330 
FOREST AND STREAM. 


we can have a shot at a bear who is ranging the woods just 
120 miles from our desk, (so at least a correspondent informs 
us whose kind note of invitation we are just in receipt of.) 
As for that, in sixty-nine to seventy-two hours easy going 
from New York we can kill a buffalo, and if we wish to 
have this pleasant diversion with all its accompaniments, 
could have, by journeying some seven hours more, a neat 
scrimmage with our brother Lo, and either raise hair or 
have our own grizzly locks taken as an ornament for some 
peripetetic lodge pole. Who knows but that some day, 
after breakfast, our great-grand-children may not go off to 
the Papuan islands, shoot a brace of birds of paradise for 
their sisters, and return in time for dinner, which plumes 
their fair sisters may want to deck their persons with at a 
soiree to be held the same evening in Kamtschatka. 
—French sportsmen are in great commotion in regard to 
a change in the game laws. There is a rumor that hunting 
permits, or the right to carry a gun, are to be raised from 
25 to 50 francs; that a considerable tax is to be imposed on 
powder and shot, and even that all shooting (game bird 
shooting?) shall cease fora year, in order that the game 
may increase. We notice too in the Chasse Illustreé a curi- 
ous instance of the French red tape system. M. M. La- 
marche and Lavigne, game and provision merchants, of 
Paris, expected to have shipped to them from New York 
on the 29th of last month, a consignment of prairie chick- 
ens and buffalo meat for the delectation of the Parisian 
gourmands. Now, according to some very arbitrary rul- 
ings of the commissioner who has the subject of the Pari- 
sian markets under his charge, these enterprising provision 
merchants are not to be allowed, according to the august 
judgment of the commissioner, to sell buffalo meat, as this 
bureaucrat cannot understand that buffalo is game, but 
cla3ses its meat with the beef derived from the tamer bo- 
vine races. The hitch is that in the certain markets where 
Messrs. Lamarche. and Lavigne want to sell their buffalo 
meat, game only is allowed to be sold. M. Chevalier, the 
excellent editor of the Chasse Itlustrée, of course takes up 
the cudgels for the bison, which he very properly declares 
to be a game animal. Should the French bureau- 
erat be on the prairie with an old buffalo bull, head 
down, eyes flashing fire, and charging at him, he would 
very possibly not only learn a lesson in natural history, but 
acquire the fact that the buffalo is decidedly game. 
—The question is being agitated by the liberal party in 
Holland of removing entirely all the game laws. 
or _—_—_——_ 
FOOD FISHES OF THE UNITED STATES. 
peek ee 
We are much gratified at the opportunity herewith 
afforded to aid in the very important and arduous work in 
whicn Professor Baird is engaged, and trust that his‘ap- 
peal will be warmly responded to. It is the duty of every 
one and directly to his own interest, to contribute what he 
knows of the food fishes in any given section of the coun- 
try. 
i Unrvtep STATES Commission, F1sH AND FISHERIES, 
Wasuineton, Dec. 23, 1873. 
Eprror ForEST AND STREAM :— 
DEAR Str:—One of the duties with which I have charged 
myself as U. §. Commissiorer of Fish and Fisheries 
is to prepare and furnish to Congress a report upon the 
food fishes of the United States, to consist of descriptions 
of the genera and species, together with as copious biogra- 
phies as may be procurable, the whole to be illustrated by 
reliable figures of the species. 
Although I devote much time every summer to personal 
research in this direction, it is imposible for me to 
cover the ground completely, and I am desirous of securing 
the assistance of all who have any facts at their disposal 
towards accomplishing my object in a satisfactory manner. 
Ienclose to you a series of questions in reference to a 
number of the subjects of special inquiry, and shall be 
greatly indebted to any of your correspondents for answers to 
any, inregard to any particular species. In giving these 
answers it is not necessary to repeat the question itself 
but merely to refer to its number. 
I am already indebted to many gentlemen for service in 
this connectlon and I hope through the instrumentality of 
your widely circulated paper to secure many additional 
data. Full credit will of course be given in my report to 
all to whom I am under obligations. 
LTcan supply pamphlet copies of the questions to those 
who may desire them. Very truly, yours, 
SPENCER F. Barrp, 
CHARLES HALiock, Esq., Commmissioner. 
Editor of FoREST AND STREAM. 
MEMORANDA OF INQUIRY RELATIVE TO THE FOOD FISHES OF 
THE UNITED STATES. 
A. Name of fish in different localities. 
B. Geographical distribution at present time; change of 
location with season of year in former times; supposed 
cause of any permanent change. 
CG. Abundance; at present time, in different seasons and 
localities; in former times, in different seasons and locali- 
ties; supposed cause of variation in abundance; probable 
change in the future. 
D. Size; maximum length and weight; average length 
and weight; rate of growth; length and weight at one, two 
three, etc., years; difference in sexes in this respect. 
BE. Migration and movements; arrival and departure; pe- 
riod of stay; certainty of arrival; route of movement, com- 
ing and going; number and times of runs or schools in one 
season, and differences, if any, in the runs; differences in 
arrival of the sexes and ages; feeding of fish after arrival; 
summer abode; winter abode; if anadromous, when entering 
the fresh water aud when leaving; if anadromous, what the 
movements up and down fresh waters, of adults or of 
young; rate of progression of schools in fresh or salt water; 
relation of movements to tides; depth of water preferred 
by schools or single fish; temperature and general condition 
of water preferred; favorite localities in any region, whether 
bottom be sandy, rocky, muddy, grassy, etc. 
F. Relationships; to its own species, whether gregarious, 
solitary, grouped by age or sex at-any season, predaceous, 
etc.; to other animals, whether preyed upon by them, feed- 
ing upon them, etc.; special enemies, friends or compan- 
ions. 
G. Food; nature; mode of taking it; time of taking it; 
quantity consumed. 
H. Reproduction; interference with spawning, by lines, 
nets, etc.; age of male and female, respectively, when ca- 
pable of reproduction; change in physical condition, (color, 
shape, fatness, etc.;) date of spawning, and its duration as 
relating to the individual as well as to the species; preferred 
localities for spawning, as to place, temperature, etc.; 
special habits during spawning season; special habits be- . 
fore or after spawning; ratio of mortality in old fish from 
spawning; number of successive years of capacity for 
spawning; nesting places; are nesting places prepared? if 
so, whether of grass, stones, sand, etc., or cleared areas, 
and whether made by one sex only, or both; if ridges 
or furrows are formed, how made; the eggs; mode of fe- 
cundation; where laid; where and how attached, if at all; 
covered up, and how, or exposed in water; number laid by 
one fish at one time, and the number during lifetime; size 
and color; special enemies; guarding of eggs by cither sex; 
the embryo and young fish; ratio of fish hatched to num- 
ber of eggs laid; proportion of young fish attaining maturity, 
movement after birth, whether remaining on spawning 
ground and how long; or whether changing from fresh to 
salt, or salt to fresh water, etc., and when; general ap- 
pearances, and successive changes; rate of growth; special 
food; enemies and diseases of eggs and young; relation of 
parent fish, of either sex, to young; whether protective, 
predatory, etc. 
I. Diseases. 
K. Parasites. 
L. Artificial fish-culture. 
M. Protection by law. 
N. Capture; methods; by lines; by nets, foating or mov- 
able, (seines, gill-nets, etc.;) fixed, (traps, pounds, weirs, 
dams, etc.;) other methods of capture; bait; influence of 
modes of capture on abundance; season of capture; by 
lines; by nets; otherwise; time of tide when taken; statis- 
tics of capture; by lines; by nets; otherwise; value of fish 
taken; disposition of fish taken; economical value and 
uses; for food, (fresh, salted, smoked, dried, etc.;) for oil; 
for manure; for other purposes; price, in its variations with 
place, season and year; export and trade, in their variations 
with place, season and year. 
P. Remarks relative to foreign or domestic allies. 
QUESTIONS RELATIVE TO THE FOOD FISHES OF THE UNITED 
STATES. 
A. NAME. 
1 What is the name by which this fish is known in your 
neighborhood? If possible, make an outline sketch for 
better identification. 
B. DisTRIByTION. 
2. Is it found throughout the year, or only during a cer- 
tain time; and for what time? 
83 If resident, is it more abundant at certain times of the 
year; and at what times? 
C. ABUNDANCE. 
f4. How abundant is it, compared with other fish? 
5. Has the abundance of the fish diminished or increesed 
within the last ten years, or is it about the same? 
6. If diminished or increased, what is the supposed 
cause? 
7. What is the amount, or extent, of the change in the 
abundance? 
D. Size: 
8. What is the greatest size to which it attains, (both 
length and weight,) and what the average? 
9. State the rate of growth, per annum, if known; and 
the size at one, two, three, or more years. 
10. Do the sexes differ in respect to shape, size, rate of 
growth, etc.? 
Weseh hs E. Migration AND MovEMENTS. 
11. By what route do these fish come in to the shore; and 
what the subsequent movements? 
12. By what route do they leave the coast? 
18. Where do they spend the winter season? 
14. When are the fish first known or seen to come near 
the shore, and when does the main body arrive; are the first 
the largest; are there more schools or runs than one coming 
in, and at what intervals? 
15. When do the fish leave shore, and is this done by de- 
grees or in a body? 
16. Is the appearance of the flsh on the coast regular and 
certain, or do they ever fail for one or more seasons at a 
time, and then return in greater or lessabundance? If so, 
to what cause is this assigned? 
17. How do the runs differ from each in number and 
size? 
18. Which sex comes in first; 4 how far advanced is 
the spawn in the female on first artiving? 
19. Will either sex, or both, take the hook on first arriv- 
ing; and if so, is there any period of the stay of the fish 
when they refuse it? 
20. If they refuse the hook at ‘irst, how soon do they be- 
gin to take it after arriving? 
21. Do the schools of fish swim high or low; and is their 
arrival known otherwise than by their capture; that is, do 
they make a ripple on the water, do they attract birds, 
etc. ? 
22. What is the relation of their movements to the ebb 
and flow of the tide? 
23. Does spawn ever run out of these fish taken with a 
hook? 
24, Answer same question in regard to fish taken in ifets 
or pounds; is the spawn ever seen in any quantity floating 
about inside of nets? : t : 
25. Are these fish anadromous; that is, do they run up 
from the sea into fresh water for any, and for what pur- 
ose? 
4 26. Il anadromous, when are they first seen off the coast; 
when do they enter the mouths of the rivers, and what is 
the rate of progression up stream? : 
-_ 27, If anadromous, what the length of their stay in fresh 
water, and when do they return to the sea? 1 
28. Do the different sexes or ages vary in this respect? 
29. Do these fish come on to the breeding grounds before 
~ 
they are mature; or do you find the one and two year old 
fish with the oldest? 
30. What are the favorite Jocalities of these fish; say 
whether in still water or currents; shallow or deep water; 
on the sand; in grass; about rocks, etc. ? 
81. What depth of water is preferred by these fish? 
382. What the favorite temperature and general character 
of water? 
F. RELATIONSHIP. 
33. Do these fish go in schools after they have done 
pps wane or throughout the year; or are they scattered and 
solitary ? 
34. Have they any special friends or enemies? 
35. To what extent do they prey on other fish; and on 
what species? : 
36. To what extent do they suffer from the attacks of 
other fish, or other animals? 
: G. Foon. 
37. What is the nature of their food? 
38. Are there any special peculiarities in the manner of 
feeding of these fish? 
39. What amount of food do they consume? 
H. REPRODUCTION. 
_40. Is there any marked change in the shape or color of 
either sex during the breeding season; or any peculiar de- 
volopement of or on any portion of the body, as the mouth, 
fins, scales, ete. ? 
41. Are there any special or unusual habits during the 
spawning season? 
ie Is spawning interfered with by lines or nets, or other- 
wise 
43. At what age does the male begin to breed; and at 
what age the female? 
44. For how many years can these fish spawn? 
45. Does the act of spawning exert an*injurious effect? 
46. Where do these fish spawn, and when? 
47. Can you give any accouut of the process; whether 
males and females go in pairs, or one female and two 
males; whether the sexcs are mixed indiscriminately, etc? - 
48. Is the water ever whitened or colored by the milt of 
the male? 
49. What temperature of water is most favorable for 
hatching. 
50. At what depth of water are the eggs laid, if on or 
near the bottom? : 
51. What is the size and color of the spawn? 
52. What is the estimated number for each fish; and how 
ascertained? ’ 
bE 53. Answer the question for one season, and for the life- 
ime. 
54. Do the eggs, when spawned, sink to the bottom and 
become attached to stones, grass, etc., or do they float in 
the water until hatched? 
55. Do the fish heap up or construct any kind otf nest, 
whether of sand, gravel, grass, or otherwise; andif so, is 
the mouth, the snout, or the tail used for the purpose,.or 
what; and if so, how is the material trunsported; or do 
they make any excavation in the sand or gravel? 
56. Do they watch over their nest, if made, either singly 
or in pairs? x 
57. When are the eggs hatched, and in what period of 
time after being laid? 
58. What percentage of eggs laid is usually hatched? 
59. What percentage of young attains to maturity? 
60. What is the rate of growth? 
61. Do the parents, either or both, watch over the young 
after they are hatched? 
62. Do they carry them in the mouth, or otherwise? 
63. What enemies interfere with or destroy the spawn or 
the young fish? Do the pareut fish devour them? 
64. Are the young of this fish found in abundance, and 
in what localities? > 
65. On what do they appear to feed? 
I. ARTIFICIAL CULTURE. 
66. Have any steps been taken to increase the abundance 
of this fish by artificial breeding? 
K. PROTECTION. 
67. Are these fish protected by law or otherwise? 
L. DISEASES. 
68. Has any epidemic or other disease ever been noticed 
among them, such as‘to cause their sickness or death in 
greater or less number? 
69. When have these epidemics taken place, and to what 
causes have they been assigned? 
M. PARASITES. 
70. Are crabs, worms, lampreys, or other living animals 
found attached to the outside or on the gills of these fish? 
N. CAPTURE. 
71. How is this fish caught; if with a hook, what are the 
different kinds of bait used, and which are preferred? 
72. If in nets, in what kind? 
73. At what season and for what period is it taken in 
nets, and when with the line? 
74. What would be the average daily catch of one person _ 
with the, hook, and what the total for the season? 
75. Answer the same question for one seine or pound of 
specified length. 
76. Is the time of catching with nets or pounds different 
from that with lines? 
77. Is it caught more on onetime of the tide than on 
another? 
O. EoonomicaL VALUE AND APPLICATION. 
78. What disposition is made of the fish caught, whether 
used on the spot or sent elsewhere, and if so, where? 
79. What is its excellence as food, fresh or salted? 
80. How long does it retain its excellence as a fresh fish? 
81. To what extent is it eaten? 
82. Is it salted, and to what extent? 
83. Is it used, and to what extent, as manue, for oil, or 
for other purposes, and what? : 
84. What were the highest and lowest prices of the fish 
per lb. during the past season, wholesale and retail, and 
what the average, and how do these compare with former ° 
prices? : 2 = 
85. Are these fish exported, and if so, to what extent? 
86. Where is the principal market of these fish? 
87. Name and address of observer. : 
88. Date of statement. ; 
'—Two fine horses, bitten by a mad dog in Baltimore | 
county, Maryland, have been seized with hydrophobia, 
and killed. 
