THE SPONGE FISHEHY. 835 



these pegs he used bamboo, whose hard smooth bark defies all attacks of worms. These pegs 

 wore 42 centimeters long and perforated horizontally, the holes being at the distance of 12 cen- 

 timeters from each other, and the lower end was split. Three pieces of sponge were put on each 

 peg and pushed up high enough to be above the horizontal holes, through which a wooden peg 

 was pushed, thus fully securing the sponges. 



" If the pieces of sponge are simply to be fastened with wooden pegs, a three-cornered stiletto 

 will suffice for making the holes in sponges, but when they are to be strung up on pegs this or any 

 similar instrument cannot be used, because too great a pressure would have to be exercised to 

 make a sufficiently large opening for the passage of the pegs. Any pressure will injure the 

 sponges to some degree, and to limit its extent or force as much as possible should be the first object. 

 Mr. Buccich bored the holes with a trepan 6 millimeters wide, fastened to a vertical turning-table, 

 which was kept in rapid motion by a fly-wheel. One hand pressed the sponge lightly against the 

 trepan, the other turned the wheel, and the operation was finished in a few seconds. The hole in 

 this manner is perfectly smooth, none of the fibers have been pulled out, and none of the sarcode 

 has flowed out. As soon as a peg has been furnished with sponge-cuttings, its split end is stuck 

 in one of the holes of the apparatus and a wedge is driven through the crack. As lid and bottom 

 hold twenty-four pegs, each with three cuttings a piece, such an apparatus can hold one hundred 

 and forty-four cuttings. During this whole process the sponges should be continually moistened 

 with sea-water, especially during summer. As soon as an apparatus has been filled, it should 

 immediately be let down into the water if the temperature is high, while in winter a delay will not 

 prove injurious. The letting down and raising of the apparatus had best be done by means of a 

 small anchor, and it should be let down to a depth of 5 to 7 meters. Mr. Buccich does not consider 

 it necessary to have the apparatus suspended from a sort of scaffolding. All the wood- work should 

 be well tarred, as this will prove the only, though by no means always efficient, protection against 

 worms. The Teredo does not only cause an increase in the capital to be employed, because it 

 makes new apparatus necessary from time to time, but it also diminishes the results, because the 

 pegs will gradually get loose and fall off. It would, therefore, be best to dispense with wood alto- 

 gether, and either construct the apparatus of stone, taking the necessary precautions against mud 

 and excess of light, or construct Mr. Buccich's exceedingly practical apparatus of iron. 



" If, after three or four weeks, the sponges have grown firmly to their base, they are sure to 

 develop successfully. Their most characteristic tendency is the desire to grow round. In order 

 to facilitate this in all directions, Mr. Buccich strung the sponges on pegs. As regards the devel- 

 opment of the sponge-cuttings within certain given periods, we have only very imperfect informa- 

 tion, as it was impossible to make continued undisturbed observations. Mr. Buccich says that 

 the cuttings grow two to three times their original size during the first year. He also mentions 

 that the cuttings grew better during the first and fourth year than during the second and third. 

 It is his opinion that, although some pieces will grow to a considerable size in five years, it will 

 require seven years to raise completely matured sponges which are fit to become an article of mer- 

 chandise. I cannot pass by the fact that besides well-developed and growing sponges there were 

 some which outwardly looked perfectly healthy but had ceased growing. 



" In conclusion, Mr. Buccich discusses the question whether the enterprise can, on the whole, 

 be called profitable, and says that he must answer it in the affirmative. He thinks that if all the 

 lessons taught by experience are carefully observed, the cuttings will always develop successfully, 

 and that the loss would at most be 10 per cent., taking into account unexpected accidents and the 

 stationary character of some of the sponges. Calculating the expense of an establishment for 5,000 

 sponges at 300 norius and the loss at 10 per cent., the price realized by 4,500 sponges would indi- 



