434 Fortieth Annual Meeting 



of eel-ladders over the dams that are impassable for the 

 fry, or by an intensive stocking with young eels, supplying 

 the waters thus in an artificial way with what can no longer 

 get to them in a natural way. For this purpose we should 

 use either fry or partially grown eels. The latter would 

 seem to be the better, having already reached greater age 

 and acquired greater resisting power, compared with the 

 tender fry that must be exposed to heavy losses after their 

 liberation. But to get the larger eels in sufficient numbers 

 is very difficult, and for a really ample yearly stocking of 

 all waters that must be considered it would be impossible; 

 for it must be remembered that since the eel does not re- 

 produce in our inland waters, a single stocking or an 

 occasionally repeated stocking does not answer, but that the 

 stocking must be repeated every year. 



"For partially grown eels there are thus far but few 

 sources available — only the water courses tributary to the 

 North and Baltic Seas. The supply of fry assumes in 

 anticipation a position of great importance so soon as 

 the difficulties of transportation from England to the inland 

 waters are remedied, and should receive increased attention. 

 Hitherto the eel-fry used in stocking German waters have 

 come exclusively from Italy — all from the lower Arno. 

 They were furnished at prices that yielded a handsome profit 

 to the contractors, to be sure, but for persistent and effectual 

 stocking of great lakes on a large scale they were too dear. 

 This spring, by direction of the German Fishery Union, ex' 

 periments have been made in the importation of eel-fry from 

 England. Although these first transfers had to labor under 

 many unexpected difficulties, yet the kernel of the project 

 is sound, and the importation should later, with the great 

 care and exertion thus far applied, develop more favorable 

 conditions." 



The appendix to the above report contains a detailed 

 account of the conduct of several trips to England on 

 account of the eel-fry importation between August, 1907, 

 and May, 1908. Three importations of the fry were made 



