﻿48 
  

  

  to 
  arrive 
  at 
  an 
  accurate 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  eggs 
  taken 
  

   f'rora 
  the 
  60 
  ripe 
  females 
  and 
  deposited 
  in 
  the 
  jars, 
  but 
  it 
  

   was 
  very 
  roughly 
  estimated 
  at 
  two 
  millions. 
  This 
  was 
  the 
  

   estimate 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Hamlin 
  and 
  myself, 
  while 
  at 
  work 
  with 
  

   them 
  at 
  tlie 
  hatching 
  houise. 
  The 
  estimate 
  is 
  larger 
  in 
  Lulk 
  

   than 
  til 
  at 
  attached 
  to 
  the 
  record 
  referred 
  to, 
  for 
  the 
  reason 
  

   that 
  wo 
  wished 
  to 
  give 
  the 
  record 
  as 
  rnucli 
  accuracy 
  as 
  possi- 
  

   ble, 
  and 
  to 
  certainly 
  have 
  the 
  record 
  within 
  the 
  actual 
  num- 
  

   ber. 
  Our 
  method 
  of 
  counting 
  was 
  this 
  : 
  I 
  took 
  an 
  average 
  

   sized 
  female 
  Smelt, 
  removed 
  the 
  ovaries 
  from 
  her 
  entire, 
  took 
  

   a 
  small 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  mass, 
  weighed 
  it, 
  and 
  then 
  counted 
  

   the 
  number 
  of 
  eggs 
  in 
  this 
  small 
  portion. 
  

  

  I 
  then 
  weighed 
  the 
  entire 
  remaining 
  mass 
  of 
  spawn, 
  and 
  

   from 
  this 
  estimate 
  arrived 
  at 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  there 
  should 
  

   bo 
  about 
  fifty 
  thousand 
  (50,000,) 
  eggs 
  in 
  a 
  medium 
  sized 
  

   Smelt. 
  By 
  a 
  medium 
  sized 
  Smelt 
  I 
  mean 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  size 
  

   represented 
  in 
  Fig. 
  8, 
  PI. 
  V. 
  But 
  of 
  course 
  many 
  fish 
  will 
  

   not 
  yield 
  this 
  number 
  of 
  eggs, 
  and 
  many 
  willyield 
  more. 
  

  

  Allowing 
  forty 
  thousand 
  eggs 
  to 
  each 
  female 
  Smelt 
  taken^ 
  

   we 
  would 
  have 
  from 
  the 
  69 
  females, 
  a 
  grand 
  total 
  of 
  two 
  

   million 
  seven 
  hundred 
  and 
  sixty 
  thousand 
  eggs 
  (2,760,000). 
  

  

  But 
  as 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  females 
  Avere 
  small, 
  and 
  as 
  others 
  did 
  

   not 
  yield 
  a 
  full 
  amount 
  of 
  ripe 
  spawn, 
  if 
  we 
  estimate 
  that 
  

   they 
  averaged 
  just 
  one-half 
  that 
  amount, 
  or 
  twenty 
  thousand 
  

   eggs 
  (20,000,) 
  per 
  female, 
  we 
  shall 
  have 
  very 
  nearly 
  the 
  sum 
  

   total 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  record. 
  

  

  From 
  the 
  time 
  the 
  Commission 
  began 
  its 
  work 
  until 
  the 
  

   freshet, 
  the 
  temperature 
  and 
  weather 
  had 
  been 
  fair. 
  The 
  

   thermometer 
  had 
  indicated 
  a 
  rise 
  in 
  the 
  temperature 
  of 
  the 
  

   air 
  of 
  about 
  ten 
  degrees, 
  (10°,) 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  hydrant 
  water 
  which 
  

   supplied 
  the 
  hatching-jars, 
  of 
  two 
  degrees 
  (2°); 
  the 
  temper- 
  

   ature 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  had 
  risen, 
  during 
  the 
  same 
  time, 
  six 
  or 
  seven 
  

   degrees 
  (6° 
  or 
  V°.) 
  Up 
  to 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  eggs 
  had 
  not 
  progress- 
  

   ed 
  very 
  favorably 
  ; 
  many 
  had 
  died, 
  and 
  the 
  rest 
  were 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  

   condition 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  impossible 
  to 
  state 
  as 
  to 
  whether 
  they 
  

   would 
  survive 
  or 
  not. 
  With 
  the 
  freshet 
  already 
  mentioned, 
  

  

  