424 



BULLETIN OP THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 



McCarrison, in his observations (1906) on endemic goiter in India, considers the 

 dissolved content of the waters concerned and is unable to find anything of significance 

 in its relation to the amount of goiter. For the villages of the Chitral Valley, all centers 

 of goiter, he gives the foregoing table (table in). The meager chemical data here 

 shown afford no clue to the explanation of the distribution of goiter in the villages. 



He gives similar data for the single water supply of the several component villages 

 known collectively as Gilgit, which are located in a series along the water channel from 

 above downward, so that an increasing pollution occurs toward the lowermost village. 

 There is here an increase of the incidence of goiter from above downward, culminating 

 at the lowermost village. In the following analysis of the Gilgit water supply, the 

 Barmis water is an accessory supply which drains into the main channel. No case of 

 goiter has been found among those who use exclusively this Barmis water. 



Analysis op Gilgit Waters. 



a 21 ^ams to gallon. 



b 13-3 grams to gallon. 



It is thus seen that McCarrison's chemical evidence is negative in its bearing on the 

 origin of goiter. The analyses are far from exhaustive, but it is to be doubted whether 

 greater detail would be more significant. The much more complete data which we 

 show for waters associated with thyroid disease in fishes is as fruitless of any theory of 

 causation. 



ENDEMIC OCCURRENCE. 



CALEDONIA HATCHERY, N. Y. 



Studied from the standpoint of visible tumors, we found that in certain hatcheries 

 the disease is endemic. It is clear that a large proportion of the hatcheries which main- 

 tain Salmonidae under conditions of domestication are more or less affected by thyroid 

 tumors. Studied from the standpoint of visible tumors, the history of the disease in a 

 given hatchery may be traced backward in some cases for several years, although the 

 number of fish observed may be small. 



The oldest hatchery in the State of New York is at Caledonia. The water supply 

 of this hatchery comes from springs located about a mile distant from the hatchery. 

 The water supply is unusually ample and there are maintained at this hatchery about 

 30,000 adult fish. Each year at spawning time approximately 25 to 50 visible tumors 

 are found in handling the fish. This condition has obtained for about 25 years, being 

 within the memory of the present superintendent. The fish are 10,000 rainbow trout 

 and 20,000 brown trout. The brown trout are the oft"spring of the first importation of 



