﻿complishing 
  much 
  of 
  purely 
  scientific 
  value, 
  although 
  I 
  did 
  

   expect 
  to 
  obtain 
  some 
  information 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  time 
  and 
  condi- 
  

   tions 
  of 
  spawning, 
  and 
  other 
  questions 
  of 
  economic 
  interest. 
  

   My 
  uncertainty 
  of 
  success 
  was 
  increased 
  by 
  the 
  total 
  faihire 
  

   of 
  an 
  attempt 
  which 
  I 
  had 
  made 
  the 
  summer 
  before. 
  

  

  All 
  the 
  published 
  papers 
  upon 
  the 
  subject 
  state 
  that 
  the 
  

   eggs 
  are 
  fertilized 
  inside 
  the 
  body 
  of 
  the 
  parent, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  

   young 
  are 
  cari'ied 
  inside 
  the 
  parent 
  shell 
  until 
  they 
  are 
  quite 
  

   well 
  advanced 
  in 
  development, 
  and 
  provided 
  with 
  shells 
  of 
  

   their 
  own; 
  that 
  they 
  swim 
  about 
  after 
  tliey 
  are 
  discharged 
  

   from 
  the 
  parent 
  until 
  they 
  find 
  a 
  place 
  to 
  attach 
  themselves, 
  

   but 
  that 
  they 
  undergo 
  no 
  change 
  of 
  structure 
  between 
  the 
  

   time 
  when 
  they 
  leave 
  the 
  parent 
  and 
  the 
  time 
  when 
  they 
  be- 
  

   come 
  fixed. 
  Misled 
  by 
  these 
  statements, 
  which 
  are 
  nut 
  true 
  

   with 
  our 
  species, 
  I 
  opened 
  numbers 
  of 
  oysters 
  during 
  tlie 
  

   summer 
  of 
  1S78, 
  and 
  carefully 
  examined 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  

   gills 
  and 
  mantle 
  chambers, 
  but 
  found 
  no 
  young 
  oysters. 
  I 
  

   concluded 
  that 
  the 
  time 
  during 
  which 
  the 
  young 
  are 
  carried 
  

   by 
  the 
  parent 
  must 
  be 
  so 
  short 
  that 
  I 
  had 
  missed 
  it, 
  and 
  I 
  en- 
  

   tered 
  upon 
  the 
  work 
  this 
  season 
  with 
  the 
  determination 
  to 
  

   examine 
  adult 
  oysters 
  every 
  day, 
  througli 
  the 
  breeding 
  season, 
  

   in 
  search 
  of 
  young, 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  tivne 
  to 
  try 
  to 
  raise 
  tlie 
  

   young 
  for 
  myself 
  by 
  artificially 
  fertilizing 
  the 
  eggs 
  after 
  I 
  had 
  

   removed 
  tliem 
  from 
  the 
  body 
  of 
  the 
  parent. 
  

  

  I 
  met 
  with 
  complete 
  success 
  with 
  the 
  second 
  metliod 
  from 
  the 
  

   beginning, 
  and 
  succeeded 
  in 
  raising 
  countless 
  milHons 
  of 
  young 
  

   oysters, 
  and 
  in 
  tracing 
  them 
  through 
  all 
  tJieir 
  stages 
  of 
  de- 
  

   velopment 
  until 
  they 
  had 
  acquired 
  all 
  the 
  characteristics 
  

   which 
  the 
  European 
  embryologists 
  have 
  described 
  and 
  figured 
  

   in 
  the 
  young 
  of 
  the 
  European 
  oyster 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  it 
  leaves 
  its 
  

   parent 
  to 
  become 
  fixed 
  for 
  life. 
  

  

  I 
  reached 
  Crisfield 
  on 
  the 
  19th 
  of 
  May, 
  and 
  established 
  jny- 
  

   self 
  about 
  three 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  town 
  and 
  about 
  half 
  a 
  mile 
  

   from 
  Pokamoke 
  Sound, 
  and 
  on 
  Monday, 
  the 
  21st, 
  1 
  opened 
  a 
  

   dozen 
  fresh 
  oysters, 
  and 
  found 
  three 
  females 
  with 
  their 
  ovaries 
  

   filled 
  with 
  ripe 
  ova, 
  and 
  one 
  male 
  with 
  ripe 
  spermatoza. 
  

  

  I 
  mixed 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  reproductive 
  organs 
  of 
  these 
  

   four 
  oysters, 
  and 
  within 
  two 
  hours 
  after 
  the 
  connnencemcnt 
  

  

  