XXV 
On the morning of the ninth almost all of the eggs were 
"hatched, showing a mnch more rapid development than that 
of shad eggs under similar circumstances. 
After being hatched, the fish were found to be considerably 
smaller than shad, but with much larger umbilical sacs. So 
small, in fact, were they, that it was impossible to confine them 
by the wire cloth used in the propagation of shad. Most of 
those hatched made their escape through the meshes of the 
wire cloth. Several thousands were dipped out from the 
hatching vessels and placed in transporting cans, and many 
of them were carried to Washington and some to Baltimore. 
The last mentioned were placed in the running w T ater at the 
hatching house in Druid Hill Park. As a matter of experiment, 
several thousands of these young rock were placed in a tin 
pail on the deck of the steamer Lookout, and kept there with- 
out change of water. They were alive, and apparently healthy, 
ten days after being hatched. During a considerable part of 
the time they were on deck and exposed to the rays of the 
sun. This experiment shows that young rock can be much 
more easily transported than young shad ; and that, in its ear- 
liest stages at least, it is a very hardy fish. This is an im- 
portant consideration in view of the fact that, in order thor- 
oughly to stock the waters of the State, the limited area of 
the spawning grounds of the rock may render it necessary 
to procure the eggs and hatch the fish at some point remote 
from the waters intended to be stocked. 
The capture of these fish at so advanced a period in the 
season would seem to indicate that their spawning time is 
somewhat later than that of the shad. This may account for 
the failure, heretofore, to find ripe rock among those taken 
while fishing for shad and herring. 
The fishing season in Albemarle Sound usually ends about 
the 1st of May, but during last spring the fisheries owned by 
Dr. Capeheart were continued to a somewhat later date. The 
table giving the details of shad-hatching operations on pages 
xxx to xxxm show that the spawning season of shad in Albe- 
marle Sound extends from the latter part of March to the first 
•of May. We have not been able heretofore to find ripe shad 
