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  As 
  long 
  as 
  the 
  hurdles 
  remained 
  in 
  position 
  they 
  were 
  fre- 
  

   quently 
  examined 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  ascertain 
  the 
  advent 
  of 
  the 
  

   young 
  brood, 
  and 
  from 
  these 
  examinations 
  I 
  am 
  of 
  the 
  opin- 
  

   ion 
  that 
  the 
  first 
  attachment 
  of 
  oysters 
  took 
  place 
  about 
  

   July 
  17th, 
  as 
  on 
  tliat 
  day 
  we 
  discovered, 
  with 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  the 
  

   microscope, 
  oysters 
  on 
  Hurdle 
  'No. 
  12, 
  on 
  Chain 
  Shoal, 
  and 
  

   on 
  the 
  19th 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  way 
  found 
  them 
  on 
  No. 
  T, 
  in 
  the 
  Big 
  

   Annemessex. 
  

  

  On 
  July 
  21th 
  they 
  were 
  observable 
  on 
  the 
  hurdles 
  on 
  the 
  

   Great 
  Rock, 
  both 
  in 
  shoal 
  and 
  deep 
  water, 
  though 
  the 
  attach- 
  

   ment 
  probably 
  began 
  about 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  July. 
  Yet 
  it 
  was 
  

   only 
  evident 
  on 
  the 
  tiles, 
  as 
  our 
  dredging 
  operations 
  did 
  not 
  

   discover 
  any 
  attachment 
  before 
  the 
  12th 
  of 
  August, 
  when 
  the 
  

   young 
  brood 
  were 
  found 
  in 
  moderate 
  numbers 
  on 
  all 
  the 
  beds 
  

   in 
  both 
  the 
  Sounds. 
  

  

  The 
  number 
  found 
  in 
  Pocomoke 
  Sound 
  was 
  much 
  smaller 
  

   than 
  in 
  Tangier, 
  and 
  the 
  number 
  on 
  the 
  Upper 
  Pocomoke 
  

   Beds 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  Muddy 
  Marsh 
  Bed 
  was 
  smaller 
  than 
  on 
  the 
  

   lower 
  ones. 
  

  

  The 
  attachment 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  proportional 
  to 
  the 
  number 
  

   of 
  oysters, 
  such 
  beds 
  as 
  the 
  Muddy 
  Marsh, 
  for 
  instance, 
  hav- 
  

   ing 
  very 
  few 
  young, 
  but 
  as 
  the 
  bed 
  is 
  badly 
  broken 
  up, 
  this 
  

   may 
  be 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  proper 
  cultch. 
  The 
  young 
  

   appear 
  to 
  select 
  the 
  cleanest 
  and 
  smoothest 
  shells 
  for 
  attach- 
  

   ment, 
  and 
  we 
  always 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  "boxes," 
  or 
  those 
  shells 
  

   which 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  separated 
  completely, 
  contained 
  the 
  largest 
  

   number 
  of 
  young 
  brood. 
  

  

  We 
  also 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  depended, 
  to 
  a 
  

   great 
  extent, 
  upon 
  the 
  depth 
  of 
  water. 
  Those 
  first 
  detected 
  

   by 
  us 
  were 
  from 
  two 
  mil. 
  to 
  one 
  cent, 
  in 
  length, 
  and 
  as 
  the 
  

   shoal 
  water 
  oysters 
  spawn 
  first, 
  and 
  as 
  we 
  found 
  the 
  young 
  of 
  

   the 
  largest 
  size 
  in 
  shoal 
  water, 
  I 
  infer 
  that 
  the 
  attachment 
  of 
  

   the 
  oyster 
  occurs 
  very 
  near 
  the 
  location 
  of 
  the 
  parent. 
  

  

  The 
  hurdle 
  in 
  the 
  Big 
  Annemessex 
  was 
  subjected 
  to 
  four 
  

   examinations. 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  placed 
  in 
  position 
  on 
  July 
  9th, 
  and 
  on 
  July 
  19th, 
  

   when 
  the 
  first 
  examination 
  was 
  made, 
  there 
  were 
  a 
  few 
  oysters 
  

   on 
  the 
  tiles, 
  but 
  so 
  small 
  that 
  a 
  microscope 
  was 
  necessary 
  in 
  

   order 
  to 
  recognize 
  them 
  (Record, 
  Vol. 
  I., 
  Form 
  B). 
  

  

  