﻿207 
  

  

  not 
  fit 
  for 
  marketable 
  purposes 
  until 
  at 
  least 
  a 
  year 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  

   or 
  two 
  years 
  old, 
  and 
  consequently 
  the 
  total 
  nunriber 
  of 
  young 
  

   removed, 
  as 
  estimated 
  in 
  my 
  previous 
  report, 
  would 
  be 
  a 
  total 
  

   sacrifice. 
  

  

  As 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  by 
  the 
  table 
  showing 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  oys- 
  

   ters 
  removed, 
  this 
  sacrifice 
  probably 
  amounted 
  in 
  1878 
  to 
  

   148,800,000 
  oysters. 
  

  

  By 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  tables 
  showing 
  the 
  success 
  or 
  failure 
  of 
  

   the 
  several 
  spatting 
  seasons, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  little 
  

   or 
  no 
  regularity 
  of 
  either 
  success 
  or 
  failure. 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  only 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  investigate 
  the 
  spatting 
  of 
  three 
  

   seasons, 
  and 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  found 
  by 
  subsequent 
  observations 
  that 
  

   two 
  similar 
  seasons 
  of 
  success, 
  moderate 
  success 
  or 
  failure 
  will 
  

   follow 
  each 
  other, 
  but 
  so 
  far 
  this 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  the 
  case, 
  and 
  

   in 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  three 
  years 
  we 
  have, 
  comparatively 
  to 
  the 
  

   other 
  seasons, 
  one 
  at 
  least 
  of 
  successful 
  attachment. 
  

  

  I 
  can 
  see 
  no 
  reason 
  for 
  supposing 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  any 
  regular 
  

   recurrence 
  of 
  the 
  spatting 
  seasons, 
  but 
  am 
  inclined 
  to 
  believe 
  

   that 
  the 
  success 
  or 
  failure 
  is 
  due 
  to 
  two 
  causes; 
  variations 
  of 
  

   temperature 
  and 
  variations 
  of 
  density. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  no 
  means 
  of 
  ascertaining 
  either 
  the 
  changes 
  of 
  tem- 
  

   perature 
  or 
  density 
  in 
  the 
  years 
  preceding 
  those 
  in 
  which 
  I 
  

   have 
  been 
  engaged 
  upon 
  this 
  investigation, 
  and 
  in 
  both 
  seasons 
  

   I 
  arrived 
  in 
  the 
  Sounds 
  too 
  late 
  for 
  the 
  temperatures 
  or 
  deter- 
  

   minations 
  of 
  density 
  obtained 
  by 
  the 
  party 
  to 
  be 
  of 
  practical 
  

   value. 
  

  

  Oysters 
  will 
  and 
  do 
  live 
  in 
  very 
  dissimilar 
  temperatures, 
  and 
  

   in 
  waters 
  of 
  very 
  different 
  densities, 
  as 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  their 
  ex- 
  

   istence 
  in 
  the 
  waters 
  of 
  North 
  America 
  from 
  Nova 
  Scotia 
  to 
  

   the 
  Gulf, 
  and 
  on 
  both 
  Atlantic 
  and 
  Pacific 
  Coasts. 
  That 
  the 
  

   mature 
  oyster 
  is 
  a 
  hardy 
  animal, 
  readily 
  adapting 
  itself 
  to 
  

   new 
  conditions 
  and 
  environment, 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  ease 
  with 
  

   which 
  it 
  is 
  transplanted 
  from 
  the 
  warm 
  waters 
  of 
  the 
  Ches- 
  

   apeake 
  to 
  the 
  colder 
  ones 
  of 
  Kew 
  England 
  ; 
  from 
  the 
  dense 
  

   and 
  salt 
  waters 
  of 
  the 
  ocean 
  and 
  Bay, 
  to 
  the 
  brackish 
  waters 
  

   of 
  the 
  creeks 
  and 
  rivers 
  or 
  vice-versa, 
  and 
  from 
  soft 
  bottoms 
  

   to 
  hard 
  or 
  the 
  reverse, 
  but 
  naturally 
  this 
  hardiness 
  is 
  not 
  a 
  

   quality 
  of 
  the 
  immature 
  oysters 
  or 
  the 
  swimming 
  embryos. 
  

  

  