194 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF 



original call was sent out in 1869) that was destined to give a great impetus to fish 

 breeding in the United States. This was the American Fish Cultural Association, 

 now called the American Fisheries Society. This organization was practically 

 founded by Livinston Stone, author of the standard work, " Domesticated Trout," and 

 a pioneer fish culturist, as he erected a trout hatchery in 1866, near Charlestown, 

 New Hampshire. Mr. Stone signed the call for the first meeting of a few fish 

 breeders, and was the first secretary and drew up the constitution practically as it 

 remains to this day, and at the outset he was in effect the Association. The Fish 

 Cultural Association was the godfather of the United States Fish Commission, for 

 one of its first official acts was to send a committee to Washington to urge the creation 

 of a National Fish Commission, which was provided for by joint resolution of Congress 

 on February 9, 187 1, and the Commission organized the following year. The same 

 year shad were hatched, transported across the Continent from the Atlantic to the 

 Pacific and established in the waters of the western coast. Shad from this planting 

 have become so numerous on the Pacific Coast that they have been sold at a less 

 price than on the Atlantic sea board, and they have spread along the coast until it is 

 expected that they will ultimately reach the Sea of Japan. In 1872, Mr. Stone went 

 to California to inaugurate the propagation of Pacific salmon, a work which has grown 

 to gigantic proportions. At one station during the season of 1896, 25,852,880 eggs 

 of the Pacific salmon were taken. Striped bass, Roccns lineatus, were artificially 

 propagated in 1873, and sea bass, Centropristes striatus, in 1874. White fish were sent 

 to New Zealand from the United States in 1876, the experiment being successful, so 

 far as the arrival of the eggs in good condition is concerned. In 1877, experiments 

 were successfully conducted for retarding the development of fish eggs by cold; 

 herring were propagated artificially; German carp were introduced into the United 

 States ; California salmon were introduced into Europe, and the plunging bucket for 

 hatching shad was invented. For the next few years reports of the capture of planted 

 fish were received from many waters; haddock, Melanogrdmmus ceglefinus, and 

 Spanish mackerel, Scomberomorus macidatus, were successfully propagated, and the 

 establishment of fish commissions in the various States of the Union continued until 

 nearly every State was at work increasing its food supply by cultivating fishes. 



The operation of hatching fish ova differs with different species of fish (after the 

 eggs are impregnated) depending upon the character of the eggs. The fertilization of 

 the eggs is always the same with all species. The fishes cultivated artificially in 

 Europe are the so-called game fishes or hook and line fishes chiefly. In America not 

 only are the hook and line fishes propagated but a large number of commercial fishes 

 also. The Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar; Pacific or quinnat salmon, Oncorhynchus 

 tschawytscha ; land-locked salmon, Salmo salar Sebago ; red salmon, 0. nerka; 



