REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. LXXIX 



Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad. Although the fish were planted 

 without loss, the use of baggage cars for this purpose under ordinary 

 circumstances is not deemed advisable, as they are not equipped for 

 transportation on fast trains. 



Early in August the superintendent visited the important fishing 

 centers on Lakes Superior, Huron, and Michigan to make arrange- 

 ments for the fall work. As a law had recently been passed by the 

 State legislature prohibiting all fishing for lake trout aud whitefish 

 between November 1 and December 15, no efforts were made to secure 

 eggs of the latter species. Messrs. H. H. Marks and George Platts were 

 put in charge of the field operations, as the regular foreman, Mr. S. W. 

 Downing, had been detailed to assist in the salmon work on the Pacific 

 coast. 



The first lake- trout eggs collected were received at Northville on Sep- 

 tember 16, but as the temperature was unusually high at the time of 

 shipment they proved a total loss. Eggs continued to arrive all 

 through October and until November 8, most of them being in excellent 

 condition. The shipments aggregated 12,014,000, over 5,000,000 of 

 which were taken in the Georgian Bay. Of the balance, 4,938,000 were 

 obtained from the fisheries on the north shore of Lake Michigan near 

 Manistique, within a period of ten days, 500,000 from the southern and 

 992,000 from the northern shore of Lake Superior. 



The results from Lake Superior were disappointing, as large collec- 

 tions had been expected from that section. No efforts were made to 

 attend the fisheries at Beaver Island, one of the most productive sec- 

 tions in past years, as the trout in that vicinity do not spawn usually 

 before November 1. Letters received from fishermen during the latter 

 part of October, however, indicated that large numbers of spawning 

 fish had made their appearance, and it is possible that many eggs can 

 be secured there in the future during the closing days of that month. 

 The eggs were packed in cases and forwarded from the field stations 

 direct to North ville by freight, as usual, one of the employees meeting 

 the boat on its arrival at Detroit. Shipments of eyed eggs, aggregating 

 4,535,000, were made between October 9 and December 28 to other sta- 

 tions of the Commission, State fish commissions, and foreign applicants, 

 1,500,000 of this number being sent to the Alpena hatchery. The eggs 

 commenced hatching early in December, and on January 1 a carload 

 of fry was deposited in the Straits of Mackinac. No other shipments 

 were made until February, when 3,492,000 were disposed of. A few of 

 these were given to private applicants and the remainder deposited at 

 various points in the Great Lakes, on the natural spawning-grounds. 



It was intended to carry the balance of the fry (250,000) until fall, 

 but the tanks became so overcrowded in May that it became necessary 

 to distribute 50,000 of them. These had made a remarkable growth 

 during the three months they were retained in the troughs, and when 

 planted they were 3 inches in length. At the close of the year there 

 remained on hand 160,244 fingerlings, the average weight of which was 

 4§ pounds per 1,000. 



