities occupied 

 by worthless or coarser ones, the prices of fish-food had been 

 conspicuously reduced, while in many instances fisheries which 

 were being abandoned have been made once more remunerative 

 to their owners. Although all the hopes of the enthusiasts in 

 fish culture have not been realized, this is a fair showing for the 

 past. The most serious difficulty encountered has been the need 

 of proper legislation. The eel-weirs still stand in most of our 

 streams, destroying, along with the eels they legitimately cap- 

 ture, a mass of young fry of valuable species which often have 

 been laboriously bred to stock these streams ; dams are still 

 being erected, unseasonable fishing is still allowed, and scarcely 

 an effort has been made to limit the ruinous effects of pound- 

 nets — those most destructive of fishing appliances. We need 

 legislation, and can only obtain it by instructing the people 

 and explaining its necessity and the advantages it will confer 

 upon the entire country. 



In addition to the varieties mentioned, successful attempts 

 have been made with other kinds. The alewife, striped-bass, 

 and sturgeon have been manipulated and will soon be included 



