220 AMERICAN FISH CULTURE. 



established in natural history that no vertebrate animal 

 could be hermaphrodite, it was thought, from the absence 

 of spawn, to be viviparous ; and a doubt still exists whether 

 it is, or oviparous, as most fishes are. As it reproduces 

 after its autumnal descent to salt water, it is not probable 

 that the question will soon be decided. The ova, if it 

 exists during its stay in fresh water, is so small that it has 

 never been observed. There may be species of Anguilla 

 inhabiting salt water exclusively, and others ascending 

 fresh rivers in spring and returning in autumn. Or a large 

 portion of one species may be migratory, and another por- 

 tion live entirely in salt water. 



The eel fry ascend the rivers of this latitude in April 

 and May, and by fall have acquired a weight varying from 

 a quarter to a half pound. Some remain permanently in 

 fresh water, growing to a very large size, weighing even as 

 much as ten pounds, and in some cases beyond that weight. 

 These, it is reasonable to suppose, do not reproduce. 



The following account of the eel fisheries at Comacchio, 

 taken from the " Harvest of the Sea," is given for the 

 novelty that such an enterprise would be in this country. 

 It is suggestive of what might be done on suitable parts 

 of our coast at some future day : — 



" Long before the organization of the Dutch fisheries 

 there existed a quaint colony of Italian fisher people on the 

 borders of a more poetic water than the Zuyder Zee. I 

 allude to the eel-breeders of Comacchio, on the Adriatic. 

 This particular fishing industry is of very considerable 

 antiquity, as we have well-authenticated statistics of its 



