THE NEW YORK AQUARIUM JOURNAL. 
21 
umbilicus that it cannot swim, and, as it emerges 
from its prison house, is liable to be devoured on 
the instant. 
It would seem that nature hasyprovided for all 
this great waste of life by supplying to the, fish 
a great number of eggs, so that if one in a hun¬ 
dred reaches maturity, the stock is kept up. It 
is the same with the seeds of plants, for when 
wild but few grow; and it is only when man 
steps in and tills the ground and sows the seed in 
the proper manner, that a full crop is obtained. 
The fish culturist, by taking his milt in a pan 
first, and then gently stripping the gravid fish in¬ 
to it, thus bringing every egg in contact with it, 
secures a fecundation of about ninety per cent. 
He then protects them from the sun, sediment 
and all other enemies until hatched and the 
umbilical vesicle absorbed. 
They are not put out until ready to take food 
and care for themselves. After this there is a 
chance for some to be devoured, but the critical 
period is passed, and thousands have been suc¬ 
cessfully carried to the self-sustaining point, at 
which only a dozen or less would have arrived if 
left to nature. 
We find that the eggs of fish belonging to dif¬ 
ferent families require different treatment. Thus, 
while those of the salmonidas are hatched as you 
see, lying on screens, the eggs of the shad re¬ 
quire to be suspended in moving water, and will 
die if left on the bottom. 
There are three characters of fish ova. First, 
that of the yellow perch has its eggs in a long mass, 
which is hung over twigs in the water, and.looks 
like a string of lace with bright, jelly-like dots 
in it. Second, the other percoids, cyprinoids, 
&c., have the eggs separated, but each envel¬ 
oped in a glutinous substance that adheres to the 
stones and sticks with which they come in conjr 
T -Sa : n&Te are the mostdifhcuk eggs to handle 
that the fish culturist meets, on account of their 
tendency .to mat together in the pan, and thus 
smother those inside. This can be partly obvi¬ 
ated by using bundles of twigs or straw. Third, 
the salmon, shad, trout, grayling, (S^cc, have 
eggs separate and non-adhesive. 
There are some percoids who have non-ad¬ 
hesive spawn, as the striped bass or rock fish, 
the sea bass and others. 
The eggs of the fresh water black bass are of 
those where nature left to herself does the best, 
for this fish guards the nest and keeps away all 
intruders, as well as keeps the eggs clean and 
the water on them in circulation by fanning them 
with her tail; and here all that can be .done is to 
collect the young for transportation, or to stock 
waters with the adult fish. 
A MERRY EVENING, 
The evening of the 31st of October was 
one that will long be remembered by the 
friends of the Aquarium, and a brief record 
of the event which bears with it so pleasing 
a reminiscence will, we are confident, be of 
interest to eur readers. * 
The following transcript of a Card of In¬ 
vitation will explain the purpose of the social 
re-union to which we refer : 
To Messrs, W. C. COUP and CHAS. REICHE. 
Gentlemen — The undersigned, acting as a Commit¬ 
tee, and others, respectfully solicit your acceptance of an 
invitation to a Social Entertainment, to be given on the 
Evening of Tuesday ensuing, Oct. 3 lst, at “Parker’s.” 
We are prompted to propose this trifling compliment from 
a desire to evince our sincere appreciation of your en¬ 
terprise and liberality in carrying forward to a successful 
and brilliant culmination, in defiance of obstacles suffi¬ 
ciently serious to deter the most sanguine, the grand pro¬ 
ject of giving to the chiel American metropolis an exten¬ 
sive, costly and beautiful Aquarium. Co-laborers with 
yourselves in the progress of the work, we have had 
our admiration aroused by witnessing from the inception 
of the enterprise to the final completion difficulties of the 
utmost gravity vanquished, and every personal discour¬ 
agement (and they have been many) subordinated to the 
one great sentiment of ultimate success. Y our determina¬ 
tion, perseverance, energy, rare executive ability and 
admirable temerity, under the most trying circumstances 
and in the face of most unlooked for mishaps, are beyond 
all praise, and none can, or do understand the nature of 
the almost insurmountable obstacles which you have one 
by one overcome, better than ourselves. 
We trust we may be permitted to take advantage 
-: lai;—;’ :V: p yttvVtu te—gi r v- -es^reRsioa-tc. 
our heartfelt congratulations upon the signal success at¬ 
tending your efforts to afford still another ornament to 
our city, and to provide an.establishment which should 
be perpetual in its establishment, wide-spread in its use¬ 
fulness and never-ceasing in its pleasurable and in¬ 
structive features. We remain, respectfully, 
R. J. EDGAR, 1 
W. S. WARD, I 
FRED. MATHER, 
JOHN W. HAMILTON, 
W. H. BROWNING, , 
ANDREW SMITH, J 
}- Committee. 
I 
In response to this request a company of 
thirty gentlemen sat clown to a richly laden 
feast, which was followed by a series of toasts 
and responses that were even more rare 
and racy than the repast which preceded 
them. 
Mr. Mather then called the attention of his 
distinguished hearers to several specimens of the 
eggs of the California salmon and the fry, 
which are now being hatched in great numbers 
in the troughs of the Aquarium. An object of 
special interest was a very queer double fish or 
twin salmon, where two fry were joined to one 
yolk like the Siamese twins. Owing to the po¬ 
sition which the bodies of these two specimens 
have to lie, the beating of both hearts and the 
circulation of the blood was plainly visible. 
These interesting objects are still alive, and may 
be seen in a glass near the hatching tanks. 
At the close of Mr. Mather’s paper Mr. W. 
C. Coup, the manager of the Aquarium, ex¬ 
tended an invitation to the society to visit the 
main pavilion, which he had ordered to be 
kept open beyond the usual hour, in order 
that the members might have abundant op¬ 
portunity to inspect the work. 
“Our G-uests” were, of course, the first to 
be honored, and in their responses Messrs. 
Coup and Reiche told the story of their strug¬ 
gle, which, in the light of their final triumph, 
was all the more welcome. 
After thus recognizing the claims of our 
guests, the services of the associate laborers 
in the enterprise were recognized by toasts 
and responses, as follows : 
The Aquarium.Fred. Mather 
The Architect. A. D. Ogdeu 
Business Management.R. J. Edgar 
Contractors.. A. Smith, W. H. Browning, &c. 
„ f Mr. Williams of the Herald 
1 he -Press.| Mr. Pulham of the Times 
Art. E. T. Vance 
Music.H. B. Dodworth 
Science.W. S. Ward 
The Ladies.J. W. Hamilton 
A noteworthy feature of these responses 
was the recognition of the constant watchful¬ 
ness and valuable direction given by Mr. 
Coup, who, as manager of the enterprise, 
seemed fully able to direct all his associates 
in whatever branch of the service they were 
engaged. Following the more formal pro¬ 
ceedings, were the numberless interchanges 
of compliments and congratulations, the in¬ 
tervals being taken up by the band, which, 
under the direction of Mr. Dodworth, added 
to the harmony and cheer of the hour. 
WHAT OUR FRIENDS THINK OF US. 
The New York Aquarium is now a pro¬ 
nounced and complete success. After almost 
insurmountable obstacles and difficulties, acci¬ 
dents and mishaps, the proprietors, Messrs. 
Coup and Reiche, are to be congratulated upon 
bringing to a successful result this novel experi¬ 
ment. Few would have the pluck and hardi¬ 
hood to encounter so great and expensive an 
undertaking, and still fewer would have over¬ 
come so completely, as the above-named gen¬ 
tlemen have done, the many difficulties which 
beset them.— The Sportsman. 
The only place comparable with the Aquarium 
is the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, 
for it can be truly said of both, that at each 
visit, no matter how frequent, new wonders and 
charms are discovered.— Noah's Times , Neve 
York. 
Fish are now or their way to the Aquarium 
from all parts of the globe, and fresh arrivals oc¬ 
cur daily, so that no matter how often you may 
visit the place, you are always sure of seeing 
something new. — Brooklyn Sunday Sun. 
The peculiar venture of Messrs. Coup and 
Reiche is still in course of improvement, and is 
beginning to prove that the New York public is 
willing to pay for novelties in whatever shape 
they may come. — N. Y. Herald. 
Mr. W. C. Coup, in organizing and opening 
to the public such an establishment as the 
Aquarium, has rendered a signal service, and 
one that we earnestly hope to see substantially 
recognized.— N. Y. Dispatch. 
Already this Aquarium attracts a continuous 
stream of visitors day and evening, and it is des¬ 
tined, we do not doubt, to prove a most bril¬ 
liant and lasting success.— Rochester Union and 
Advertiser. 
Asa place ot recreation and instruction it has 
no superior. 
Behold in this what leisure hours demand — 
Amusement and true knowledge hand in hand. 
- —Brooklyn Eagle. 
The Aquarium continues to attract daily large 
and fashionable assemblages, and has evidently 
taken a decided hold upon the public favor. —• 
N Y. Journal of Commerce. 
No one should miss the opportunity ot seeing 
the Aquarium as now opened. Nothing that 
is beautiful, artistic and useful in its appoint¬ 
ments, is omitted.— New York Tribune. 
The Aquarium has become a centre of singu¬ 
lar study and interest. — N. Y. Daily News. 
The Aquarium is now the delight of the 
children. — N. Y. Evening Mail. 
