PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 169 



of about the color and consistency of milk. This will give a milky hue to 

 the half pail of water, sufficient to impregnate a great number of egga. 

 This white speck in the egg absorbs an atom of this milt, wliich at once 

 gives a new hue to its color, changing the egg from a yellow to a clear 

 color. All the trout in the baskets are treated in like manner, and then 

 put back into the pond. The eggs are now placed in clean running spring 

 water of from 38'^ to 45° at least — the latter degree the best, where they 

 can be examined daily — best in boxes without gravel. The water in my 

 boxes ran down to 38 ° in the coldest weather last winter. At this tem- 

 perature, the first appearance of the trout's formation, seen with a magni- 

 fying glass, was on the fortieth day, a small red speck on one side of this 

 white spot referred to. This red speck is the commencement of the forma- 

 tion of the heart. In three days more (forty-third day) could see a fine 

 artery extending toward the head to be, and on the forty-fourth day one 

 toward the tail. These arteries extend nearly round the egg, a little one 

 side of its center, from whicli the head and body of the trout is formed. 

 On the forty -ninth day the eyes were perceptible; on the fifty -first day could 

 see the formation of the head and body, and on the sixtieth day could see 

 the heart beat, and tlie arteries running from these main arteries all around 

 the head and body in all directions. It now shows life and motion, and 

 continues to grow more perfect in form, and increase in size and motion till 

 the 78th day, when it bursts its covering or outer membrane of the egg, and 

 comes forth a living trout, but very imperfect yet in formation. Having 

 the egg attached to iis abdomen, its heart uncovered, and without fins, 

 except the pectorals, which seem to be requisite to breathe. He is now 

 about half an inch long, and were it not for the egg attached to it, would 

 look more like a wiggler we often see in water than a troutlet. On the 

 fifteenth day after hatching, the remainder of its fins are plainly seen. It 

 now takes the motion of the trout, darting thrcugh the water, running here 

 and there with great activity. The egg has two membranes or coverings. 

 The trout is formed and grows between them. The arteries run into or 

 through the inner membrane, and absorb the liquid it contains. The trout 

 is formed and lives upon this till it hatches, and continues to live upon it 

 after hatching till it is all absorbed, which takes from forty to sixty days, 

 at which time it ia perfect, and commences to eat and look out for itself. 

 It is very shy, and hides at the motion of every moving thing. It is now 

 as wild as the deer, hawk or partridge, but by being placed where it cannot 

 hide, and feeding, it soon becomes tame and eats out of the hand. I think 

 the trout is the most difficult of all other fishes to propagate in the natural 

 way, as they deposit their spawn in the fall, which hatch in the winter or 

 earlj' spring, when the earth and water are frozen, subject to be chilled and 

 destroyed by the water being too cold during the time of incubation; and 

 those that do hatch are very liable to be destroyed l)y floods the last of the 

 winter and spring, and tliej' are so tender and frail that the least pressure 

 with gravel or sediment will kill them; or even sediment settling on them 

 at any time will destroy the egg. Besides, the parent trout and others 

 that follow will eat all the eggs they can get at the time of spawning, and 

 again in the spriag follow up the streams and take all the young fry they 



