FISHERIES, GAME AND FORESTS. 63 



past has been to overestimate both eggs and fry, in some cases to a remarkable extent. 

 In the spring of 1894 the State of New York made its first attempt at hatching pike- 

 perch in quantities. It established its temporary hatchery, or station, at Constantia on 

 Oneida Lake, but owing to the low water in the stream that empties into the lake at 

 this point, but very few fish came up to spawn, so that the Commissioners were quite 

 discouraged over the result, but last spring preparations were made and nets provided 

 so that, if the water was again low, the fish could be taken from the lake itself if the 

 spawning beds could be found ; but as it turned out there was no need of the use of 

 these nets, as the stream had a continued spring freshet, and the pike-perch swarmed 

 into it from the lake, and in a few days more eggs were taken than we had hatching 

 apparatus to handle. About 100,000,000 eggs were taken within two weeks. Part of 

 them were sent to the hatching station located near Clayton, and were hatched and 

 distributed from that point. The balance were sent out from Constantia. 



In taking and hatching pike-perch eggs fifty per cent, is considered good results. 

 During the summer I have made provisions so that our facilities for handling the 

 increased number of eggs will be sufficient for all requirements. Other substations or 

 hatcheries can be established at different points in the State ; for instance, one on the St. 

 Lawrence and one on Lake Champlain. Eggs can also be transported from Constantia 

 very quickly to the Beaver Kill Hatchery in Sullivan County, as both of these hatch- 

 ing stations are located on the New York, Ontario and Western Railway. The water 

 at the Beaver Kill Hatchery is admirably adapted to the hatching of pike-perch, and 

 the location for distribution for points on the line of the New York, Ontario and 

 Western Railway and the counties in southeast New York, is all that could be desired. 



Correspondence received from parties stocking waters with pike-perch during the 

 past two seasons, very clearly shows that the experiments have proved a great success. 



Our mascalonge station, or hatchery, is located on Chautauqua Lake, and there is no 

 question about its being properly located, as I consider there is no place in the countrv 

 where as many mascalonge can be taken on the spawning beds as at this lake. 



The past two or three years only three pound nets have been in operation during 

 the spawning season, but during the coming season of 1896 I intend to have at least 

 five or six nets in operation, so that we can turn out four or five million fry of this 

 valuable fish. The fishing the past fall on this lake has been remarkable, as the fisher- 

 .men all report large numbers of yearlings and two-year-old fish, beside many monsters. 

 Last spring it was no uncommon sight to see a fish of ever forty pounds weight swim- 

 ming around in the net. 



Mr. Frank Redband, of Caledonia, personally superintended the hatching. He had 

 instructions to be very careful about injuring any of the fish which he handled, and he 



