48 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



The eggs forwarded to Cape Vincent were packed on canton-flannel 

 trays and sent in charge of a messenger. The first two shipments, 

 forwarded on April 27 and 28, arrived in good condition, but the third 

 and fourth, transferred on April 30 and May 1, turned out very badly, 

 though there was no evidence to show that they were injured bj^ trans- 

 portation. They were probably of inferior quality. The eggs com- 

 menced hatching late in May and finished early in July, producing 

 25,400,000 fry, or a little over 30 per cent of the eggs received at Cape 

 Vincent. The distribution was made with comparatively small losses 

 in lakes and streams in western New York. 



In October arrangements were made as usual for the collection of 

 lake-trout eggs in Lake Ontario in the vicinity of Cape Vincent and 

 in Lake Erie at Dunkirk, N. Y. The results at both places were 

 unsatisfactorj^, only 47,800 being obtained from Lake Ontario and 

 126,000 from Dunkirk, although the spawn-takers remained on the 

 collecting-grounds for nearly a month. The failure at both points 

 was due to the fact that storms continued almost uninterruptedly 

 during the fishing season, destroying nearly all of the nets. Early in 

 December 2,000,000 lake-trout eggs arrived from North ville in excel- 

 lent condition, and were hatched in the Stone salmon baskets placed 

 in Williamson troughs, the losses being comparativel}^ light. The 

 fry, amounting to 1,875,800, were distributed in February and March, 

 except a few thousand which were planted in May. 



As there are no fields in the vicinity from which brook-trout eggs 

 can be collected, arrangements were made to purchase a supply from 

 dealers in New England, and during the early part of September 

 360,000 were obtained in this way. They were hatched in ordinary 

 trout troughs, and the 280,500 fry resulting were planted in May and 

 June, immediatel}^ after the absorption of the sac. 



No attempt was made to collect white-fish eggs on Lake Ontario this 

 year, as repeated efforts in that field in past years had proved fruit- 

 less ; and as the collections on Lake Erie were larger than ever before 

 in the history of the Commission, 34,560,000 eggs were transferred 

 from Put-in Bay. They arrived in good condition, and 75 per cent 

 were hatched in the McDonald jars. It is worthy of remark that 

 during the distribution no white-fisH frj^ died in the tanks or in the 

 cans in transit. It seems extraordinary that in the process of han- 

 dling and shipping so large a number not a single dead fish should have 

 been found. A plant of 400,000 was made in Lake Champlain at the 

 request of the Vermont Commission. 



It was hoped that some effort would be made this year to continue 

 the experimental sturgeon Avork undertaken the previous season, but 

 lack of funds prevented. Through the efforts of Mr. Mj^ron Green, a 

 temporar}^ employee, and several fishermen, however, over 70 stur- 

 geon caught on the Missiquoi River were confined in pens and exam- 

 ined from time to time for ripe eggs. A few were found in one partly 

 spent fish and were hatched at Swanton in the ordinary jars. A small 



