122 American Fisheries Society 



bly seeks such bottoms for the deposition of eggs and from 

 this habit took its southern name "rockfish." 



White Oak River. — While at Swansboro, Onslow 

 County, in 1904, I learned enough of the size and numbers 

 of the striped bass run in White Oak River, North Carolina, 

 to suggest hook fishing in its waters. It empties into Bogue 

 Sound at this point and is of stony bottom up toward the 

 Atlantic Coast Line Railroad crossing near Maysville. I 

 believe that it is open for skiffs from the crossing to the salt- 

 water sound. The mouth of this stream can be reached with 

 comparative ease from Beaufort or Morehead in sail or 

 power boat of 30 inches draught, the distance being ap- 

 proximately 25 miles. 



Alligator River. — From large intermittent net captures 

 of fish of noteworthy size in somewhat recent years it ap- 

 pears that Alligator River is another North Carolina stream 

 in which the species under consideration may be found of 

 interest to the angler, a wild, wide- water region with densely 

 wooded and tangled shores most easily reached in chartered 

 boat by way of Elizabeth City. The most satisfactory 

 means I found of getting around in those wide-water sounds 

 was to employ an oyster schooner of 10 to 30 tons and put 

 mattresses in the hold down flat on the sheathing, and where 

 there was ample room to spread out clothing and other 

 articles. It was necessary, however, to take someone along 

 to do cooking, as the captain preferred his own mess to him- 

 self, in order to watch and otherwise care for his craft. 



About muddy water. — There are no fixed terms for 

 expressing the degree of muddiness of water that will give 

 anything like a correct comprehension, in my knowledge, 

 except those employed in the District of Columbia. On ex- 

 amining the local columns of Washington newspapers it will 

 be seen that a daily report from the Great Falls is made of 

 the temperature and condition of the Potomac River and the 

 condition is always given in numerals, as 1, or 4 or 10, etc., 

 these numerals indicating, as I understand, such number of 

 inches as an object may be discerned in the water through 



