DR. D. H. STOKER'S REPORT. 



To His Excellency^ 



Edward Everett, Esq., 



Governor of Massachusetts : 



Having been appointed, with several other gentlemen, "to make 

 a further and thorough Geological, Mineralogical, Botanical, and 

 Zoological Survey of this Commonwealth," the departments of Ich- 

 thyology and Herpetology were entrusted to me. I was expected to 

 make as faithful and accurate a catalogue of our Fishes and Reptiles, 

 together with a general notice of each species, as our present knowl- 

 edge would allow. With alacrity, the duty was entered upon, — and, 

 by being enabled to interest some of our fishermen, and several pro- 

 fessional friends in various parts of the state, no small advance has 

 been made in the work. In connection with this, a collection of 

 species has been commenced, and presented to the Boston Society 

 of Natural History. So little attention has been paid by scientific 

 men, to say nothing of the community at large, to the branches re- 

 ferred to, that my means of acquiring the necessary information are 

 extremely limited ; and my progress, compared with the gentlemen 

 who have undertaken to report upon the other branches of our Na- 

 tural History, is very slow. Much time and labor are requisite to 

 ascertain and determine species with accuracy, as well as to remove 

 existing errors. The season had so far advanced, when the appoint- 

 ment was made, that many species could not be examined, the com- 

 mon names of which, are familiar to all. In different parts of New 

 England, and even of this state, different species have oftentimes the 

 same name applied to them ; and it is absolutely necessary to receive 

 specimens of each, to settle the s[)ecies. Thus we are able to learn 



