XIKKNIH ANNUAL MKF/IING. 



hesive, and when laid bv the fish are scattered similar to those 

 of the carp. The fry are the smallest of any thai 1 iiave hatched, 

 and It reqnires a second look to see them in a small glass aqua- 

 rium. We tried to retain a few, but we were not successful, as 

 they died shortly after the absorbing of the sac. 



Smelts. — Out of over 4,000,000 eggs we liatched and planted 

 2,000,000, or al)out 50 per cent., which is as good as we have ever 

 done. I have on two former occasions read papers on the hatch- 

 ing of the fish before your honorable body, and have nothing 

 new to add. The little smelt carries a great many eggs for its 

 size; from 30,000 to 60.000, or perhaps more, and from 100 ripe 

 females of good size, probably 5,000,000 could be obtained. 



Shad. — We received from the United States Commission at 

 Washington, over 5,000,000 eggs taken on tlie Potomac River, 

 packed there and sent to Cold Spring Harbor. F"rom this lot we 

 hatched 2,000,000 fry, the last lot of eggs being a total loss; per- 

 haps, because they remained in New York a day and were placed 

 in a refrigerator, for the shad egg will not bear the cliilling 

 changes necessary to preserve the eggs of salmon or trout. Of 

 the fry obtained, 800,000 were placed in the Hudson River at 

 Albanv, and 1,200,000 in Long Island streams, shipments being 

 made to the Nissequoge River, at Smithtown, on the north shore 

 of Long Island, and to the Connetquoit River, emptving into 

 the Great South Bay; the planting in tlie latter river was made 

 at Bridge Hampton. The weather was very favorable for hatch- 

 ing, and we used onlv spring water for them, and at no time the 

 temperature of the water fell below fifty-nine degrees. 



Last winter was the third winter we hatched the little tonicod 

 and we turned out 3,400,000 in the haibor. This little fish, al- 

 though not ill great demand in the markets, fornis an iniportant 

 item in the food supply of the inhabitants of Long Islai-d, especi- 

 ally on the north side, as the boys catch them by hundreds and 

 sell them to people in the vicinity. Shorty after we began our 

 hatching operations and jjaid some attention tc- ilus IVsh. Cold 

 Spring, Huntington and Oyster Bav harbors have oeen literally 

 swarming with little tomcods, which are all credited by the 

 people here to our hatching operations. We made no attempt 



