Methods of Fish Culture. 15 
frozen from Nova Scotia, and many of them are peculiarly 
black on the backs. We call them black-backs. We obtain 
from Massachusetts and Maine green smelt, which term means 
that the smelt has not been frozen. We have sent us the 
Raritan and Passaic river smelt, which are very small, in- 
deed, but are considered very choice by the people in that 
vicinity, though they would not be appreciated in the New 
York market, because of the size. In New York the larger 
the;(smeltAthe:ibetter “the: price: 
THE PRESIDENT: Do you consider, from what we find 
in the Report of the Maryland Commissioners, that there are 
two varieties? 
Mr. Mitner: Mr. Norris had named a certain species 
osmerus sergentit, but I have not made a critical study, and I 
am not prepared to reply. I could not give any precise con- 
clusions, unless I obtain specimens of the different varieties 
from different waters, and had studied them carefully. 
A member from Newark, N. J., said: In Newark, New 
England smelts sell at five cents a pound, and smelts taken 
from the river, at Newark, at twenty-five cents. I do not 
know whether there was really twenty cents difference, but 
purchasers thought so in Newark. I have eaten the Rari- 
tan smelt the same time as the other smelt, and thought 
that, according to my judgment, there was twenty cents dif- 
ference. The Raritan smelt was a very much more delicate 
fish. 
Mr. BiackrorD: Would you not find the flavor of all 
smelts delicate if you took them the same size? 
A Memser: As to the Raritan and Passaic smelt, people 
seldom eat them, unless they are very fresh, which makes a 
great difference. 
Mr. BiackrorD: The best smelt we get in Fulton Mar- 
