XL 
A careful examination of these tables will show that much 
the larger proportion of ripe females was found among those- 
taken by the gill-nets at the close of the season. Tins per- 
centage may seem small, when we remember that for pur- 
poses of reproduction alone these migratory fish ascend 
the rivers. An explanation, however, of the comparatively 
insignificant numbers of ripe females taken is offered by 
the fact that the fish are not considered ripe or useful to 
the fish culturist until they are in the act of spawning or the 
eggs ready to run freely from them. A very large number of 
fish caught bear evidence of being near this state. These facts 
would seem to indicate that the w^ork of hatching shad success- 
fully and on a larger scale would be greatly facilitated by keep- 
ing over for a few days, until they become quite ripe, the fish 
taken just before they are ready to spawn. This plan has 
been pursued with several varieties of fish, notably with the 
salmon, which is taken in the spring of the year by pound 
nets in Penobscot Bay, and transferred thence to fresh water 
ponds some miles distant, and retained in these until the fall, 
by which time the eggs are in a proper state of development. 
The great difficulty with which we have to contend in this 
treatment of shad consists in the fact that they are so ex- 
tremely delicate, their scales being easily knocked off, caus- 
ing disease and death. We have suggested in a previous 
report the plan of penning the fish by such methods as are 
used for keeping w T hite fish on Detroit River. In our first 
report we gave an account of the manner in which the fishing 
is conducted in the above-named river, and urged our fisher- 
men to adopt the plan pursued with the white fish. Num- 
bers of shad could be held over and sent to market from 
time to time. This plan we strongly recommended for 
the “ floating batteries ” operated at the “ Head of the Bay,” 
as enclosures for keeping the fish could be most success- 
fully used in connection with these batteries. Should we 
succeed in inducing one of the battery owners at Havre de 
Grace to provide this attachment, we are sure it would en- 
able us to secure a much larger number of spawning fish eacli 
year. 
