FOREST AND STREAM 
For Forest and Stream. 
NYMPHO ODORATA. 
T REMBLING slow with the water’s heat, 
Heart all gold and robes all snow, 
Floats the flower, the lily sweet, 
Safely moored to her home below. 
Dreaming thou? of thy cousin fair— 
Lotas—on breast of Nubian wave? 
Blue as the heavens’ deepest air, 
Idle as Pharaoh’s favored slave. 
Dreaming thou? of thy tribe’s great queen 
Throned in southern lakes afar? 
Holding her court in wondrous scene 
Under fierce sun and tropic star. 
Sigh not thou for the Nile’s deep flow. 
Mystic, wondrous, of bounty free; 
Sigh not thou for the Amazon’s glow 
And the air like perfumes of Araby. 
Rest content by thy northern shore, 
Canopied dark by fir and pine, 
Anchored safe to the weed-grown floor, 
Sought with an homage pure as mine. *** 
This Journal is the Official Organ of the Fish Ciiltur- 
ists’ Association. 
FLASHES FROM THE “BLUE LIGHT.” 
The U. S. Fishery Commission—Its Opera¬ 
tions on Long Island Sound. 
--♦ - 
FIRST WEEK. 
^ - - - 
OANK is a pretty, busy little New England village 
situated on rising ground, about midway between 
New London and Stonington, Connecticut, and about seven 
miles to the westward of that very fashionable, but exces¬ 
sively sandy summer resort, Watch Hill. Noank is not so 
fashionable, but if first impressions are to be relied upon, a 
much pleasanter locality. Its pretty white cottages—many 
surrounded by fruit and horse-chestnut trees—rising one 
above another from the irregular nature of the ground, 
make a charming rural picture from the seaward, which is 
not found exaggerated upon landing, and from the windows 
we catch beautiful views ©f the sound, and of the various 
islands which dot this portion of its surface; and the de¬ 
lightful cooling breeze from the sea, which at nearly every 
point of the compass is visible, ensures refreshing nights 
and no mosquitoes. 
Ship building and fishing are the important interests of 
the town. Messrs. Robert Palmer & Co., add yearly a fair 
percentage to the tonnage of our fishing fleet. Vessels of 
from four to six hundred tons have been built by them for 
the fruit trade to Para and the West Indies. The smaller 
vessels are employed in fishing the adjacent waters of Block 
Island Sound and the southward, from whence they bring 
in full fares of mackerel, bluefish, tautogs, flounders, 
porgies and squeteague or weak fish—called locally “che- 
quit” and “yellow fins,” and in the spring time cod and 
haddock; these latter work to the northward and eastward 
as the season advances, and the schooners follow them over 
to the Georges Banks. * The fish are packed here and sent 
over to Stonington, whence by each evening’s boat they are 
carried to New York and you get-them fresh and sound in 
your market. 
Captain Chester, the first officer of the Pblaris, is a native 
of this village, and has one of the pleasantest homes within 
its limits. A wonderful contrast it makes, with its pleasant 
grass plots and orchard, its shaded croquet ground and 
honeysuckle covered porch, to the pack ice and bergs and 
fierce wintry blasts of those far off regions where he has 
earned a reputation that has made him a part of history. 
The little “Bluelight,” filled with every necessary ap¬ 
pliance for her summer’s work, dredges, trawls, sounding 
gear, apparatus for taking temperatures and specimens at 
depths, &c., has found her way down from Portsmouth, 
and to-morrow we start on our first dredging trip. 
The Commission is under the charge of Professor Baird, 
the United States Fish Commissioner, who is General 
Manager, and following in whose track^-the twin harbingers 
of civilization—the telegraph and express train with New 
York mails, have been led to make Noank a stopping place. 
The former result is of much value to the people here, and 
they appreciate it, and already enough business is trans¬ 
acted over the wires by the residents to pay the expenses. 
To Professor A. E. Verrill, the distinguished Head of the 
Department of Natural History at Yale College, is assigned 
the task of superintending the details of study and research; 
to him are submitted all unknown specimens, and all 
knotty questions, and from him flows a never-failing stream 
of knowledge and instruction. No questioning wearies 
him, and if it does, he does not show it, and it is very hard 
to find the problem that he cannot solve. 
The following named gentlemen have reported for the 
work:— 
Professor S. F. Baird, United States Fish Commissioner. 
Mr. Rockwell, Private Secretary. 
Professor A. E. Verrill, Yale College. 
Professor A. Hyatt, Boston Society Natural History. 
Mr. S. F. Clark, Mr. F. M. Turnbull, Yale College. 
Mr. Robert F. Brown, University of Wisconsin. 
Mr. G. Brown Goode, Wesleyan University* 
Mr. G. Saltonstall, Mr. Richard Rathbun, Boston Society 
Natural History. 
Mr. J. H. Blake, Artist, Museum of Comp. Zoology. 
Mr. C. W. Sherman, Smithsonian Institute. 
Captain Hubbard Chester, Captain Wm. Ashby and Cap¬ 
tain Spicer, of this place, have also become members of our 
party as pilots and for special service in procuring fish, at¬ 
tending nets, &c., &c. 
The following are expected and will soon arrive, viz:— 
Dr. H. C. Chapman, Dr. Joseph Serdy, of Philadelphia, 
Mr. T. H. Bean, Smithsonian Institute. 
Mr. F. W. Putnam, Peabody Academy of Science, 
Salem. 
Mr. Sidney J. Smith, G. R. Kleeberger, C. Harger, J. C. 
Olmstead, Yale College, and probably several others. 
\ Several of these gentlemen bring first-class microscopes 
j of their own, so that, altogether, we shall, probably, have 
jj at least twelve engaged in microscopic examinations, and 
i rich results may fairly be expected. 
I We were fortunate in securing at this place very suitable 
jj buildings for our work. A large sail loft adjacent to the 
I water gives us a room sixty feet by thirty, well lighted with 
{ windows on every side. We have an ice-house for our fish 
and a wharf for our own use. At each window in the lab¬ 
oratory, as we have christened the sail loft, the Professors 
have their tables, and there night and day they can be 
found looking into things. One with apparently one eye 
glued to a microscope, through which he is looking at a 
seemingly empty, (but for salt water,) dish; the other guid¬ 
ing his skillful fingers, as with his pencil he rapidly sketches 
in enlarged size the speck which close scanning discovers 
in the dish. It is but a tiny reddish speck, surrounded with 
a film of white, A peep through the glass confirms the 
accuracy of the sketch and shows a little object like a tiny 
Figure J.* 
branch of coral, with red predominating, but mingled 
with yellow and other shades, but it is not now living 
matter. It is a little creature struggling into life from the 
egg. Each little branchlet has sprung from the original 
hvdroid, and from each, in various stages of development, 
appear little buds. These buds will grow and expand, and 
assume a saucer-like form, like the cup of an acorn, and 
another will grow beneath it, and many others, and as each 
Figure 2.1' Figure 3.$ 
little saucer attains maturity, the ligature between it, and 
the next one in the nest will tighten, and soon it will 
become detached and float away, an independent liv¬ 
ing jelly-fish of the species Gyanea Arctica , and from 
that egg countless more will spring into life, and the 
waters will teem with them; and from microscopic 
creatures they will become monsters, from three to 
five feet in diameter, with tentacles thirty or forty feet in 
ength, and one encountered by Mr. Alexander Agassiz lay 
quiet and permitted him to measure its huge proportions of 
seven feet diameter, with tentacles one hundred feet in 
length. It was but last week that the fishermen of Noank 
came grumbling home from their pounds and nets ofif Block 
Island, for the jelly fish left clinging to them by the falling 
tide had broken them down with their weight. 
The Gyanea is not, however, common of this great size. 
Thousands of from six to twelve inches across are quite 
plentiful, and, floating in the noonday sun, on calm days, 
furnish shelter to little fish, which are often found among 
their tentacles, and shaded by the disk—“ butter-fish” they 
are called, from their being very slimy and greasy to the 
touch. It is presumed that this slime protects them from 
the injurious stinging, nettle-like effect of the jelly fishes’ 
rays, which is sufficient to protect them from the attack of 
larger fish. We find little fish of other species dead under 
*Fig. 1- Hydroid. or young state of tlie red jelly-fish. (Gyanea Arctica) • 
a, one of the hydroids partly developed; b b, two runners from which 
bnds will develop; c , a bud of small size. 
Fig. 2.--The full grown hydroid, or “ strobila,” beginning to divide. 
Fig. 3—One of the young jelly-fish just separated from the “ strobila.” 
this disk, and smaller jelly fish, which have either taken 
refuge or been drawn in to be devoured. But, lazy and well 
fed as the Gyanea is, “ still he is not happy;” a parasite on 
him, which somewhat resembles a lively shrimp, of an inch 
in length, burrows at will through his soft and yielding 
body, and if he has sensations must give him no end of 
trouble ; but it don’t last long. He is born and dies within 
the year, and his bloated body, 99 per cent, of which has 
been found to be water, resolves itself into its original 
elements. 
I hope in another letter to give you the result of a good 
week’s work, but the wind is to the south-east to-night, and 
I hear the fog-horns on the light-houses as I write, and I 
have my doubts for to-morrow. Piseco. 
■-«»«»--- 
Report of Commissioners cf Fisheries of the State 
of New Hampshire—June Session, 1874.—As a river run¬ 
ning through various States is subservient to the greater or 
less care taken of it, as far as fishculture goes, at its mouth, 
the commissioners of New Hampshire, Messrs. Hatch, 
Fletcher and Sanborn, congratulate themselves on the 
erection of the dam at Holyoke, as its presence must mate¬ 
rially affect the fish interest of their state. The commis¬ 
sioners suggest that the law requiring fish ways to be built 
on the Merrimack and Connecticut rivers and their tribg- 
taries, be deprived somewhat of its sweeping character, as 
there are a great many tributaries on which fishways will 
never be needed within the meaning of the statute. Of the 
salmon, last year 165,000 young fish were carried to the 
head waters of the Merrimack, coming from Bucksport, 
and 20,000 other fish, matured from eggs received from 
Prof. Baird, were also placed in the stream. In about 1875 
it is hoped that the salmon will make their grand voyage 
to the sea, and that after that a sufficient number will re¬ 
turn, though some difficulty it seems exists about Lawrence. 
The commissioners state that at Meredith they have over 
250,000 young salmon intended for the head waters of the 
Connecticut. Of land-locked salmon, the commissioners 
were unable to procure the quantity they desired. A cer¬ 
tain number placed some time ago in Newfound Lake, will 
be searched for this year. Of white fish, the attempt to 
secure eggs having failed, an effort will be made to procure 
them this fall. Of shad, a large number of eggs will be 
carried to Lake Winnipissiogee this season. Black bass 
(Gristes nigricans) have done remarkable well in the State, 
showing a wonderful capacity for propagating their 
species. The commissioners stocked quite a large number 
of ponds last fall, and propose placing this useful fish in 
various small lakes this fall. Salmon trout were hatched 
out at Meredith last fall, and were placed this spring in 
Ossipee Lake. 
—The Boston Traveller has an interesting account of lob¬ 
ster canning at Mount Desert. Twenty-five thousand cans 
are put up weekly, employing fifty people. Cans contain 
one pound. Only the claws and tails are used. The con¬ 
cluding paragraph contains what is most interesting to us. 
“The parties who set the nets cull out the large lobsters 
for Boston and other markets.” Now of course all the 
small ones go into the cans. The consequence of this is 
told in another sentence. “Lobsters are not now very 
plenty, and are rather small.” Now it is fair to suppose 
from the small size of the catch, three lobsters, as the claws 
and tails are only used, must go to fill up a pound can. 
That means 75,000 or 100,000 pounds of small lobsters used 
up every week. This is simply another phase of killing 
the “goose which lays the golden egg.” Though the 
coast of Maine is long, its bays and estuaries numberless, 
the time will come when there will be no lobsters, big or 
little to can. It is unfortunate that the law of the State of 
Maine in regard to the catch of lobsters, limiting them as 
to size, was not made uniform with that of Massachusetts. 
France and England take all our canned lobsters, and the 
former country contracts for supplies years ahead. 
—A. large aquarium is in process of construction at Man¬ 
chester, England. The tank will have a frontage of 750 
feet. 
—We have a deferred article on the Protection of Trout 
in Maryland, with a few notes from the Blackwater, Vir¬ 
ginia. 
—We have in type a deferred article from C. G. Atkins, 
Esq., State Fish Commissioner of Maine. 
Batumi history. 
—In La JSature , M. Gaston Tissandier gives an interest¬ 
ing account of two orang-outangs now in Paris at the Jar- 
din Wacdimatation. M. Tissandier says‘ ‘they are quite young, 
have a slow and indolent movement, but are most good 
natured. My brother the other day placed the male 
monkey on his knee, to draw him, and it was curious to 
see liis sister scrutinize the paper and pencil. The two 
are very familiar, and offer their hands to any one who 
looks at them. Their keeper told us that though very 
young, they ate their soup with a spoon, and drank in a 
glass, much more nicely than would well grown children. 
The keeper who is a sailor never 'leaves them.” A natural¬ 
ist, M. Vayssiere, of Marseilles, who took careful measure¬ 
ments of these youn|^prang-outangs says “these young crea¬ 
tures, never would amuse themselves with other monkeys 
animals on board ship. It was curious to see how these 
orang-outangs would play all day with the men and child¬ 
ren, and were indifferent to all other creatures endowed 
with less intelligence than human beigns. M. Tissandier 
adds that at present the orang-outangs are in excellent 
health, and delight in the trapeze and all kinds of amuse- 
