March 9, 1882,] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



113 



large individuals, all of which ame from lakes of northern 

 ii:ily. were Females: I reoeivefl, however, from the stunt 

 individual, another lot of eels, consisting of amdi smaller 

 individuals weigliing i'roin 20 to 90 grains (jj ctf an one ■ to 3 

 ounces), also taken in fresh water. At Lhc request 

 .-Mi- Y"n siclioiii. [ had paid particular attention to the sexes 

 Of the eels which I was engaged in investigating, anu to my 

 grcal astonishment! found that a iarge majority oi bhes 

 small eels (19 out ■•: 2,1) were males; possessing instea i oi the 

 familiar ovaries, the "Iappenagan" described by [)v. SvrjW. 

 A. histological exummation of these organs convinced me 

 that ill- structure of thesu tissues agreed with that described 

 by Freud." 



****** 



My nr\i ingniry was very naturally concerning the Ideality 

 whence these eela had been obtained, i learned thai fctvffer 

 had Deceived them two years before from Director llaack at 

 Huningea, and upon Questioning Director llaack learned 

 thai they had been brought Erom a French rivor, the 8eere 

 nwrfaise, where they were caught as young fry (montree) at 

 adistanoeof ten or twelve miles from its mouth, and further 

 more were at the time of examination about lour years old. 

 The small size "I these fish, their age being taken' into con- 

 sideration, satisfied us thai they bad been reared in cap. 



liviiy since uncultivated eel.-, would have I u nuieh heavier. 



The females in this lot of eels exceeded the males in length 

 and weight and exhibited those external characters described 

 : ■•. l-tcc 1 '- .-. . n:di( atingcex. 



The Locality in the Seovt niortaim where these fishwefc 

 taken may ea-ily. especially a1 Hood tide, have been within 

 the limits of brackish water; by observation, .do not prove, 

 therefore, thai male eggs enter fresh water. 



Dr. Jacoby found male eels in the lagOOns of Commaechio, 

 where the water is brackish. These males must have ascen- 

 ded in the "mountry 'as fry, and probably a1 the approach of 

 sexual maturity descended with the females to the sea. My 

 investigations and those of Jacoby prove only this-, thai the 



young femah Is do not necessarily break away From their 



parents and .from their birth-places at sea. and entirely alone 

 proceed upon their migrations, while the male- scatter through 

 the sea. bul thai their brothers sean to accompany them part 

 of the way upon their journey. Bul how far? lio the male- 

 know where pure fresh water begins, and are the fry of dif- 

 ferent sexes fqund mingled together only at the river mouths? 

 If we bear in mind the fact thai the male organs had so long 

 escaped discovery, that, on account, of their crystal-like trans- 

 parency, their detection in a fresh eel is so difficult, etc., may 

 we not admit thai past conclusions arc probably erroneous, 

 and that although thousands of freshwater eel's have been 

 studied by different investigators, male eels may yet be found 

 in our streams, especially when more of the smaller indivi- 

 duals have been examined? 



******* 



Dr. I'auiy then discusses the observations of Dr. Qhrmes 

 who found 11 per cent, of males among eels taken ai Wfllon- 

 6erg, on the Elbe, about L20 milt a from the German Ocean. 

 and no males whatever ai Elavelberg, 80 or 30 miles hin-her 

 up the stream and closes bis essay with the following "cou- 

 clu.sion: "Male • •-■ undoubtedly ascend the rivers, bittMe jiu- 

 mencalpera ntaq oj null to >' ytqles appear to dhhwiish as on* 

 ,;/,. .■■/,; Hi,,.-." This fad is opposed to the theory 

 proposed by some one thai young eels are at first of undiffer- 

 entiated sex and have the tendency under the influence of 

 fresh water to become females, under that of salt water to 

 develop male characters." 



[to bb concluded.] 



assaults of Neptune and bis hosts, but Old Ncp. carried the 

 works by storm, and all but about one hundred ied ol the 

 mote end has been washed away by the surf. 



An Ac-r.wuuM for Baltimore. — Work has been com- 

 menced on the public marine aquarium in Druid Hill Park, 

 which Mr. John \V. Garrett is to present, to the city. It will 

 be conducted on a small scale the coming summer as an 

 experiment, and will probably no! be open to the public. 

 Bul if the experiment succeeds, work on the large aquarium 

 will commence in the fall. The matter is in charge of Dr. 

 \V. K. Brooks, of .John Hopkins University. He is now 

 making two aquaria, situated in one of the* ravines of the 

 park, selected on account of its coolness. They will have a 

 capacity of 1,000 gallons each, with plate glass fronts six feet 

 long, and will be filled with sea water and marine animals 

 this spring; If the animals live through the summer and 

 :.how that marine aquarium is pc.';;.ibl;~ in tlur; t.limai: the 

 large aquarium will be in full operation next year, when all 

 the interesting dwellers of the Chesapeake can beseen-al 

 home. A few experiments will be made in April to see what 

 is best to be done, and the two small aquaria will be in oper- 

 ation May 1. The whole affair is Mr. Garrett's own proposi- 

 tion, and he has set no limit to its cost, bul told Mr. Brooks 

 to go ahead at once. The Druid Hill watering carts will he 

 put on steamboats and sent down to the lower part of the 

 bay, and the water taken in at. high tide so as to get pure 

 ocean water for the aquarium. 'I'lii- generous gif t oi Mr. 

 Garrett's is another step in the great march of improvement 

 Baltimore is making in all directions. 



Tiik l.ua.K.sT R.wvuow Tkoit.— I'ndcr the heading 

 "The Largest Trout Ever Oaught in California,'' the. San 

 Francisco ,Y< .".-■ tetter says: While fishing for flounders in 

 tide water uear Ross Landing, lasl week, Dr. Jessup hooked 

 and lauded a trout that weighed, when dead, twelve pounds 

 one ounce. It was oho of the species known as the Pacific 

 eoast brook trout. Bahno iri&ea. of which species says Mr, 

 Bedding, in a recent report of the State Fish Commission: 

 "It glows rapidly, occasionally weighing as high as .seven 

 pounds when it can feed in salt water at the mouths of coast 

 streams, and often weighing live pounds when confined en- 

 tirely tOfreasb. Water containing an abundance of food, as 

 the McC'lou.l Rivor " Dr. Jessup was using an old line, and 

 bad.to use all his skill and finesse to land this aquatic mon- 

 ster. Perhaps be would have lost it after all had it not been 

 for the prompt assistance rendered by Mr. Dindsley, who got 

 his fingor badly bitten in the Btnigelo, The next largest 

 trout- ever caught iu this ikon.by Dave Nesfteld, 



and weighed nine pound-. Dan Q'Conneil somatirnes tells n 

 Story about an eleven pound trout he enughl in CallavefcaS 

 Creek, but Dan's catch is tail generally accepted as a record, 

 [he usual formalities of affidavits from the weighing com- 

 mittee having been neglected. 



'I'.,. K.\!) of the F;siiL\o Pier. — The great iron pier 

 bti]ll bul into the sea a1 Napeagve bt ach, on the south .side of 

 Cong Island, a dozen or nion miles west f mm RJontauk 

 Point, which was built by the Long Island Fishing Com 

 pany in the hope of taking enormous quantities of fish, has 



: SUCeesa, It was ail enormous pound net. with 



iron piles driven in the sand, after flie manner of the iron 

 was supposed, to be 6troug enough to n-i*t the 



Sri uoisoss fiShiug in the waters arduhd GeOrgetoWn, S. (.'., 

 has become a large and profitable industry, ibou 

 dred men are emplpyefl in the buiiness, and targe quantities 

 of sturgeon meal are shipped to Charleston in kegs every 

 week. 



KiicKA LmskC'i.i I-,.— A new club has been organized, the 

 objects of which are thestockiug of Lake Ceuka N. V.. 

 with fish and protecting them againsi illegal fishing, the 

 Stocking, rearing and protecting of game on the borders of 

 the lake, yachting, hunting und fishing. Thi managers for 

 the first yearare: William L. lialsey, Clark lldl. William s 

 Kimball. Henry F. Huntington, Henry P.. Eilwanger James 

 C. Cutler, Morris F. Shepard. William' W'. Webb and Eugene 

 T.Curtis. The office of the club and its club houses will 

 be located in tit:, counties of Steuben and Vales, upon the 

 borders of Keuka Lake. 



IN THE SENATE. 



THEN uo rose Sprftli of Florida, the best of the debaters, 

 t Ami spoke about his measure for pn.-eelm:,' alligators; 



«r touri-ts sin .oi ai litem withoiil iv-,r,| tor reason, 

 ia\e a made a crime to IdD them out of season. 

 .: moved araendnv ■. a brief clause 



Hoshd 



Illl.i-Cl e 



nieal. 



CoaipelliQg alligators not m oivh-.t.. ii u .;,.j 



'1'iiat Nature, \vnen sn'egavc bim sense haL ... 



Aie.l Brown, rcsiioiirlingbrii'tlv. wished to Sas in this connoctlDn 



That Smith in guarding reptiles had an ev.'- io s,.|r.|.r.>te.-tion 



Then .Smith ho thing a volume of t!i- Mes^e-e and K. 



And Brown was laid upon the floor a good deal out ot soil 



____ = __^_____^^^^^^ —Our Cuitliiiciil. 



4$i8l{cnlturc. 



REPORT OF MAJOR J. B. FERGUSON. 



I7*OR the past four years the "Reports of the Maryland Fish 

 Commission" have been the most valuable .and interesting 

 of all State reports, on account of the original work in natural 

 history, especially of the oyster, contained in them. There- 

 searches of Professor Brooks in this Ijiio have made the reports 

 widelysought in foreign countries, and have awakened inquiry 

 into the structure of the oyster bv his discovery that American 

 oysters are bi-sexual. This has raised the question if European 

 oysters are. similarly constructed, and, consequently, if former 

 observers have, mistaken us organization, or if the ovsters of 

 the two continents differ in this respect. 



A handsome illustrated report, entitled: "Report of J. B. 

 Ferguson, a Commissioner of Fisheries of Maryland, January, 

 18S1," is before us. The report proper comprises 114 pages, 

 and the appendices 15a pages, besides the hides and plates. It 

 appears that the State of Maryland hastwb fish commissioners, 

 one to be appointed from the "eastern, and the other from the 

 western shore," and the annual appropriation is equally 

 divided between them, and their work is separately carried 

 on ; hence the present report of one commissioner. The detail 

 of the work under Maj. Ferguson includes a distribution of 

 l x 50i),()00 shad and (ii)0 carp in his district, and he culls attention 

 to the fact that lish deposited at the head of Chesapeake Bay 

 are as much for the benefit of the people on One "shore" as the 

 other. 



Shad are one of the products of the. fertile bay which divide 

 the State, and a table of the catch from 1S70 to"1880, prepared 

 by Col. M. McDonald for the census, is given. This table is 

 compiled only from the head of the bay, where complete 

 records are kept, and show a gradual falling off from Is;..! to 

 187S. In 1870, however, a marked increase is made, coincident 

 with the expected return of the first large hatching. The 

 sa.me result is shown in a table giving the amount of shad sold 

 in Washington and Alexandria from lStio to 1830, showing the 

 catch in the Potomac River. 



The discovery of the spawning ground of the Spanish mack- 

 erel [Cysiurn maculalnvi), locally called "bay maekereFby 

 McDonald and Earll, is alluded to. Mr. Ferguson went to 

 Mobjack Bay in the steamer Lookout and obtained a few eggs, 

 in order to determine the best apparatus for hatching. Prof. 

 Baird co-operated in this experiment, and sent Prof. John A. 

 Ryder to study the embryology of the fish, a report of which 

 will be found in the next report of the U. S. Fish Commission. 

 As the eggs of the Spanish mackerel are lighter than those of 

 the shad, new apparatus was required, and one with a down- 

 ward current was found to give satisfaction. 



The obstructions to the ascent of shad in the Susquehanna 

 and Patuxent rivers are given, and the McDonald ffshwayis 

 recommended to be erected on the. latter, la. the matter of 

 placing fish ways Maj. Ferguson suggests the plan that we have 

 contended for years is the only right one— namely, to have 

 them recessed into the dam, bringing the foot on a hue with 

 the face, of the dam, and the head up above it, instead of rest- 

 ing its head on the dam and sloping its foot a hundred yards 

 below, where lish cannot readily find it. 



.The eggs of the rainbow trout were obtained from Prof. 

 Baird, and 57,000 young were distributed in different parts of 

 the State, 21,000 being returned to the U. S. F. C. The carp 

 alsO received attention, and also the golden ide, in the ponds 

 at Druid Hill Park, Baltimore. Diagram^, with instructions, 

 for the construction of carp ponds, are given, both for inland 

 meadows and on tidal streams. 



The immense oyster industries of Maryland have also come 

 within the domain of the fish commission, and the work of 

 experimenting with their breeding habits, which led to such 

 surprising discoveries concerning their structure, as reported 

 in the work of the commission informer years, has been con- 

 tinued. The investigations were begun more to ascertain the 

 capacities of the oyster beds for producing food for the more 

 important fishes, but have led to attempts to increase the 

 oyster by artificial moans, as far as the limited pecuniary re- 

 sources at the com maud of Maj. Ferguson would allow. " The 

 labors «f Prof. Brooks, which caused a demand for the last ! 

 report among zoologists at home and abroad, have been sup- 

 ■ xploration of Master Francis Winslow, C. 

 S. N.,and the embryologiooj studies of Prof. John A. Ryder; 

 of the Philadelphia Academy of Sciences. The latter gentle- 

 man was stationed at the mouth, of the south f ork ot St. 

 Jerome's Greek, St. .Mary's CO., in July. This creek Hows into 

 the Chesapeake a iVw miles north of Point Lookout. Had 

 siifflcienl means been at hand it was the intention to arrange 

 the ponds so as to control tin ebb and tlOWOf thetide-and the 

 inflow of fresh water from the adjacent drainage, by embank- 

 ments-, Hood gates and waterw 



In order to enable Prof. Rvdef to work in a thorough and 

 systematic manner, it was essential that the flow should be 

 under his complete control, and also that i he enemies oJ the 

 in iter should be excluded, as far as possible. The ar- 

 rangements were necessarily crude and imperfect, but im- 

 portant results were ail -lined, although the same difficulty 

 that Dr. Brooks met with m keeping- the young oysfcei' was 

 encountered. Prof. Ryder wa- enabled to determine the rate 

 of growth of the spat with soma accuracy, and fcp make im- 

 portant researches into the food and manner oi fat.: 

 oyster. The importance of prop. r_ra tin.: the ovster will b ■ 

 more, readily understood when it is known i.h.n Localities 

 which are favorable for breeding purposes, are not always 

 good for their subsequent development, und that v 

 oyster rattens most readily it breeds sparingly, or not at all, 



Appendix A contains Prof. Ryder's illustrated report, which 

 oeeupies si.\i.v-four pa-es. rind is followed by that of Master 

 Francis Winsiow, thi "Bibliography of Literature relating 

 to Oyster Culture;" "Notes on aome of the eariy stages of 

 development of the Clam, or Hananoso, itfj/a armaria, Linn., 

 by .b,i„, A. Ryder," «n 

 eeaders who wish to follow th. 



Appendix n gives the oyster 

 public, local ana general laws 

 piUS. 'The front ispieee ,,f the 

 shad, while, the plates at the 



es. to wl 



fell we l 



lust refer 



mbjocl th 



ivou b ' 





nd fish Iim 



.- | ,,i ; ;..■ 



State; the 



both ov.- 







iport is t 



Sue dr.-. 



wing hi a. 



Cot the « 





:"a Spanish 



'rrmg.or 



ailoi-shai 



,maleand 



\sutie isla 



id. Md.. 



-: \ Ca 



This a 



id the or 



jvipus re- 



• Mir\ la i 



id com in 



ssion. and 



plat 



or bay mackerel, codfi 

 female, glul herring, aut 

 female, salmon taken 1 

 tomiai salmon and leal 

 porta reflect great credit „ 



especially on Maj. Ferguson, who has been ii.-n li.i; :lv Inter- 

 ested in following up fishculture in a scientific manner'. 



CODFISH CULTURE IN NEW YORK. 



r pHE work of taking codfish eggs at Fulton market stili goes 



L on and has proved to be a success. This entcrorise is 

 due to the forethought of Mr. E. U. Blackford, the active, fish 

 commissioner of New York, and assistant to the 17. S. Fish 

 Commission. Messrs. Sauerlioli fie itamjen take ,--■::>- d.'iilv 

 and send them to Washington. Over 11000,000 haye already 

 been obtained and forwarded. The best success in transporta- 

 tion has been had by putting the eggs in oidinarv glass fruit. 

 jars with sea water and then surrounding the jar's -with ice. 



Prof. Ryder is still working out the embryology of the cod 

 in the rooms of the Fulton Market Fish M . ai-ers.' Association, 

 by kindness of the officers, Messrs. Miller, Lamphear and 

 Stoi-er. who have, placed them at his disposal. The first two 

 days of the experiment no live milt could bo obtained, and 

 consequently the. eggs then taken were, wort bless, but since 

 that time good milt has been plenty. The size of the cod egg 

 is one-nineteenth of an inch in diameter and it is very trans- 

 parent, much more so than the eggs of the shad, and Prof. 

 Ryder tells us that the yolk is less in the ay;s of the coil than 

 in" that of the shad. The ergs of the codfish are of less 

 specific gravity than those of the shad, and instead of requir- 

 ing to be buoyed by a current of water from below, rather 

 require a current to take them down. The period of hatch- 

 ing varies from fifteen to forty davs. according to tempera- 

 ture, and the fish when hatched are not over one-fifth of an 

 inch in length and float belly up for a short time. 



There is no doubt that the great number of fish brought to 

 Fulton Market make it a desirable place to obtain eggs, and 

 the success which has followed this attempt will no doubt in- 

 duce Prof. Baird to make it a permanent station. From this 

 point eggs can be obtained in such numbers as may be desired 

 and cod grounds established along the coast. That the cod 

 remain where deposited has been proved at Gloucester, Mass.. 

 where the fry remained in the harbor, -where planted by the 

 fish commission, and the fishermen report them as playing 

 about the wharves where no cod were ever seen before. 



The present time is not the best for cod hatching, as they 

 have most all I'm ished spawning, beginning about October, 

 but many millions of eggs may yet be obtained. 



FISHCULTURE IN ENCLAND. 



FISHCULTURE is carried on in America to such an extent 

 and the subject occupies so large and forms so interesting 

 a portion of yourpaper, that you will be glad to know we are 

 copying your excellent example, although still sailing far in 

 your wake. As will be known to many of your readers, the 

 Marquis of Exeter has twice or thrice sent his fish-breeder to 

 the Delaware River for consignments of young bass, .i.'cl QUI 

 of twelve hundred fry brought over in l-sllt, he succeeded in 

 placing over eight hundred in Whitewater Lake near Stam- 

 ford, where they have the river well, and are now breeding. 

 In fact wc may say that the American black bass has been 

 successfully acclimatized here, and is being offered to fish- 

 culturists at ten shillings a head, and, although the price is 

 high, if introduced into suitable waters, will soon yield profit 

 enough to satisfy the genuine Waltoniuu in sport, and t he- 

 public, in a new and delicious dish at a season when our 

 salmon and trout are not to be had. Many of our waters are 

 thoroughly neglected and their capabilities of producing im- 

 mense supplies of delicious, cheap and wholesome food wasted, 

 and, as I believe, there is room for the bass where trout and 

 grevling do not exist I expect to see it increase and multiply 

 in this country, as its character as a sporting lish is proved, 

 for it will increase our angler's delight and lengthen the- 

 season of his enjoyment, and in the "Fisher's Garland" of 

 some year not far distant, thepraiscs of the bass will be sung. 

 I do not know whether the Newcastle "Fishers Garland" is » 

 book generally known among American piscators. but if not, 

 it should be. 'The edition I possess is edited bv Joseph Craw- 

 hall, and contains a garland for each year from ISrio to lst'-l, 

 and many of them really are as described, "right merrie" songs' 

 gladdening the heart of nil true anglers.' and indeed old 

 writers claim for angling kinship with poetry. A writer in 

 I ''.53 says : " As it is said Poeta naseitwr -nun jit so ought the 

 piscator or fisherman to have a natural inclination unto the 

 art of angling." It may be as well to sav the "garlands" re- 

 ferred to costs but a few shillings. 



FISHCULTURE TN WYOMING.— In his message, delivered 

 before the Legislature of Wyoming, Jan. 1;!, Governor Hovt 



he work t< 

 the dischai 



said: The sixth legislat 

 in the direction of 

 valuable fish, by r 

 sioner to have cha 

 report of the eoi 

 gratifying evidenc 

 made. The cc 

 competency f< 

 and efficiency 

 performed without other 

 from the success of his lal 

 laches importance tq th 

 small expense, and the te 

 enced person to have cha 



t hG i \ ii"iuliture. 



oporianl 

 upphV 



step 



nth 



anl tha 



It \vi 



liction of a hatchery, at a 



■ enipio'-nieiii oi an cxperi- 



iShould it appear, on (up- 



A FISHWAY AT ELK RAPIDS.-Regarding the proposed 

 fishway on the Elk River and Elk Rapids, Mick, t ho I 'mures* 

 says: We. have been informed by Messrs; Dexter & Noble thai 

 it is their intention to build a fish-ladder in tha chute early in 

 the spring. Some two. yeai's ago one was built for the river. 

 but which no fish but a Salmon could ever go up. It is the m- 

 tentionot' the tirm toputina ladilei-that will meet all reouire. 

 incur-, and thai will be approved by .-ill sportsmen. Mr. John 

 French has a minnow house built near t ihute and has con- 

 veniences tor keeping im.ii.iaof this kind of bait. As soon as 

 the rrost leaves the ground he expects to build his boat-house, 

 winch will be on Elk River, just above the chute. 



ivid Babson, of 

 re of lobsters in I 

 n has arisen wh. 



eh he has j,-, 



State Irish Comroissioners, on account of a claim made by 



some that it is navigable, and there i. 



