3() 



ing the fish alive, save the use of iee, aiul instead vi' havinjj; 

 lx)ats running every Jay to market, whether lull or not. they 

 could have certain days to send the produce of several days 

 catch to market, and neighbouring fisheries could enter into 

 co-operative ti'ansportation arrangements. 



We deem the adopting of the pond anangement, of such 

 .ulvantage to our people, by saving the *'oftal," to become 

 edible fish, that we recommend that the State should offer in- 

 ducements for their construction as hereinafter suggested. 



The floats or batteries, such as are operated on the flats in 

 the neighborhood of Havre-de-Grace, might be readily ar- 

 ranged, so that the seines could be landed as in the ponds de- 

 scribed, and the smaller fish allowed to escape. The flat of 

 Messrs. 8adler & Gilbert, who operate a seine of 800 fathoms 

 and employ about 40 hands, is simply a large raft G0x80 feet, 

 of sufficient buoyancy to i)e moved to any desirable point on 

 the flats, where it is secured into position by piles, which pass 

 through wells in the raft. On the float, are (juarters, stab- 

 ling, a storehouse, salting sheds and windlasses. Each of 

 three sides of the float is provided with an apron 45 feet Avide, 

 which is held in position by heavy chains, and can be raised 

 or lowered at will. This apron provides an inclined plane, 

 up which the seine is hauled in the same manner in which 

 shore seines are. The selection of the side on which the 

 hauling is made, is determined by the direction of the cur- 

 rent, wind, etc. The fourth side is used as a wharf. 



With a view of ascertainiug the condition of our waters, 

 their adaptability for the introduction of foreign species, and 

 their capacity of furnishing food, etc., for them, Ave have ex- 

 amined carefully the rivers of the State, commencing in the 

 extreme North West, among the tributaries of the Youghio- 

 geny, and have completed our examination, as tar South and 

 East as the Chester. We have made collections of the fishes 

 found in them as even the smallest minnows, and all animal 

 life found in the Avaters, are of importance as furnishing food 

 for the larger food fiehes. We have deposited these collec- 

 tions in the museum of the Maryland Academy of Sciences — 

 the Society having furnished us Avith the alcohol. In the ap- 

 pendix Avill be found a descriptive list of the species Avhich 

 are known to inhabit the waters of the ( /hesapeake Bay and 



