T 
OREST AND STREAM. 
birds by my window. 
A JUNE SONG. 
ary fresh-water tank holding five tons of water, and at the 
other end, two salt-water tanks, holding in the aggregate 
the same amount of salt-water. The ice boxes are over the 
pessary to them as meat and bread, and if they can’t a a 
it on the farm they will hunt it in the villas. fc find 
S WEET birds that by my window sing, 
Or sail around on careless wing, 
Beseech ye, lend your carolling, 
While I salute my darling. 
She’s far from me, away, away, 
Across the hills, beyond the bay, 
But still my heart goes night and day 
To meet and greet my darling. 
Brown wren, from out whose swelling throat 
Unstinted joys of music float, 
Come lend to me thine own June note, 
To warble to my darling. 
Sweet dove, thy tender, love-lorn coo 
Melts pensively the orchard through; 
Grant me thy gentle voice to woo, 
And I shall win my darling. 
Lark, ever leal to dawn of day, 
Pause ere thou wing’st thy skyward way— 
Pause, and bestow one quivering lay, 
One anthem for my darling. 
Ah, mocker, rich as leafy June, 
Thou’lt grant, I know, one little boon, 
One strain of thy most matchless tune, 
To solace my own darling. 
Bright choir, your peerless song shall stir 
The rapturous chords of love in her; 
But who shall be our messenger, 
When we salute my darling? 
Oh, voiceless swallow, crown of spring, 
Lend us awhile thy swift curved wing; 
Straight as an arrow thou shalt bring 
This greeting to my darling. Edward Spenceb. 
—Galaxy. 
<#s/jT §ultui[e. 
This Journal is the Official Organ of the Fish Cultur- 
ists’ Association. 
WAIL OF A FISH CULTURIST. 
Doubtless the task of a Fsh Culturist in giving instruc¬ 
tion to inquisitive or sincere seekers after information, is 
as thankless as that of some editors. (No special reference 
to ourselves, we are proud to say.) Some people expect a 
man to butter his daily bread with his brains and then give 
it away free of charge, and are surprised if any pay is de¬ 
manded. We can appreciate and respect the state of mind 
that induced our correspondent to utter the following 
plaint: 
Honeoye Fauls, N. Y., May 21, 1874. 
Editor Forest and Stream:— 
The patient, long-suffering, over-bored fish cnlturists have at last 
struck. I have at least twenty letters a week, each of which, to do jus¬ 
tice to, would take an hour to answer carefully, and not one “stamp” in 
them all! Now, I don’t mind it from customers, but from people of 
whom I have never heard it is asking too much. They must think we 
do business for fun. They should understand that the knowledge they 
require has been gamed by us at an almost ruinous expense of both 
time and money. One man in ten sends a stamp, and one man once 
sent a dollar and anotherfifty cents. I set it down to thoughtlessness, 
and have kept on writing, but it is not right, and I must seek relief some¬ 
where. I honestly think I do more work for less or no pay than any 
other man in the country. 
Can’t you drop a line, a plea, or something, or organize a society for 
the relief of the down-trodden and over-worked Fish Culturist. 
THE GROWTH OF SHAD. 
In our issue of May 21st we replied to the queries of M. 
Blakeslee, of Olean, N. Y., respecting the growth of shad 
from year to year, giving as we supposed a correct version 
of a letter which we solicited from Seth Green, from whom 
we sought information. Mr. Norris, of Philadelphia, first 
called our attention to a palpable error in our statement as 
printed, and we wrote again to Mr. Green for a revision, 
and received the following courteous note: 
Rochester, May 19 th. 
Dear Sir: I find plenty of yearling shad in the Hudson 
river in June, and a good many two years old—males. 'The 
two-year old ones are nearly all male shad, and if they do 
go to sea the first year, they may drop down to the mouth 
of the river, and perhaps go a short distance in the bay. 
I have learned what I could for the chance I have had 
without going in and swimming down with them, which I 
do not intend to do if it is never found out. I am satisfied 
if they come back in great numbers when they are full 
grown. I think my old friend Norris is right about the 
Alleghany shad. I have made the same remark. It is an 
experiment, and no one knows what the result will be. I 
am prepared for anything. No one will know until the 
third or fourth year. 
Yours, Seth Green. 
—The Calfornia aquarium car left Charlestown, N. H., 
Thursday, June 4, at 2 P. M., to arive at Albany 
at 11.10 P. M.; Rochester, N. Y., Friday, June 5th, at 
1.15.; Detroit, Friday,- June 5th, at 10.30 P. M.; 
Chicago, Saturday, June 6, at 8.30 A. M.; Omaha, 
Neb., by way of Chicago and Northwestern railroad, Sun¬ 
day, June 7, at 10 A. M.; Cheyenne, Wyoming Monday, 
June 8, at 1.35 P. M.; Ogden, Utah, Tuesday, June 9, at 
6.15 P. M.; Carlin, Nevada, Wednesday, June 10, at 10,20 
A. M.; Trucked, Cal., Thursday, June 11, at 4.50 A. M.; 
Sacremento, Cal., Thursday, June 11, at 1.20 P. M.; San 
Francisco, Cal., Thursday, June 11, at 8.05 P. M. 
The aquarium car is a large passenger-baggage car, forty 
feet long by nine wide, with twelve wheels, an air brake 
and a Miller platform. At one end of the car is a station- 
tanks, and there are upward of twenty portable tanks 
between these two. In the top of the car is an aerating 
machine for forcing air into the water in the tanks and 
cans. This is an ingenious contrivance and works finely, 
supplying the fish with all the air they need. It was stated 
that not a fish had died since the car started on its long 
journey. The following are the varieties of fish in the 
various receptacles: Lobsters and oysters from Massachu¬ 
setts bay; tautogs, eels, and weak-fish from Martha’s Vine¬ 
yard; striped bass, black bass and wall-eyed pike from 
Lake Champlain, Michigan and Nebraska; horn pouts from 
Lake Champlain; fresh-water eels and shad from the Hud¬ 
son River; cat fish from Raritan River, N. J., alewives 
from Mystic River, Mass. The fish are to be placed in the 
waters of California. 
—The Massachusetts State Fish Commissioners have 
begun stocking Westfield River with migratory fish, and 
on Thursday, 2dinst., emptied 50,000 young salmon into 
the river on each side of Westfield. 
—The Connecticut Fish Commissioners have agreed to 
build a fishway over the Greenville dam, this summer, and 
put 100,000 shad in the Quinnebaug River at Putnam, 
about the middle of July. 
Caledonia, June 4, 1874. 
Editor Forest and Stream 
Dear Sir: I have hatched all but one of the grayling 
eggs which Seth Green brought from Michigan in water 
averaging 46 feet, the time of incubation is about ten days; 
the sac lasts about six days. When first hatched they lie 
on the bottom like young trqut, but commence to swim on 
the third or fourth day. 
May 5.—Eggs arrived from Michigan. 
“ 8.—First egg hatched. 
“ H.—All eggs hatched out; one lost. 
“ 12.—First fish began to rise and eat. 
“ 15.—All swimming. 
At the present date they are all doing well, and I have 
only lost two of the fry. The eggs are nearly as large as 
trout eggs, but of less specific gravity. The fry resemble 
the young of the wliitefish. 
You have said two or three times in your paper that the 
grayling were undoubtedly the “coming fish.” I would 
like to have you give your reasons for the faith that is in 
you. 
Yours truly, A. 8. Collins.. 
[See Forest and Stream June 4th for ‘i reasons of the 
faith.”— Ed.] 
—The experiment of inducing the return of herrings an¬ 
nually to Town Brook, Plymouth, Mass., as they used to 
do, many years since, in great numbers, has been entirely 
successful. To bring this about it has been merely neces¬ 
sary to introduce a limited number of the fish into Billino-- 
ton Sea in the spawning season, and the result this yearfs 
a visitation that pruves the instincts of these scaly speci¬ 
mens may be relied upon, no matter what obstructions are 
placed in their path. At the mouth of Town Brook, and 
for some distance of its course into the harbor, the water 
literally swarms with fish, all desperately bent upon get¬ 
ting up stream; and Rope walk Pond is also filled with 
them, as they are continually ascending by the only fish¬ 
way which has been constructed. 
This information is most valuable, and no doubt the 
same method may be adopted with equal advantage to 
other waters, now deserted, which once swarmed with sal¬ 
mon, herring, or shad. 
^ -*•*- 
Farming the Water,— Mr. George Jerome, one of the 
Fish Commissioners of Michigan, communicated to the 
National Granger the following data in relation to the value 
of fish-breeding as one of the industries connected with 
Agriculture:— 
When the sea, the lake, and those unnumbered rivers and 
streams that bear their never ceasing flood seaward, shall 
make such returns as they are capable of making, 
the immense increase in cheap, abundant food will tend 
greatly to harmonize the relations of capital and labor. It 
is estimated that the yearly catch, consumption and value 
of fish in these countries alone is equal to $120,000 000 
Now suppose we put the fish at three cents per pound ’ and 
it will give up 4,000,000,000 pounds of food. Suppose that 
we estimate the weight of neat cattle at 700 pounds each 
and a pound of fish to be equal to a pound of meat and we 
have here as much food, all the uncostly yield of the sea 
as is equal to 5,750,000 of cattle. 
Now to this add yield of the whole sea, the lake the 
river, the lakelet, and we have an amount of good brain 
bone and muscle food almost beyond the range of calcu¬ 
lation. If we except China, Japan and a small part of 
Europe, not a tithe of our great, water-farm has yet been sub¬ 
jected to cultivation. Let it be cleared up, plowed, man¬ 
ured, so to speak, scientifically tilled, and the choicer 
varieties of stock introduced, and we will prove a given 
acreage of water to be equal in production and value to 
the. same acreage of land. 
Stocking Streams with Trout.—A Wisconsin farmer 
writes to the Western Farmer as follows, and makes a sug¬ 
gestion we think worth heeding:—A year ago, having more 
young troutthan my pond would accommodate, I pufa few 
thousand into a barren stream near me. They were then 
about one inch long. A few days since I thought I would 
see what they had done. I took my rod and a couple of mv 
little boys and went to the branch, and in less than an hour 
caught thirty, all we wanted, and might have caught hun¬ 
dreds, as we could see them in schools of fifty or a hun¬ 
dred in a place, for a mile up and down the brook Thev 
were about seven inches long, and those left by midsum¬ 
mer will be nine or ten inches long, or what would be 
called a nice catch. 
As this same thing can be done by every brook of pure 
water, (either hard or soft), in the State, I submit if it 
would not pay the owners of brooks to stock them if in 
nothing else, in furnishing one more attraction for the farm 
If not for themselves, for the boys, for recreation is as ne- 
ioung &ALMON.— ihe boys at the Salmon Falk n , 
Upper Mills, Maine, are catching large numbers nf S an , d 
salmon from four to eight inches loner Theso 
portion of the “ten thousand” placed bv Commf - bea 
Stillwell in the upper waters of the St. Croix 
which have journeyed thus far on their way to the o?M« nd 
Dangor Democrat. J ie oce an,— 
-±vLi. nxctnui ivjLtacaii, oi .Baltic 
gaged in the experiment of raising grayling in his’kkn'®' 
rather in the stream leading from springs into the^\° r 
The fish are thriving, and promise complete success. ^ 
Ijituml l§istnrg. 
“Do Quail Withhold Theik Scent. "-It appears tw 
the late discussion in Forest and Stream of the auest' 
“Do quail withhold their scent?” has attracted considemhk 
attention on the other side of the Atlantic. Mr Lavera V 
writes us and says: “Your correspondent Mr E S w* 
maker of Suffern, N. Y. has written the best explanation 
on this subject (which appeared in your journal of Anril 
30th) that has yet been given in any paper, and evidently 
the result of careful thought and practical observation in 
the field. I can endorse its truth in this country as m - 
friends and self have frequently marked partridges dow/ 
walked to the spot, run the dogs over it again and a^ain ’ 
and then literally walked the place over. . I have seen the 
birds sitting, and dogs spring over them, and when the 
birds are in that frightened palpitating state, they will 
allow either dog or man to trample on them.” 
Mr. Laverack evidently thinks so much of Mr. Wan- 
maker’s communication to our journal that he says: “You 
will be kind enough to return the quail article enclosed 
“Do quail withhold their scent,” was long ago agitated in 
the English papers, but never was it described so lucidly 
before.” y 
—--^- 
On the steamer which left Bremen for New York on 
Tuesday last were shipped six giraffes, consigned to our 
well known animal dealer, Mr. Charles Reiche. Some time 
ago we announced the arrival of Mr. Reiclie’s caravan 
consisting of twenty-six giraffes, two elephants, and 
ostriches, emeus, and cassowaries at Alexandria. Another 
caravan is expected at Alexandria in a week or so. 
GLaffes, Mr. Reiche informed us, were worth some years 
ago as much as $5,000 apiece, but dull times have affected 
the wild beast market. Mr. Reiche expects, however, that 
his giraffes will find ready sale at $3,000 each. The two 
leopards which have been for some time on hand, were 
sold last week to the Philadelphia zoological association. 
Last Saturday Mr. Reiche made a shipment of seven 
beavers for Germany; among them was amotlierbeaver with 
four kits. A number cf horse-shoe crabs were also sent to 
aquaria in Europe, and to the Paris Jardin «z’ Acdimatation, 
were shipped some of our monster bull-frogs. 
Vthe Manatee at St. Augustine, Florida.— Some 
time ago we mentioned that a manatee had been seen near 
St. Augustine. We judged it to be a manatee from the 
description, and now there seems little doubt of it, inas¬ 
much as the town people have “surrounded” the “critter.” 
The latest news, as we learn from the St. Augustine Press , 
is as follows. We quote:— 
“The manatee continues her’ domicil in Bar Creek. 
Fishermen have again reported it, and citizens are anxious 
to go after it; out we understand that the owner of the 
land which encloses Bar Creek claims it as his property, 
and has forbid any one from meddling with it, under a 
prosecution for trespass. The mouths of the creek are lo 
be stopped by strong fences and the animal kept there, 
for exhibition next season. The enclosed space is also to be 
used as a reservoir for turtle, put there during the sum¬ 
mer. There are. also vague rumors of a very large animal 
of the same species having been seen roaming about a 
place on the North River called Oleander Town. If so, 
the one is probably the dam and the other the calf that 
have become separated. It is also probable that during 
some of the heavy blows along the coast, between here and 
Indian River some herd of these animals lias become dis¬ 
persed and these two may have wandered into our harbor. 
It will be remembered that two or three years ago a very 
large one was seen in this harbor, which came up to the 
water-battery of the Fort, where it remained until pelted 
by the boys. Fishermen report them as having been fre¬ 
quently seen in the harbor.” 
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, June 3, 1874. 
Editor Forest and Stream:— 
You! correspondent at New Smyrna, Florida, (Mr. S. C. 
Clarke,) in the last isssue of your paper (May 28,) alludes 
to two fishes of the Floridian waters known thereunder the 
names Tarpum and Jew fish, which he was unable to 
identify. It may interest some of your readers to know 
what they are. 
The Tarpum is a gigantic herring-like fish characterized 
by its large eyes, large scales, the mongated thread-like 
last dorsal ray and numerous bony rays in the gill mem¬ 
brane. The scientific name is megalops atlanticus. Its 
beauty of form is such that it is said that a fountain in one 
of the pnblic places in Paris was modelled after it. The 
species is an occasional visitor to our coast, whence two 
specimens have been obtained for the Smithsonian Institu¬ 
tion—one from Long Island. 
The Jew fish is ,a kind of grouper (belonging to the 
family Serranidae) &nd is more nearly related to our Sea 
bass than any species in our waters, with which our anglers 
are familiar. The scientific name is Promocrops gvasa. It 
attains an enormous size, one weighing about 700 pounds 
having been.sent to the Smithsonian Institution, where a 
cast taken in the flesh exactly reproduces its form and 
features while the skeleton euables its more fundamental 
characters to be studied. 
The shark alluded to by the same correspondent cannot 
