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TRANSACTIONS

of the

American Fisheries Society

“To promote the cause of fish culture; to gather
and diffuse information bearing upon its practical
success and upon all matters relating to the fisheries;
to unite and encourage all interests of fish culture and
the fisheries; and to treat all questions of a scientific
and economic character regarding fish.”

FIFTIETH ANNUAL MEETING

OTTAWA, CANADA
SEPTEMBER 20, 21, 22, 1920

VOLUME L
1920-1921

Edited by Ward T. Bower »
38

Published Annually by the Society
WASHINGTON, D. C.

Che Amvrican Hisheries Society

Organized 1870 Incorporated 1910

Officers for 1920-1921

TP CSIOCHL 5.5 md eee NaTHAN R. BuLLER, Harrisburg, Pa.
Vice-President........ Epwarp E. PRINCE, Ottawa, Canada
Executive Secretary....Warp T. Bower, Washington, D. C.
Recording Secretary........ S. B. Hawks, Bennington, Vt.
Wreuyrer'’(e sD ei oe ArtTHUR L. MILLETT, Boston, Mass.

Hire-Bresidents of Bibisions
TST NOULTURD J = oes ae ayserele ere James Nevin, Madison, Wis.
Aquatic Biology and Physics....E. A. BirGre, Madison, Wis.
Commercial Fishing...... SEyMouR Bower, Lansing, Mich.
AM OUERG 2 s0,2, ioe Joun M. Crampton, New Haven, Conn.
Protection and Legislation....J. G. NEEDHAM, Ithaca, N. Y.

Exerutibe Committee

GCS LEACH) Chatmiiterce pee: ners. eee Washington, D. C.
Wir AL HOUND). 2 2A. Se Merete gene omer Ottawa, Canada
Wil. BARBER.) 5 WIE Be oer een seme 2 LaCrosse, Wis.
GN el RTL TA Nis (5 4 A ee eee eee he Baltimore, Md.
Gpo,. EH. \GRABAM.... 3.6 Sc ce gee. eee Springfield, Mass.
DwigeT. LYDEUT. . 200 eee Comstock Park, Mich.
OEEN VV CIT COMB... 0:2. io sneha emtvene Albany, N. Y.
Committee on Foreign Relations
Gro. Seimas, (Charman... ae ewer: Washington, D. C.
[eA Reso. 2 hal: CoO MEM) Ai Washington, D. C.
RINT: RSV ANTAINS Fc 6.1.5 hace, Sen eee ce Boston, Mass.
MES AN EIVEE o's te wt ie ois es or Ottawa, Canada
BnwArpet: (PRINCE. .). 72s.) <a Ottawa, Canada

Committee on Relations mith National and State Gob ernmiris

Epen W. Goss; Charman... ...«. sees St. Paul, Minn.
PGs NVI och oe Bigs ois, sia. > > 2 > Madison, Wis.
Peete TC. PRINTER, 2 oye u's iets ce ben Rae Ann Arbor, Mich.
ee lO IGE ANBERS tak. ss suivic + «crete kee Quebec, Canada

CARTES ©), HAY KORD, sige. ¢ a0 wes sel Hackettstown, N. J.

Presidents, Terms of Service and Places of Meeting.

The first meeting of the Society occurred December 20, 1870. The
organization then effected continued until February, 1872, when the second
meeting was held. Since that time there has been a meeting each year,

as shown below.

The respective presidents were elected at the meeting,

at the place, and for the period shown opposite their names, but they

presided at the subsequent meeting.

Pe CEPA ACT TRI. 7 Saye inaeea yore ate 1870-1872....New York, N. Y.

BE WVEELLAM (CEIRT 1 4.;< x oun’ 1872-1873....Albany, N. Y.
JV AI. (CTT, Mra nehae ster 1873-1874....New York, N. Y.
4. Ropert B. RooseEvett......... 1874-1875....New York, N. Y.
5. Ropert B. RoosEvVELT........°. 1875-1876....New York, N. Y.
6. Ropert B. RoosEvELT......... 1876-1877*...New York, N. Y.
7. Ropert B. ROOSEVELT......... 1877-1878... .} Jew York, N. Y.
8. Ropert B. RoosEveELt......... 1878-1879.....New York, N. Y.
9. Ropert B. RoosEvELT,........ 1879-1880....New York, N. Y:
10. Roperr B. RoosEVELT......... 1880-1881....New York, N. Y.
Ti. (Rorerr B: RoosrveEL tT... 220- 1881-1882....New York, N. Y.
12. GrorGE SHEPARD PAGE........ 1882-1883....New York, N. Y.
LS), . JAMES: BENIGARIDE. «icf o, a8 ots 1883-1884....New York, N. Y.
14. THEODORE LEYMAN............ 1884- 1885....Washington, D. C.
15. MarsHALt McDoNaALp........ 1885-1886.... Washington, D. C.
Wow ANIME Ualoiston (See anerc Seeare 1886-1887....Chicago, III.

Ta) WEA NEA oc sie witha: ape 1887-1888....Washington, D. C.
SEE OEUN Elem ETS SEILLY o1 \era he: ceterete 1888-1889....Detroit, Mich.

19. Eucene G. BLACKFORD....... 1889-1890....Philadelphia, Pa.
20. Eucenet G. BLACKFORD....... 1890-1891....Put-in Bay, Ohio
21. James A. HENSHALL......... 1891-1892....Washington, D. C.
22. HERSCHEL WHITAKER........ 1892-1893....New York, N. Y.
Pi EnNR (C. NORD nde. neaaeessis « 1893-1894....Chicago, II].

BAO WTLETAM LS MAY... ae cscs 1894-1895.... Philadelphia, Pa.
2 ee DEOL UN TENGTON qaee tects - 1895-1896....New York, N. Y.
26. HerRSCHEL WHITAKER........ 1896-1897....New York, N. Y.
2 PNET CAME Nias, ILA =) ctatays leva oer 1897-1898....Detroit, Mich.

Zou (GEORGE, bs (2 EARODY eso eee sre ce 1898-1899....Qmaha, Neb.

ZONE ALOHING Wis MUTT COMB:. ctheisre oie «2% 1899-1900.... Niagara Falls, N. Y.
SUS Hm VDTCKERSON ei oe nece os 1900-1901....Woods Hole, Mass.
Sipe eee BRYANT I secs tie re nee cee 1901-1902....Milwaukee, Wis.
32. GrorcE M. Bowers........... 1902-1903....Put-in Bay, Ohio
SSO LNRAIN Ran Nine OTA: <r ccs tyre’ 1903-1904....Woods Hole, Mass.
SaNmRleNRY Me IROOT. < scmskis cui a 1904-1905....Atlantic City, N. J.
Bose Cove JOST NG fm ,. 2.feratoere sia 1905-1906. ... White Sulphur Spgs, W.Va.
SSE teh Aly A ESIRGI a ratea.c'si « wecnatctescrs «tals 1906-1907....Grand Rapids, Mich.
SAL GEESE S NOTED. (ora ores 1907-1908....Erie, Pa.

Boo) CREAR ETON: Elem BmANe meres «isc 1908-1909.... Washington, D. C.
39. SrymMour Bowepr............. 1909-1910....Toledo, Ohio

40. Wi.tit1aM E. MEEHAN........ 1910-1911....New York, N. Y.
Ae Seu be VEMEERTON yee ct ciee<c 1911-1912....St. Louis, Mo.

42. \CHarLes H. TowNSEND...... 1912-1913.... Denver, Colo.

AS ElEeNR Ys bial VWARD: ekienia cer chs oe 1913-1914....Boston, Mass.

44) DANIEL, Bs PEARINGH eee a. © = 1914-1915.... Washington, D. C.
45.) JACOB IXRIGHARD.«..ampsce ts a: 1915-1916....San Francisco, Calif.
AG Gro: ‘NWE, PIEDD 0S tacos oars 1916-1917....New Orleans, La.
A iLieNiR ye OP MAREN oaciacmias «a 1917-1918....St. Paul, Minn.

ASe IMM alee VATEX ANDER: caeae saree cs 1918-1919....New York, N. Y.
AQUI GARTOSH AVERY aero rositltieiiatere.els 1919-1920....Louisville, Ky.

SOP NATHAN) Ro BULLER: sce 1920-1921....Ottawa, Canada.

*A special meeting was held at the Centennial Grounds, Philadelphia,

Pa., October 6 and 7, 1876.

American Fisheries Society

OrcANizep 1870

CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION.

We, the undersigned, persons of full age and citizenship of the United
States, and a majority being citizens of the District of Columbia, pursuant
to and in conformity with sections 599 to 603, inclusive, of the Code of
Law for the District of Columbia, enacted March 3, 1901, as amended by
the Acts approved January 31 and June 30, 1902, hereby associate our-
selves together as a society or body corporate and certify in writing:

1. That the name of the Society is the AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY.

2. That the term for which it is organized is nine hundred and ninety-
nine years. E

3. That its particular business and objects are to promote the cause
of fish culture; to gather and diffuse information bearing upon its
practical success, and upon all matters relating ta the fisheries; to unite
and encourage all interests of fish culture and the fisheries; and to treat
all questions of a scientific and economic character regarding fish with
power:

(a) To acquire, hold and convey real estate and other property, and
to establish general and special funds.

(b) To hold meetings.

(c) To publish and distribute documents.

(d) To conduct lectures.

(e) To conduct, endow, or assist investigation in any department of
fishery and fish-culture science.

(f) To acquire and maintain a library.

(g) And, in general, to transact any business pertinent to a learned
society.

4. That the affairs, funds and property of the corporation shall be in
general charge of a council, consisting of the officers and the executive
committee, the number of whose members for the first year shall be
seventeen, all of whom shall be chosen from among the members of the
Society.

Witness our hands and seals this 16th day of December, 1910.

SEyMouR BoweER (Seal)
THEODORE GILL (Seal)
WILLIAM E. MEEHAN’ (Seal)
THEODORE S. PALMER (Seal)
BERTRAND H. Roperts’ (Seal)
HucuH M. SMITH (Seal)
RICHARD SYLVESTER (Seal)
Recorded April 16, 1911.

* ~~?

CONTENTS

REA te, Natsignn'sia.0 ex's 1d didn SiS OrRS, aoe SS ee ae 2
List of past presidents and places of meeting............0.eceeeees 3
Renuneate ob icorporations sac s-\s'<\e<s 4 -to< dats cote eeias eee and oe 4
Part I—BusINness SESSIONS
Waanine: addressts.: <vsccsreina uae a cunts de tre « Wadaia a aed doe oe ee 9
remishered « abteind aticeiy /4 wea eects ch rata nala eval n'a ad veg aOR a eee 3018
Mleny: embers Po, h Site Mares vice a W baiva cick ot ulewielueeautieue baat e 16
Report. ob thet Tyeasihert jes Ue CLs aes chee calds om dain de wees eo ena 17
Appointment \ ot committees: +2244 ei... v2 ek pats ee 21
Inepore or \Contntivea: Our Awards) i. io. sole ececchecccsaewocede 32
Supplemental report of Committee on Awards.............eeeeeeees 34
Report of Committee on Time and Place of Meeting.............. an
Report’ of the Committee ‘on’ Resolutions. .........0....0cceceeecees 36
Report of the Committee on Nominations............0ceceeseeceves 37
es RRAGY ERTL Aires hala. « Se arain'g sim wiaia Gevaie cals xe <a aha; Gin ayo) boats opi aaa cha ape 40
Part I[—Papers AND DISCUSSIONS

Some Previously Unrecognized Anatomical Facts and Their Relation

to Fish-Cultural Practices. William Converse Kendall......... 43
Development of the College of Fisheries. John N. Cobb.......... 56
The Scientist and the Practical Man in Fisheries Work. Raymond

MUONS HNNI NOE Crm eon ts cc Meera a taie moc /s. cra dia alg Siwidie <iahasel's gine ate oles 69
The Alaska Fur Seal: An International Asset. Hugh M. Smith..... 83
Muanuc and Pacthe Salmon. Hegry B. Ward... icssscvccncseaes 92
Forest Protection and Its Effect on Fish and Game Life. Honore

NS OROMET lee. saeths «2's Shea sale ss Berean Oe 2 eee Re reverie (Sci Ge ea 96
‘Notes on Functions and Activities of the Division of Fishery Indus-

tries of the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries. Lewis Radcliffe........ 106
Principles Involved in the Preservation of Fish by Salt. Harden

We RRP IIR Chere confit ads a Pem ELMER eee se alt aia! Wala ue) widhwvn wae Sis Pot eae 120

Adequate Fish Inspection: A Means to Better Fish for the Consumer
and to Increased Fish Food Consumption. Arthur L. Millett.. 153

Fifty Years of Fishery Administration in Canada. Edward E.

dS 1 Vie ERS 8 TERS 2 Ae gee ie aie ora aah lame etcja oracle ae sleet 163
What Are Rainbow Trout and Steelhead Trout?..William Converse
EAGLE UTC A eS ne Faeries hak NOR ee Mole digiieiswie sta 187

Fifty Years’ Experience in Fish Culture. James Nevin............. 212
Progress in Practical Fish Culture. Dwight Lydell................ 221
Canada and the United States Can Restore the Great Fraser River
Pishery, John Pease Babcock cusnssate cose eee Oe. 232
Fish Rescue Operations. “C; 2. Cullen ont ce ee ee eee 247
Trout Feeding Experiments. Chas. O. Hayford............0+.00.% 251
The Relationship of the So-called Blue Pike and Yellow Pike of
Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. William Converse Kendall...... 257
Relation of Certain Aquatic Plants to Oxygen Supply and to
Capacity of Small Ponds to Support the Top-Minnow (Gambusia
ofims). R. L. Barney and B. J. Anson... ciccccccccecccccccee 268
Fighting Pollution in Ohio: A Demonstration of Methods. John T
WRRUETS eek ce ee a RK AE IE PEIN Ss th 279
Antagonism and Its Possible Utility in Polluted Waters. Edwin B.
POLED S ey scl teks MVNA EO eto Nein Eee elisa: BE Aico bch ais Red bese A 293

Some Recent Observations on the Freshwater Eel. Hugh M. Smith 297

Artificial Propagation of Oysters. William Firth Wells........... 301
Further Notes on Raising Freshwater Mussels in Enclosures. Roy

SS CONOR Seren ren tr SRR ee em mk SO la avis 307
Spawning Habits of the Spiny Lobster (Panulirus argus), with Notes

OmeATtincial Hatching. WD. IR Orawyord cc: wb ue 6. se as se cca S12
The Economic History of Copepods. Arthur Willey.............. 320
Climates of Our Atlantic Waters. A. G. Huntsman................ 326
Circulation of Water in Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine. James

BF UOT re an e.as eRisticiileamiapani Toei oe PRR PSN eae 334
The Food of the Larval and Post-Larval Fishes of Plymouth Sound.

BY ANGE GeO OUP © cic io 2) slate Soe iss 2a uaa ete tioloae Sie ne teteieks Seen eee 345

A Survey of Game Fish Conditions in Ohio. Raymond C. Osburn 353
Food of Young Small-Mouth Black Bass in Lake Erie. Edward L.
Wickliff
Food of Young Large-Mouth Black Bass in Some Ohio Waters.
Gab. Turner and. Ws. (CC. Rvanigects fs. 2s cde tee oc een ea 322
The Gizzard Shad in Relation to Plants and Game Fishes. JL. H.

CST TRIUD! esc OE 5/05 ail 's\'p-5 (0,0 019 oe. Seah bie eile ERIS ACER i eee sien 381
Some Features in the Migration of the Sockeye Salmon and Their

Practical. Significance, Henry BiivVard. orks css eee eerste 387
HeTStaceh IMEMIDELS. apts tiles: s, sere lec: <'e- 0.10 0, 6 SIGT PETER E rs 6-16 RTS TCO HEISE reac ae 427

Constitution

PART I
BUSINESS SESSIONS

WAN F pit
ete hae ELA Hy
ie Lie

Aap A (

PROCEEDINGS
of the

American Fisheries Society
FIFTIETH ANNUAL MEBRETING, OTTAWA, CANADA
September 20, 21, 22, 1920

The Fiftieth Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries
Society was held in the Public Accounts Committee Room,
House of Parliament, Ottawa, Canada, on September 20, 21,
22, 1920.

Opening Session, Monday Morning, September 20, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Carlos Avery

of St Paul at I lsa.m.
PRESIDENT AvERy: I am quite sure that you all feel very

happy to have the opportunity of holding this, the fiftieth an-
niversary meeting of our Society, in the capital city of the
Dominion of Canada. It is very fitting, it seems to me, that
we should begin in this country the second half century of
our organization. It is the first time that a meeting of the
Society has ever been held in Canada, although the member-
ship has been partially made up of Canadians and through-
out the history of the Society much of its important work has

been done by Canadian officials and citizens.
We are to have the pleasure this morning of listening to a

few words of welcome from the Deputy Minister of Marine
and Fisheries of the Dominion of Canada, Mr. A. Johnston.
I have pleasure in introducing Mr. Johnston.

Mr. A. JoHNston (Deputy Minister of Marine and Fish-
eries, Canada): Mr. President, the very few observations
that I shall make this morning will be confined to a few words
of welcome on behalf of the Department of Marine and Fish-
eries and on behalf of the Goverment of Canada; the larger
and more formal welcome will be extended to you by Mayor
Fisher, of this great capital city of Canada, who has been

10 American Fisheries Society

good enough to come here. But before that larger and more
formal welcome is extended to you I want to extend a no less
sincere welcome on behalf of the Government of Canada and of
the Department of Marine and Fisheries. It was the hope of
the Minister of Marine and Fisheries that his public engage-
ments would enable him to be here to extend to you a wel-
come in person as a member of the Government and as Min-
ister of Marine and Fisheries. But, as so frequently happens
in the case of public men, public engagements have called him
elsewhere and the pleasure of extending in person a welcome
to you has been denied to him.

I merely desire to say that the Government of Canada and
the Department of Marine and Fisheries are interested in the
work that you are performing. We are delighted that on this
fiftieth anniversary of your Society you have decided to hold
your meeting in this country. We trust that subsequent
meetings from time to time may be held here; we trust that
your stay, short though it may be, will be such as to induce
you to come again. We shall continue to watch the work
of your Society with very great interest. If in the practical
carrying out of your work you should stray into any of those
great stretches of international waterways in which we are
all commonly interested, and, perchance, come upon that in-
visible line which separates Canada from the United States
and the United States from Canada, we trust that you will
regard that particular line as a spot where cordial relations
shall in no way cease; that you will regard it, as we shall
endeavor in the future to regard it, as a place where new and
more enduring friendships will begin.

I shall have an opportunity, I hope, during your meet-
ings here, to come in more direct contact with the various
members of your Society. I shall be anxious to make personal
acquaintance with as many of your members as I can. I shall
endeavor in every possible way to make your stay here pleas-
ant and successful, and if there is anything that the Depart-
ment over which I for the moment preside can do to make it

Fiftieth Annual Meeting El

such, we shall be only too glad to do it. I shall not detain
you longer; again I extend to you on behalf of the Govern-
ment and the Department a very sincere and cordial welcome
to our capital city.

PRESIDENT Avery: Mr. James White of the Commission
of Conservation was to have participated in extending a wel-
come to the members of this Society, but he is unable to be
here. He wishes me to convey his apologies to the meeting
- and to express regret at his inability to attend on account of
his presence at a session of the Chamber of Commerce of the
Empire now meeting in Toronto.

We are enjoying the hospitality of this wonderful cap-
ital city of Canada, and it is particularly fitting that we should
have a word of welcome from His Worship the Mayor. I
take great pleasure in introducing to you Mayor Harold
Fisher, of the city of Ottawa.

Mr. Haroitp FisHER (Mayor of Ottawa): Mr. Presi-
dent, ladies and gentlemen: Following the remarks which
have been made by Mr. Johnston, there is really no necessity
for my saying very much. Mr. Johnston has said nearly all
that need be said. You noticed the position he took, close
to the reporters; he is an old politician, you see. If there was
anything he did not say this morning that he should have
said, I have no doubt you will read it in the newspapers to-
morrow morning.

I do not know exactly what you are here for, but I see
something on the program about fish and fishing. That is
enough to let me know that we all belong to one great fra-
ternity. When I go to Heaven—and surely, Mr. President,
I shall go to Heaven; I have been Mayor of this city for four
years and there ought to be something coming to me—when
I go to Heaven I am going to ask for a decent kind of boat,
a fishing rod and a lake where there is a reasonable chance of
catching a bass or atrout. I have never yet had sufficient time
to tire of fishing. I do not know whether eternity would be
too long, but I am willing to take a chance.

12 American Fisheries Society

There is absolutely no need of my saying anything about
this great city. Mr. Johnston has told you he is going to
conduct you personally about the place, and I am quite sure
you are in very good hands. I have found it my duty at
times to warn these delegations about invisible lines, to which
Mr. Johnston made reference. When he told you about the
one that runs east and west across this continent he reminded
me of the fact that when you get to that place you have to
stand and pay duty on any little commodities that you want to
carry across—not personal apparel. There are other invisible
lines in this North American continent that are of equal im-
portance; one of them is in the centre of the river which you
see from the windows of this room. Mr. Johnston will ex-
plain to you why it is important that you should know some-
thing about that boundary—you can do things on one side
of it that you cannot do on the other. Now, all I can say
is that you are very welcome to Ottawa. I hope that your
meetings will be profitable and that your stay will be very
pleasant.

PRESIDENT AvERY: I know of no gentleman who is more
capable of making a fitting response to these cordial and elo-
quent addresses of welcome than one of our distinguished
members, Mr. William C. Adams, Director, Division of Fish-
eries and Game, Boston, Massachusetts. I am pleased to in-
troduce Mr. Adams at this time.

Mr. WiLiiAm C. Apams, Boston, Mass.: Mr. President,
Mayor Fisher and, the representatives of the Dominion Gov-
ernment: My impulse is to disregard all matters of dignity
and to turn this into a sort of love feast. I am going to
celebrate the occasion personally because it is my first trip
across the invisible boundary line referred to by Mr. Johnston.

When J arrived at Montreal and walked through the Cana-
dian Pacific station there, I was impressed by the exhibits I
saw, in one of its outer halls or passageways, of the natural
resources of Canada. This morning when reference was made
to the invisible line that separates the United States from Can-

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 13

ada I could not help trying to visualize the extent of the mag-
nificent resources that touch upon that line at either side and
at either end. You men who have travelled far and wide, ask
yourselves whether there is any other place in the world where
a line of the same length can be drawn and contiguous to
which there will be as remarkable a group of natural resources
as there is contiguous to the boundary line between Canada
and the United States. I do not believe you will find it any-
where on earth, and that is the reason why we who live on-
either side of that line can sing the doxology, if you please,
and thank God that we are neighbors and friends and that
we have around us the most magnificent heritage that prob-
ably was ever given to any two nations in the world.

I am not going to turn this into a sermon at all. I am
simply trying to point to one reason why we should make
this meeting, the fiftieth in our history, the greatest event of
rejoicing, the finest kind of love feast, that we have ever cele-
brated. Let us do that for a starter; then we will finish the
job at a meeting of the International Association of Fish,
Game and Conservation Commissioners.

We have heard this morning words of welcome that would
hearten any crowd of red-blooded men. We are tremendously
interested in what is, perhaps, the finest occupation in the
world, that of making the great outdoors attractive to all
classes of people in all walks of life. There is not any one
activity that can result in more genuine, wholesome good to
the human race than the very things that we are endeavoring
to do, provided they are properly promoted and intelligently
directed.

Some of the remarks that have been made here have taken
a sort of turn that I desire to correct to some extent. The
American Fisheries Society has been referred to as preemi-
nently a United States organization, as a foreign body coming
into Canada. Certainly the contributions to the work of the
American Fisheries Society by the representatives of Canada
in years gone by have been as valuable as those coming from

14 American Fisheries Society

any other source. We have never, I believe, regarded Canada
as an outsider. I have always felt that the American Fish-
eries Society, true to its inclusive name, took in everything
on the North American and South American continents, and
I believe that before we get through the influence of the work
that we are carrying on will be felt in all parts of this hemis-
phere, even the remotest. As we proceed with our work, the
invisible line to which reference has been made will, I am sure,
become of as little significance as the old Mason and Dixon
line has become in the United States. The time is at hand
when what is Canada’s interest in relation to the commercial
and the internal fisheries, fish and game, lumber, minerals or
anything else, will likewise be the interest of the United States.
As Shakespeare says:

The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel.

So let us grapple ourselves to one another. There cannot
be any longer a boundary line between the United States and
Canada. When Mercier stood up in New York City a year
ago last fall and spoke of the relationship between Canada
and the United States, there was not a red-blooded man in
the room who did not feel peculiar thrills running up and
down his back.

We in the United States cannot read of the exploits of
your Northwest Mounted Police without thinking of our
Texas Rangers. We cannot think of the wind passing through
the white pine and the hemlock in the north country here with-
out thinking also of the birch and poplar on the hills of old
New England. We cannot feel the sharpness of the air in
Canada without realizing that we are hungering for just the
same thing a little to the southward, and we know that when
our boys arrive here from Kansas and Nebraska they are
going to feel pretty much at home. So there is a great com-
munity of interests that draws us together, and it is irre-
sistible. I want to say to you men of Canada that we are
not coming here as interlopers; we are not coming here as

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 15

representing a Society that is in any way foreign to you or to
your interests. We are not going to refer to you during the
whole of these deliberations as being other than brothers of
ours. We are going to tackle this work believing that what
we do is a community work, redounding for all time to the
benefit of all of us.

PRESIDENT AveERY: The next order of business provided
for in our constitution is that of a roll call of members. We
may dispense with this, however; the register which is being
kept will answer that purpose.

REGISTERED ATTENDANCE

The registered attendance was 56, as follows:

Wm. C. Apams, Boston, Mass.

W. E. Apert, Des Moines, Iowa.
Caritos Avery, St. Paul, Minn.

Wo. F. Barser, LaCrosse, Wis.

A. C. Baxter, Columbus, Ohio.

J. A. BELLISLE, Quebec, Canada.
GeorcE Berc, Indianapolis, Ind.
Seymour Bower, Lansing, Mich.
Ernest C. Brown, New York City.
NATHAN R. Butter, Harrisburg, Pa.

E. T. D. CHAMBERS, Quebec, Canada.
ALtva Crapp, Pratt, Kan.

EseN W. Coss, St. Paul, Min..

JoHN N. Copp, Seattle, Wash.

Joun M. Crampton, New Haven, Conn.
L. H. Darwin, Seattle, Wash.

GrorcE A. Dotan, Westerly, R. I.
ALex C, FINLAYsoNn, Ottawa, Canada.
Wm. A. Founp, Ottawa, ‘Canada.

S. B. Hawks, Bennington, Vt.
CuHartes O. Hayrorp, Hackettstown, N. J.
A. G. HuntsMAN, Toronto, Canada.

G. E. Jennincs, New York City.
James C. JoHNSON, Riverside, R. I.
Wiu1aM C. KEenpALL, Washington, D. C
J. A. Knicut, Halifax, N. S.

Gro. A. Lawyer, Washington, D. C.

E. Lee LeCompte, Baltimore, Md.
Dwicut LypELL, Comstock Park, Mich.

16 American Fisheries Society

MarsHALL McLean, Albany, N. Y.

D. A. MacKay, Ottawa, Canada.
Gro. N. MANNFELD, Indianapolis, Ind.
Joun C. Marrtice, Bridgeport, Conn.
Honore MErcIER, Quebec, Canada.
ArtHurR Merritt, Wilkinsonville, Mass.
Lee Mites, Little Rock, Ark.

ArtHuR L. MILtettT, Boston, Mass.
Wo. K. Motian, Bridgeport, Conn.
James Nevin, Madison, Wis.

Raymonp C. Ossurn, Columbus, Ohio.
GrorceE E. Pomeroy, Toledo, Ohio.
GeEorGE D. Pratt, Albany, N. Y.
Epwarp E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada.
Lewis RapcLirFe, Washington, D. C.
J. A. Ropp, Ottawa, ‘Canada.

Wo. H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.

R. H. Smpoway, Salt Lake City, Utah.
Hucu M. Smiru, Washington, D. C.
Joun W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.
JoHN T. Travers, Columbus, Ohio.

R. C. Tutrie, Frankfort, Ky.
Harrison W. VICKERS, Baltimore, Md.
S. J. WALKER, Ottawa, Canada.

Wo. F. We tts, Albany, N. Y.
Sotomon P. Wuiteway, St. Johns, Newfoundland.
J. AsAKIAH WILLiAMs, Tallahassee, Fla.

NEW MEMBERS

In the year ensuing since the last annual meeting, the fol-
lowing have become members of the Society:

Barsour, F. K., 96 Franklin St., New York, N. Y.

Baxter, A. C., Chief, Ohio Fish and Game Division, Columbus, Ohio.
Crigz, H. D., Director, Sea and Shore Fisheries Commission, Rockland, Me.
Dotan, GrorcE A., Fish Commissioner, Westerly, R. I.

Dryroos, Leon, 508 State St., Erie, Pa.

Fintayson, ALEx C., Dominion Inspector of Hatcheries, Ottawa, Canada.
GouLp, Epw1n W., State Sea Food Protective Commission, Portland, Me.
GREENE, JOHN V., Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.
KIPLINGER, WALTER C., 2234 Park Ave., Indianapolis, Ind.

MacKay, D. A., Collegiate Institute, Ottawa, Canada.

Mies, Lee, Probate Judge, Little Rock, Ark.

Ricw, Water H., Bureau of Fisheries, 11 Exchange Bldg., Portland, Me.
Stuser, JAMES W., Bureau of Fish and Game, Columbus, Ohio.
TRAVERS, JOHN T., Fish and Game Dept., Columbus, Ohio.

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 17

Vickers, Harrison W., Chairman, Conservation Commission, 512 Munsey
Building, Baltimore, Md.

Wa ker, S. J., District Inspector of Hatcheries, Ottawa, Canada.

WELts, W™. F., Conservation Commission, Albany, N. Y.

Wuiteway, SoLtomon P., St. Johns, Newfoundland.

Wixegur, Harry C., Commissioner, Sea and Shore Fisheries, Portland, Me.

REPORT OF THE TREASURER

321 State House, Boston, Mass.,
September 14, 1920.
To the American Fisheries Society: é
I herewith submit my annual report as Treasurer from the meeting
in October, 1919, to September 14, 1920:

RECEIPTS
Balanceninmelreasin yen ycccteesties fee ce eh cia tein ein oa eeners « $634.27
Annual dues:
GEM tUCUVEdE MIO As eden ce te te canadeces oe $ 6.00
IGT E MVC aIaRILG liSkee aey.) ayeteva cin itie.caie.0< ee Glare 132.00
JETS Wiis 28 ie 0S | 2 760.00
Taye MACS Vo rg IS 2 0 ER 50.00
Mote tinewyeats LOZT. s 5. ss\creere sisters esctoncors/s.00) 2) = 2.00
950.00
Clhibminenmbershiphe a. ae ac Acaeeioacia hattas Scinsiis ace eels ee 5.00
Life memberships (deposited temporarily for convenience
in the general account, and later transferred to
GEREN, AES aR tae Renee 8 Sion ce ie ara 129.08
Sales) Of bransactionst andi reprints. ....5.- 2-22-2260 10.76
(DOLLS Ver ed Ns TDI ee a 45
MELE ReStrOties Gd EpOSitsn sm ect meecyiaesicicrss sieeselers sere hae oe 2.58
—— $1,681.20
DISBURSEMENTS
Sey Wr Oigme PILOT av ta ial, = eee vie BE bikie Spoke baie dares $300.00
Clericalmeserivicesn LOpDLeaSUne teresa alels.cictsen« aye sic e.eysrateieic 100.00
Expenses of meeting (stenographers, reporter, telegrams,
PLOMLAMS MGLOUMENa I asec nies Seietes ce ae caine re eRe ered se 129.08
pmintinge transactions: (LOU) seta atc leet felareicsssevete s cleie esis 696.61
Deposits wim peermaneit: BiUnd = cs circle scr ssi 6.6 2 0,0.0re0 viele 75.00
asta oemn Gilet eaStitcets) heey 5 seceic cieacreceeiera soi seo c) wig cise alens0 5 26.78
Letterheads, receipts, multigraphing.................... 61.56
Retund, to Agius) al. aACCOUNE Sates. seed lhe cee sec eee el. 3.14
(ciel ofc) 9s BR ene A ee ne San od a ce .20
Expenses of officers of the Society (postage, steno-
Tame Goe ECON ass & aats ees Ses araeirs ese cece ota 24.32 $1,416.69

Piece. (pei GAShH BOOK: matios hace Sis aes Gdas ev twos ou’ $ 264.51

18 American Fisheries Society

PERMANENT FUND

Balance as reported at 1919 meeting ................. $2,955.86
Interest, Gsince: added) \a:c2ned see eee eee 181.13
Deposits, during 1920. 521) Ae eee ee 75.00
$3,211.99

Disbursement, Lewis Radcliffe for prize paper......... 100.00
Balance’ 2 <:.t 2st Cae ose ee ee eee $3,111.99

ARTHUR L, MIttert,
Treasurer.

The report of the Treasurer was referred to the Auditing Committee.

Mr. Mittetr: The sum of about $600 in dues is still
unpaid, notwithstanding my best efforts to make collections.
The dues outstanding are chiefly for 1918 and 1919; they
do not run farther back than 1917, and they involve 108 in-
dividuals. The organization cannot continue on a paying
basis unless we do something in regard to this matter. Last
year I showed you a balance of over $600. This year it is
$200; next year, if the same proportionate decrease continues,
we shall be in debt. We cannot afford to do that; the name
of the organization is worth too much. We must either raise
the dues or find some way of collecting these arrears.

Mr. J. W. Titrcoms, Albany, N. Y.: As I understand it,
the Society cannot expect as large a revenue next year as it
had last year, because last year the treasurer collected a lot
of dues that had been a long time in arrears. So we have not
the asset, if you call it an asset, that we had before. I do not
think the members of the Society realize that when we publish
the Transactions at considerable cost and send them out year
after year to people who do not pay their dues, we are rob-
bing ourselves; we are giving them something for which they
make no return.

Mr. Apams: May I ask whether there is anything in the
by-laws that would prevent our passing a resolution providing
that if the dues of a delinquent member are not paid within
thirty days after receiving from the treasurer a notice by reg-
istered mail, his name shall be stricken from the membership

of the Society?

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 19

Dr. .RAyMonpD C. OsBurn: There is nothing, so far as I
know, to prevent our adopting a resolution of that sort at this
meeting. We have always hesitated to do that because a good
many of our members are men of old standing in the Society ;
they are very busy, and perhaps some of them are a little neg-
ligent in regard to dues, or the matter does not touch them
very seriously at the time. A great many of our members are
not very well paid, as you all know, and sometimes they are
pretty hard up. These notices are sent out frequently by the
treasurer, so that everybody is not only warned but fore-
warned in time, and it seems to me that we must take some
radical action against those men who persistently neglect to
do their duty by the Society in this small matter. We can
pass such a resolution at this meeting if we choose.

Dr. H. M. Smiru: What is the by-law that bears on this
particular point?

Dr. OsBuRN: It reads as follows:

In case members do not pay their fees, which shall be $2 per year
after first year, and are delinquent for two years, they shall be notified
by the treasurer, and if the amount due is not paid within a month there-
after, they shall be, without further notice, dropped from the roll of
membership.

It seems to me that we might very readily refuse to send
the Transactions to anyone who was even three months be-
hind in the payment of his dues, because if he gets the Trans-
actions under such circumstances he is getting something that
he is not paying for, and something which costs the Society
a good deal to produce. So we might insist that we shall
not send out our Transactions to any member who is at all
behind in the payment of his dues.

Mr. ApaAms: It seems to me that we should interpret this
by-law as mandatory, not simply as directive. If Treasurer
Millett has sent out notices to these delinquents and thirty
days have elapsed without payments being made, then as I
read the by-law, those members must be dropped. If that
is the case, this would seem to be the proper time to clean house

20 American Fisheries Society

in this matter. I realize, as Dr. Osburn has pointed out, the
mental bent of some of our members, but no organization will
prosper that is not predicated on clean-cut business principles.
We should train these people in the way they ought to go
rather than allow this vague, indeterminate asset to be carried
on our books and perhaps sometime incur obligations against
it, only to be disappointed.

Mr. Miviett: Three or four years ago I had dues run-
ning back—well, almost to the dark ages,—but I have suc-
cessfully cleaned them up to 1917 without hurting anybody’s
feelings. I realize that scientific men are the most thought-
less people in the world in regard to money matters, and that
this organization is made up mostly of scientific men. I felt
some satisfaction in getting all the dues in up to the last three
years, but as Mr. Adams says, we must do something now. I
do not like to be in the position of arbitrarily depriving any
one of membership in this organization which means so much
to scientific fisheries men; I do not know what to do.

PRESIDENT AVERY: You will remember that last year pro-
vision was made for State memberships and membership of
societies and other organizations; these have not been taken
advantage of to any extent. If effect is given to that provision,
there is an opportunity to finance this organization without
worrying about the individual membership.

VicE-PRESIDENT BULLER: I am a life member of this
Society and I believe that I am not contributing to the extent
that I should. Might it not be well for the secretary to com-
municate with the life members and ask them to become contrib-
uting members? I am willing to contribute $10 every year I
am a life member of this Society.

PRESIDENT AvERY: I do not suppose the treasurer will
refuse your money, Mr. Buller, any time you wish to con-
tribute it. That can be taken as a suggestion to other life
members.

Mr. Pomeroy: To what extent have the various trout
clubs and fish clubs been solicited for membership?

Fiftieth Annual Meeting Zi

Mr. MiLtett: We have not gone to the extent of
soliciting any of these organizations. We have had one
voluntary membership from a trout club during the last year,
but none from any State organization.

Mr. Pomeroy: What we need is sustaining members, and
we ought to interest these prospects for membership by com-
municating with them. When the Society held its meeting at
Toledo, I recall that we went to the Castalia Trout Club and
secured a number of members. In every club there are as
earnest, active men as in the Castalia Club.

The report of the Executive Secretary, Dr. Raymond C.
Osburn, was submitted orally and upon motion of Mr. Pome-
roy, was approved.

President Avery announced the resignation of the Re-
cording Secretary, Mr. John P. Woods, of Missouri, and
called for nominations to fill the office pro tem. Accordingly
Mr. S. B. Hawks, of Vermont, was nominated by Mr. Tit-
comb and elected as Recording Secretary, pro tem.

APPOINTMENT OF COMMITTEES

The following committees were named by President Avery:

Resolutions: Prof. E. E. Prince, Arthur L. Millett, Geo.
E. Pomeroy, John N. Cobb, Raymond C. Osburn.

Time and Place of Meeting: W. E. Barber, John W. Tit-
comb, E. T. D. Chambers, John M. Crampton, W. C. Adams.

Program: Raymond C. Osburn, J. A. Rodd, Seymour
Bower.

Nominations: James Nevin, W. E. Albert, W. H. Rowe,
E. W. Cobb, Dr. H. M. Smith.

Auditing: W. H. Rowe, Dwight Lydell, S. B. Hawks.

President Avery further announced that two members of
the Awards Committee, Mr. Glen C. Leach and Dr. Henry B.
Ward, were unable to be present, and asked Prof. John N.
Cobb and Mr. Charles O. Hayford to assist the chairman,
Mr. John W. Titcomb, in finishing up the work of the awards.

22 American Fisheries Society

An interesting letter from William Alanson Bryan, of
Honolulu, was read.
The meeting adjourned for luncheon.

Afternoon Session, September 20, 1920

President Avery announced that in the absence of Vice-
Presidents of Divisions and chairmen of committees the items
“Reports of Vice-Presidents of Divisions” and ‘Reports of
Standing Committees” would be postponed and papers taken up.

Prof. E. E. Prince, Dominion Commissioner of Fisheries,
Ottawa, read a paper on “Fifty Years of Fishery Adminis-
tration in Canada.”

Dr. H. M. Smith, United States Commissioner of Fish-
eries, Washington, D. C., addressed the meeting on “The
Alaska Fur Seal: An International Asset.’”’ Discussion was
participated in by a number of members.

Mr. Lewis Radcliffe read a paper entitled “Notes on Func-
tions and Activities of the Division of Fishery Industries of
the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries.” An extended discussion
followed.

Dr. H. M. Smith gave an address on the subject “Some
Recent Observations on the Freshwater Eel.”’

Upon motion of Dr. H. M. Smith it was resolved that
the article by Dr. Henry B. Ward, entitled “Atlantic and Pa-
cific Salmon,” appearing in the issue of Science for Septem-
ber 17, 1920, be made a part of the record of this meeting.

The session adjourned.

Evening Session, September 20, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Avery.

Several persons whose names are included on an earlier
page in the list of new members were nominated and duly
elected to the Society.

The Secretary read a telegram from former president
M. L. Alexander, New Orleans, expressing regret at his in-

Fiftieth Annual Meeting yas)

ability to attend the convention, and extending congratulations
to the Society on the occasion of its fiftieth anniversary
meeting.

Dr. Raymond C. Osburn read a paper entitled “The Sci-
entist and the Practical Man in Fisheries Work.” An ex-
tended discussion followed.

Prof. John N. Cobb addressed the meeting on ‘“Develop-
ment of the College of Fisheries.”” Discussion was deferred
until the next session.

Dr. Wm. C. Kendall read a paper on “Some Previously
Unrecognized Anatomical Facts and Their Relation to Fish-
Cultural Practices.” This was illustrated by lantern slides.
Discussion of this paper also was deferred until the next
session.

The session adjourned.

Morning Session, September 21, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Avery.

Proceeded with discussion of Professor Cobb’s address
made at the previous session.

Took up discussion of Dr. Kendall’s paper presented at the
previous session.

Dr. A. G. Huntsman, Atlantic Biological Station, St. An-
drews, N. B., read a paper on “Climates of Our Atlantic
Waters.”

Prof. E. E. Prince presented a paper under the subject
“Twenty-five Years of Biological Research in Canada,’’*
Discussion followed.

Mr. William F. Wells read a paper entitled “Artificial
Propagation of Oysters,’ following which discussion occurred.

Mr. John W. Titcomb addressed the meeting on “Some
Fish-Cultural Notes.” Discussion followed.

The session adjourned for luncheon.

*This paper appears in this volume by title only, as Professor Prince advises
that it cannot be made ready for printing at present.

24 American Fisheries Society

Afternoon Session, September 21, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Avery.

Mr. Dwight Lydell’s paper on the subject “‘Progress in
Practical Fish Culture,’ was read by Mr. Seymour Bower.

Vice-President Buller assumed the Chair, upon request of
President Avery, and presided during the remainder of the
afternoon session.

Discussion of Mr. Lydell’s paper was participated in by
several members.
Mr. James Nevin read a paper entitled “Fifty Years’ Ex-
perience in Fish Culture.” Discussion followed.
Mr. C. O. Hayford read a paper on “Trout Feeding Ex-
periments” which was discussed.
Mr. John T. Travers read a paper on “Fighting Pollution
in Ohio.” Thereafter Mr. Travers gave a practical demonstra-
tion of the methods employed in combating pollution. Dis-
cussion followed.

The session adjourned.

Evening Session, September 21, 1920

President Avery called the meeting to order.

Two new members were elected. Their names occur in
the list of members elected since the last meeting.

The paper by Dr. James W. Mavor on “Circulation of
Water in Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine,” was read by
Dr. A. G. Huntsman. It was illustrated with lantern slides,
and was followed by discussion.

Prof. E. E. Prince presented an interesting series of lan-
tern slides illustrative of Canada’s fish and game resources
and various phases of fishery activities.

Preliminary to the reading of his paper entitled “A Survey
of Game Fish Conditions in Ohio,’ Dr. Raymond C. Osburn
read by title the three following papers which he said had
to do with the work of the same survey: “Food of Young
Small-Mouth Black Bass in Lake Erie,” by E. L. Wickliff;
“The Food of Young Large-Mouth Black Bass in Some Ohio

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 25

Waters,” by C. L. Turner and W. C. Kraatz; and “The Giz-
zard Shad in Relation to Plants and Game Fishes,” by L. H.
Tiffany. Following the reading of his paper and discussion
thereof Dr. Osburn gave a short resumé of Mr. Tiffany’s
paper.

Dr. Wm. C. Kendall presented a paper on “What Are
Rainbow Trout and Steelhead Trout?” which was followed by
discussion.

Dr. Kendall also read a paper on the subject “The Rela- |
tionship of the So-called Blue Pike and Yellow Pike of Lake
Erie and Lake Ontario.” Discussion ensued.

The Secretary read a telegram from Mr. G. C. Leach,
chairman of the Executive Committee, extending best wishes
and expressing regret at his inability to attend the meeting.

The session adjourned.

Morning Session, September 22, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Avery.

Mr. Hawks presented the report of the Auditing Commit-
tee, which was duly adopted.

PRESIDENT Avery: The Secretary has an announcement to
make.

SECRETARY OsBuRN: There are one or two things to which
I want to call attention. One is the advisability of members
ordering back volumes of the Transactions of this Society
for their various departments. Some of you, I know, have
these; others have ordered them. For instance, I had a set
ordered a couple of years ago—as many as could be secured
—for the Ohio State University library. These transactions
ought to be in the state libraries and in our university and
college libraries to a greater extent than they are. They ought
to be in the library of every fish and game department of the
country; yet they are not, in many cases. In talking with a
couple of the gentlemen here this morning I secured two orders
for as many back volumes as can be furnished. I just leave
that thought with you so that if you have any means of order-

26 American Fisheries Society

ing these back volumes, you will do so. I may say that for
the last twenty or twenty-two years you can get every number
except those for the year 1903, which, I believe, is out of
print. We have no copy of that year’s issue for the files of the
Society, and if anybody can furnish it, the Society would be
glad to have it. The Transactions of this Society contain the
whole history of the development of fisheries science and prog-
ress during the last fifty years. Very often a single paper in
one of these volumes might be worth more to your department
than the cost of the entire set. The cost is not very much; no
increase in price has ever been made. The volumes sell now
just for what they were sold when they were first issued.
though some of them are beginning to grow scarce.

The only other announcement I have to make at this time
is that I have turned in my resignation as Executive Secre-
tary.

President Avery announced that at 11 o’clock a group
photograph of members present would be taken at the front
entrance to the Parliament Building.

Mr. A. C. Baxter presented motion pictures illustrative of
fish and game work in Ohio.

At 11 a.m., by courtesy of the Ottawa Board of Trade,
the members were taken on a motor trip through Ottawa.
Following this at 1.15 p.m. a luncheon was given at the
Chateau Laurier by the Department of Marine and Fisheries
of the Government of Canada, to delegates, guests, and their
ladies. After toasts had been proposed and drunk to the King
and to the President of the United States, Mr. Alex. Johnston,
Deputy Minister of Marine and Fisheries, who presided, called
upon Hon. Honore Mercier, Minister of Lands and Forests,
Province of Quebec, to address the gathering.*

Following the remarks of Hon. Mr. Mercier, Mr. Johnston
called on Mr. Avery, President of the Society.

*The Hon. Mr. Mercier’s address on the subject ‘Forest Protection and its
Effect on Fish and Game Life’? appears in full along with other papers in this
voluine.

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 27

PRESIDENT AvERY: Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen:
There seems to be an impression abroad that the American
Fisheries Society is a national institution. It is an interna-
tional institution; it knows no boundary line between the
United States and Canada. The American Fisheries Society
has been in existence for fifty years, and on account of its
membership having been largely confined to the United States,
as well as on the ground of convenience, its meetings have
been invariably held within the borders of the United States. ©
But in its membership are included also a number of dis-
tinguished citizens of Canada, men who have been engaged in
conservation work, scientists of this great country; and much
of the work of the Society has been done by Canadian mem-
bers. Therefore we are not a foreign institution among you;
we are meeting here as an international congress. It is fitting,
it seems to me, that this Society should be of such a nature;
by reason of the very condition of things its work belongs
to the whole of North America. The problems with which
the Society has to deal are very much the same in the United
States as they are in Canada. The maritime fisheries of the
Atlantic coast and of the Pacific coast are international; the
fisheries of the Great Lakes and of the other international
waters are of common interest to both countries; problems
of fish culture and fish conservation which arise are common
to both. Therefore, it is exceedingly fitting that this Society
should be of an international character. It is very gratifying,
I know, to the members of this Society who come from the
United States, that we at last have the opportunity of holding
one of our meetings in your great country. It is something
that many of us have looked forward to with pleasant antici-
pation for many years, and now that we are experiencing the
realization, we find that it is even more pleasant than was
the anticipation.

The American Fisheries Society is not an organization for
profit or gain of its members. It is an organization, strictly
speaking, of a scientific nature. Its members are engaged in

28 American Fisheries Society

this work for the good of humanity, not for any profit for
themselves or any exploitation of the great resources in con-
nection with which they are working. The contributions of
its members to the knowledge of the subject have added
greatly to the increase of those resources and their perpetua-
tion, and have made it possible for the fisheries to continue
to exist in many parts of the United States and I assume also
in some parts of Canada; and as time goes on the work of
the Society in this respect will be more and more important
in your country. As the more remote and newer portions
of Canada are exploited by the commercial fisheries, there will
be greater and greater need of replenishing the supply in
order that the supply of food for the people may not be de-
pleted.

It was about fifty years ago that the father of fish culture
in the United States, Seth Green, began to sound a note of
warning in the earlier proceedings of this Society, pointing
out in addresses and papers submitted by him that the shad
fisheries of the New England rivers and the sturgeon fisheries
of the Hudson River were being depleted. The fact that stur-
geon ever existed in the Hudson River has probably passed
out of the memory of most people now living.

I was pleased indeed to hear the Honorable Mr. Mercier
refer briefly to the question of international regulations for
the preservation of game and fish. To my mind that is a
great question which needs our careful thought and a solution
of which it is not impossible to arrive at. Now I can speak
more freely than he can, or than any Canadian can, because
I come from a country which has been derelict in this respect.
A treaty was agreed upon some twelve years ago for con-
trolling and regulating international fisheries, but that treaty
has never been put into effect owing to the negligence of my
own country. It may be that the treaty should be revised;
it may be that its terms are not what they should be; but the
fact remains that it is not in effect; enabling acts have not
been passed, and the question is still open and unsettled. To

Fiftieth Annual Meeting ye,

my mind, no question is ever settled until it is settled in the
right way; therefore I hope that some movement may come
out of this meeting which will in time bring about an enact-
ment of laws under such a treaty which will effect harmonious
relations with regard to international waters.

We should have closer cooperation, as Mr. Mercier sug-
gests, in regard to the preservation of game as well. I know
that it is entirely possible to bring this about. I know from
experience that it is possible to bring about these things -
through international agreements, because it has been demon-
strated in certain instances of which I know. Possibly you
do not know very much about it, but we have lying between
the State of Minnesota and the Province of Ontario one of
the greatest wild life sanctuaries on the North American con-
tinent which came about through international agreement.
We had no treaty; we had nothing to work with except com-
mon interest, but by getting together on the subject we se-
cured government action in Ontario and also in the State of
Minnesota, which brought this about. Therefore we have,
lying side by side, a great game refuge in Minnesota and a
similar reserve in Ontario, an indication of the results of in-
ternational effort which points the way to what may be done
on a much larger scale.

I realize that I should not make any extended remarks this
afternoon, but I want to express what I know is in the minds
of all the members of this Society from the United States,
and that is our appreciation of the hospitality that has been
extended to us during our stay in the capital of this Dominion.
We have heard of the wonderful hospitality of the South.
We have enjoyed and experienced that hospitality, but in no
instance in my experience has it been warmer or more gracious
than the hospitality that we have enjoyed here in Ottawa.
We are under a special obligation to the Department of Marine
and Fisheries of Canada, the Commission of Conservation,
the Board of Trade, and of many individual members of these
bodies whose names I need not mention, but whom we shall

30 American Fisheries Society

all remember with a great deal of pleasure and gratitude after
our return to our homes.

We in the United States are not so different from you
Canadians. We are all of one blood. We are brothers; we
come from the same race; we speak the same language; we
have similar laws and similar institutions, similar ambitions
and similar problems. We ought to live side by side as na-
tions throughout the coming years in the utmost harmony and
with the best of good feeling. There is no reason in the world
why there should ever be any disagreement on any subject
between the United States and Canada. In expressing these
sentiments I wish also to express the same feeling as that
expressed by Mr. Mercier—the hope that another opportunity
may occur for our Society to meet within the borders of the
Dominion, and under the Union Jack. I know of no place
to which it would be more pleasant to go than the wonderful
old city of Quebec, and I am for Quebec as soon as it is pos-
sible for the Society to meet there.

Mr. JoHNston: The Commissioner of Fisheries for the
Federal Government of the United States is with us today.
Dr. Smith is well known to those at this luncheon who are
citizens of the United States; to the general public of Canada
I regret to say that it is quite possible Dr. Smith is not so
well known. Officially, Dr. Smith is very well known in Ot-
tawa, particularly in the Department of Marine and Fisheries.
He has occupied his position with distinction to the nation
which he serves, as well as with distinction to himself. Dr.
Smith, while faithful to the interests of his own country, and
very properly so, has always been a very good friend to the
fisheries of Canada. I have, therefore, very much pleasure
in introducing him to those who are present on this occasion,
and asking him to say a few words.

Dr. H. M. Smiru (United States Commissioner of Fish-
eries): Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen: I thank you
for this opportunity to say a few words upon this occasion.
I have visited Ottawa on other occasions; I know something

Fiftieth Annual Meeting eat

about the climate, and the scenery, and the hospitality of Ot-
tawa; therefore, I knew what to expect when I and my col-
leagues from the other side of the line decided to meet here.
We have not been disappointed. I want to endorse all that
Mr. Avery has said about our feeling of appreciation for all
that you have done to make our stay so pleasant and profitable.
I am satisfied that there is no one from the other side of the
boundary who does not feel very great satisfaction at the
thought that the American Fisheries Society, after so many ~
years, decided to meet in this beautiful capital city of Canada.
Perhaps it will not be altogether inappropriate if I mention a
little matter that I have not heard referred to at any of the
meetings of the Society up to this time, namely, that the
American Fisheries Society, now celebrating its fiftieth meet-
ing, was in some respects the forebear of the United States
Bureau of Fisheries, which is now also in its fiftieth year. It
has been my very great pleasure and honor to have been as-
sociated with that bureau during thirty-five of the fifty years
of its existence.

On the other side we view with no envy, but with genuine
pride and pleasure, the superb fishery resources of Canada,
and we heartily commend the most admirable manner in which
you are administering those fisheries—in fish culture, fish pro-
tection, scientific study of the fisheries, and general adminis-
tration. It has been said on at least one occasion, probably,
on numerous occasions, during these meetings—that for plenti-
tude, variety, and excellence the aquatic resources of these two
contiguous countries are unequalled. A very heavy responsi-
bility rests on those in authority to see that proper use is made
of these matchless food assets. Those in attendance at such
meetings as these should return home with increased zeal and
a renewed determination to labor for the public good. 1 have
been attending meetings of the Fisheries Society for many
years, and I am sure that I am glad I attended this meeting
—and that is the sentiment of all of us. If we should at
some time in the future be again invited to meet in Canada,

32 American Fisheries Society

preferably in Quebec, I am sure that there will be a very hearty
response from the United States members of the Society. In
the meanwhile, may we not hope for a very generous visita-
tion from Canada at the meetings of the Society which are
to be held in the United States? “Hands across the sea” is
a very pleasing sentiment, but here in North America a more
intimate association is desirable and physically possible. May
not we who are interested in fisheries do our share to promote
international comity and encourage the passage across the
border, not figuratively of hands, but actually of feet and
of the whole corporeal frame?

This concluded the proceedings of the luncheon.

Afternoon Session, September 22, 1920

The meeting was called to order by President Avery.

Mr. Arthur L. Millett read a paper entitled “Adequate
Fish Inspection: A Means to Better Fish for the Consumer
and to Increased Fish Food Consumption.” Discussion fol-
lowed.

REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON AWARDS

Preliminary to presenting the report of the Committee on
Awards, Mr. John W. Titcomb, Chairman, said that as the
conditions of award had not been published during the past
year, the Committee reverted to the original conditions. Mr.
Titcomb read these conditions as printed in the Transactions
for June, 1918, pages 112 and 113.

A prize of $100 was awarded to Dr. William C. Kendall
for his paper on ‘Some Previously Unrecognized Ana-
tomical Facts and Their Relation to Fish-Cultural Practices.”

The formal report of the Committee was as follows:

The paper by Dr. Marie V. Lebour has been eliminated from
consideration. Her letter does not state that it is offered for competi-
tion; rather that it is sent as a contribution to the program of the jubilee
meeting. Furthermore it does not comply in that it is an abstract or
summaiy and not the full contribution. Still more significant is the fact
that Miss Lebour is not a member of the Society and so under the

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 33

terms of the competition not eligible. Rather than reject a paper from
a well-known worker like Miss Lebour it is wiser to assume that it was
not offered for competition.

The paper by Barney and Anson on the Relation of certain Aquatic
Plants to Oxygen Supply, etc., is an interesting experimental study. It
gives a reasonably clear demonstration of what is already well known
as a general principle. It shows the application of the situation to the
culture of the top-minnow Gambusia. It is of distinct significance for
pond culture in the production of this fish which is exceedingly important
in the campaign against malaria in our southern states. There are some
serious defects in the general discussion and too many inferences to
make it a scientific contribution of conspicuous merit. While commend-
ing the character and appreciating the value of the paper it does not
seem to be of the type to warrant granting it a prize.

The paper entitled “Spawning Habits of the Spiny Lobster,” by
D. R. Crawford is a valuable record to supplement our scanty knowledge
of this phenomenon. As a matter of fact it rests upon a single instance
which, as clearly indicated in the text, was only partially observed. It
is regarded as too incomplete to justify awarding it a prize.

The paper concerning Some Previously Unrecognized Anatomical
Facts and their Relation to Fish-Cultural Practices, by Doctor Kendall,
is of fundamental importance. It presents anatomical discoveries of great
moment in a group where the amount of study previously given these
fishes would have led one to think that it was impossible to add mate-
rially to a knowledge of their structure. The significance of the dis-
coveries from the standpoint of comparative anatomy is very great and
will command the attention of scientific circles over the entire world.
It appears to us that in scope, in bearing upon scientific and practical
fish culture, in newness, and in its fundamental character as well as in
the completeness of the demonstration afforded, this contribution is well
worthy of the prize.

In this connection we would also call attention to two other papers
submitted and read by Dr. Kendall—one entitled “What Are Rainbow
Trout and Steelhead Trout,” and the other, “Relationship of the so-called
Blue Pike and Yellow Pike.’ These papers present the results of long
and exhaustive research on the part of the author, and will prove of
incalculable value to our fish culturists and commercial fishermen. They
have not been submitted in competition for the prize, but the committee
cannot allow this opportunity to pass without indicating its appreciation
of their excellence, and voicing the hope that more papers of this type
will be submitted in future competitions.

The paper entitled “Coregonine Fishes of Lake Huron,” by Walter
Koelz, represents a large amount of work very carefully carried out. It
shows long and careful study of the problem in its various aspects and
a thorough handling of the subject that deserves high praise. It should
be noted that much of the work given in this extensive paper is really

34 American Fisheries Society

taken from other authors and that if one were to sift out those original
investigations upon which the giving of a prize depends, the contribution
would be very much briefer. In the work of the author there is evidence
of great thoroughness and care in handling data as well as in securing
them in sufficient quantities to justify general conclusions. The results
are not very striking in character or adequate to characterize the paper
as in any conspicuous way exceptional. While ranking it as subordinate
to the paper by Doctor Kendall, the Committee regard it as worthy to
be given honorable mention in a competition.*

It is requested that the papers entitled “A Means to Better Fish for
the Consumer and to ‘Increased Fish Food Consumption,” by Arthur
L. Millett and “Principles Involved in the Preservation of Fish by Salt,”
by Harden F. Taylor, both competing in the third class, be left with
the Committee for further consideration to be followed by a report to
the Secretary.

E JoHN W. Titcomp,
Joun N. Coss,
Cuas. O. HAyForp.

Upon motion of Mr. Buller it was decided that the papers
submitted by Mr. H. F. Taylor and Mr. A. L. Millett be placed
in the custody of the Committee for consideration and report
to be filed with the Secretary.

The formal report of the Committee was adopted.

PRESIDENT Avery: I feel like suggesting that the thanks
of the Society be extended for the painstaking work that the
Committee has done. Its work involves real labor, a careful
study of the papers, and an exercise of competent judgment.
In these respects, therefore, we are indebted to the Committee.

On December 7, 1920, the following supplemental report
was submitted by Mr. Titcomb, Chairman of the Committee
on Awards:

SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON AWARDS

At the recent meeting of the American Fisheries Society at Ot-
tawa the committee on award of prizes for the best contribution on fish
culture, biological investigations applied to fish cultural problems, and
problems of the commercial fisheries, were voted more time on two papers
which, through delay in the mails after having been sent to one member

*The paper by Dr. Koelz was returned to him by Dr. Osburn who regarded
it as too bulky for publication. Dr. Koelz states that the character of the document
is such that it cannot well be abstracted.

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 35

of the committee, failed to reach Ottawa in season for the committee as
a whole to give them proper consideration. One of these papers is
entitled “A Means to Better Fish for the Consumer, and Increased Fish
Food Consumption,” by Arthur L. Millett; the other is entitled “Prin-
ciples Involved in the Preservation of Fish by Salt,” by H. F. Taylor.

The original committee on awards consisted of John W. Titcomb,
G. C. Leach, Charles O. Hayford and Henry B. Ward. Owing to the
death of his mother Mr. Leach was unable to perform his duties as a com-
mitteeman at the time of the annual meeting and Mr. John N. Cobb
was appointed in his place. The records of the Society show the vote
of the committee as constituted and who were present at the annual ~
meeting.

The same members of this committee have acted on the two papers
above mentioned and it seemed no more than right, inasmuch as more
time was granted, to give Mr. Leach also, an opportunity to pass upon
the two papers. There are therefore five committeemen voting on these
two papers.

The committee are unanimous in expressing a feeling that both papers
are valuable contributions to the literature of the Society. While the
conditions of award do not specifically state that the contributions should
be based upon the result of original work on the part of the author, four
members of the committee have expressed the feeling that judgment
should be based upon original work.

The committee feels that Mr. Millett’s paper does not represent
the original work of the author but is of value as showing the direction
legislation is taking in Massachusetts.

The committee is unanimous in the opinion that Mr. Taylor’s paper
represents much work in preparation and deals with a subject of great
importance. Four members of the committee feel that the paper does not
represent the results of original work on the part of the author to a
sufficient degree to warrant awarding a prize.

In this view Mr. Leach dissents by stating that Mr. Taylor has copied
from the writings of others, has profited by their experiments, and with
his own research work has produced a paper that should be recognized
as of great value to the public. He therefore favors awarding the prize
to Mr. Taylor.

Under the conditions as interpreted by a majority of the committee,
neither paper is regarded as worthy of the prize.

REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON TIME AND PLACE OF MEETING

Mr. W. E. Barber presented the report of the Committee
on Time and Place of Next Meeting. It was recommended
that the next annual meeting be held in the State of Penn-
sylvania, the time to be determined by the Executive Com-
mittee. The report was adopted.

36 American Fisheries Society

Mr. Butrer: Mr. Chairman, I am pleased that the Com-
mittee has decided that the next meeting of the Society will
be held in Pennsylvania. I can assure you on the part of
Pennsylvania that we will try to make your stay with us pleas-
ant and instructive. It is intended to give you something that
is quite unique. This Society has met for fifty years, usually
in a hotel; our thought is to have you meet with us in the
open, right in the midst of the buffalo and the elk and the
hills and the streams, and to live during your week in tents
and under army regulations. Provision will also be made for
any ladies whom you wish to bring with you.

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON RESOLUTIONS

Prof. E. E. Prince submitted the report of the Committee
on Resolutions, as follows:

Wuereas, The American Fisheries Society contains within its mem-
bership persons devoted to the preservation and increase of the fish life
in the public waters of the United States, this being one of the purposes
for which the Society was founded; and

WHEREAS, It is the duty, as it should be the pleasure, of persons
in authority to do all within their power to maintain for the proper
use and enjoyment of present and future generations the supplies of food
and game fishes, especially those in national parks, and other parts of the
public domain set aside for the benefit of all the people:

Therefore be it resolved by the United States members of the Amer-
ican Fisheries Society in fiftieth annual meeting assembled, That it is
unjust and unwise, for the gain of a few, to permit the commercialization
of public areas that have been formed for the recreation and use of all
the people, and emphatic protest is specifically made against the prop-
osition to convert into an irrigation reservoir a large and attractive sec-
tion in the Yellowstone National ‘Park that abounds with beautiful
streams suitable for and containing trout, which waters would be for-
ever destroyed by the contemplated irrigation project; and be it further

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the National
Park Service of the United States and to the members of the appropriate
committees of the United States ‘Congress.

Resolved, That the thanks of the American Fisheries Society be ex-
tended to the Department of Marine and Fisheries, and the Department
of Conservation of the Dominion of Canada; His Worship the Mayor
of Ottawa, and the Board of Trade of Ottawa, for the splendid hos-
pitality so freely extended to the members of this Society.

Resolved, That the thanks of the American Fisheries Society be ex-

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 37

tended to the press of the city of Ottawa for the excellent publicity
given to the proceedings of our fiftieth anniversary meeting.

Resolved, That the thanks and appreciation of the Society be ex-
tended to President Carlos Avery, whose able administration during
the year and dignified leadership during the meeting have been of great
value to the Society.

Resolved, That the cordial thanks of the Society be extended to Dr.
R. C. Osburn, who has served most assiduously and ably as Secretary
for the past seven years, and whom pressure of other duties has compelled
to resign as Secretary.

Mr. Millett suggested that every member write to his-
Senator or Representative in Congress and urge favorable
consideration of the resolution regarding threatened commer-
cialization of national parks, especially Yellowstone National
Park.

The report of the committee was unanimously adopted.

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON NOMINATIONS

Mr. Nevin submitted the report of the Committee on Nom-
inations as follows:
President—Nathan R. Buller, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Vice-President—E. E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada.
Executive Secretary—Ward T. Bower, Washington, D. C.
Recording Secretary—S. B. Hawks, Bennington, Vermont.
Treasurer—Arthur L. Millett, Boston, Massachusetts.
Vice-Presidents of Divisions:
Fish Culture—James Nevin, Madison, Wisconsin.
Aquatic Biology and Physics—E. A. Birge, Madison,
Wisconsin.
Commercial Fishing—Seymour Bower, Lansing, Michigan.
Angling—John M. Crampton, New Haven, Connecticut.
Protection and Legislation—J. G. Needham, Ithaca, New
York.

Executive Committee:
Glen C. Leach, Chairman, Washington, D. C.
W. A. Found, Ottawa, Canada.
W. E. Barber, LaCrosse, Wisconsin.

38 American Fisheries Society

W. H. Killian, Baltimore, Maryland.

George H. Graham, Springfield, Massachusetts.

Dwight Lydell, Comstock Park, Michigan.

John W. Titcomb, Albany, New York.

Commnuttee on Foreign Relations:

George Shiras, Chairman, Washington, D. C.

H. M. Smith, Washington, D. C.

William C. Adams, Boston, Massachusetts.

James White, Ottawa, Canada.

E. E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada.

Committee on Relations with National and State Governments:

E. W. Cobb, Chairman, St. Paul, Minnesota.

James Nevin, Madison, Wisconsin.

Jacob E. Reighard, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

E. T. D. Chambers, Quebec, Canada.

Charles O. Hayford, Hackettstown, New Jersey.

It was moved and seconded that the Secretary be instructed
to cast one ballot for the Society. The motion was carried
and the respective officers were duly declared elected for the
year 1920-21.

Only the respective chairmen of the three above-stated
committees were named in the formal report of the Committee
on Nominations, but for convenience the other members of
these committees designated subsequently by President Buller
have been included.

PRESIDENT AveERY: Before turning over the Society to
my successor, I wish to express to you my own deep appre-
ciation of the great assistance that has been rendered to me
by every member with whom I have had anything to do during
the past year. The office of President of this Society is largely
an ornamental affair. The President is not supposed to have
any work to do, and usually does not do anything except pre-
side at the meetings; the actual work is done by the Executive
Secretary and the Treasurer and other officers who are chosen
for that purpose, and by the active members of the Society.
Without the cooperation and the earnest work of these offi-

Fiftieth Annual Meeting 39

cers and the members, the Society would not be successful,
and whatever measure of success we have had during the past
year and during this meeting, I feel is entirely due to the work
of those who have so ably cooperated in furthering the in-
terests of the Society. JI am impressed more than I ever have
been with the importance of this organization and with the
great work that it is accomplishing and that it has to do in
the future. It is with a great deal of pleasure that I now
invite my successor, Mr. Buller, to the Chair, so that I may-
turn over the duties of the presidential office to him. I feel
that you have made a wise selection.

Mr. BuLver here assumed the Chair, amid applause.

PRESIDENT BULLER: Members of the American Fisheries
Society: I hardly know how to express my appreciation of
this great honor which you have conferred upon me. [| assure
you that during my term of office I shall do everything in my
power to further the interests of the Society. I want you all
to feel free at any time to communicate with me and advise
me and help me in any way that will benefit this Society. I
thank you.

Is there any matter that any member has to bring before
this Society before we stand adjourned? If not, the Society
will adjourn to meet at the call of the President in Penn-
sylvania. I may say that the exact place at which the Society
will meet has not been decided upon, for the reason that it
depends upon the kind of entertainment that we want to give
you. You will receive ample notice of where and on what
beautiful stream the encampment will be held. I trust that
every one of you will be present and will bring as many new
members as possible.

Adjourned sine die.

Inu Memoriam

S. P. BARTLETT
J. F. BROWER
SIR CHARLES FRYER
PHILIP NEIDLINGER
HIRAM PEOPLES

W. W. WELSH

PART II
PAPERS AND DISCUSSIONS

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SOME PREVIOUSLY UNRECOGNIZED ANATOMI-
CAL FACTS AND THEIR RELATION TO
FISH-CULTURAL PRACTICES*

By Dr. WILLIAM CONVERSE KENDALL
Scientific Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries
Washington, D. C.

The present discussion pertains to the peritoneal mem-
branes of the abdominal cavity of salmonoid fishes, principally -
those membranes connected with or having relation to the
ovaries and the deposition of ova.

Ninety-six years ago (1824), Rathke described the ovaries
and oviducts of the various fishes, among which were certain
salmonoids. Nearly 60 years later (1883), Huxley studied
the European smelt (Osmerus eperlanus) and _ reviewed
Rathke’s work, confirming his statements in respect to the sal-
mon, but in the case of the smelt correcting certain errors and
amplifying the description by demonstrating the presence of
oviducts, which all salmonoid fishes including the smelt were
supposed not to possess. For nearly 100 years erroneous con-
clusions derived from Rathke’s inaccurate interpretation of the
structure and arrangement of the female reproductive organs
have been perpetuated in every published account or reference
to salmonoid genitalia. And fish-cultural practices pertaining
to salmonoids, based as they were upon error, have resulted in
apparently hitherto unexplainable conditions, such as a large
percentage of unfertilized eggs, monstrosities among the fry,
reduced egg production, sterility, and even mortality in the
brood stock.

The fish-cultural error is embodied in the following quota-
tion from Cambridge Natural History, p. 258, where the writer
says of the Salmonide: ‘The large size of the eggs, their lack
of adhesiveness, and the fact that they fall into the abdominal
cavity (italics mine), out of which they may be easily squeezed,

* This paper was awarded the prize of $100 in the annual competition by the
American Fisheries Society for the best contribution covering original biological work.

44 American Fisheries Society

renders artificial impregnation particularly easy, and the species
of Salmo have always occupied the first place in the annals of
fish culture.’’ This statement, like every published statement per-
taining to the subject, in anatomical, zoological, ichthyological
and fish-cultural works, is simply the acceptance of the erro-
neous conclusions of earlier writers, particularly those to whom
I have referred. Briefly stated, these conclusions were in effect
that the salmonoid fishes were exceptions among teleosts in that
they did not have closed ovaries and lacked oviducts, excepting
certain stated vestigeal remains and the “‘funnels” in the smelt
described by Huxley. The ovaries were stated to be platelike
organs with perpendicularly arranged egg-bearing laminz not
covered by membrane on the outer surface facing the lateral
abdominal wall. From these laminz the ova, as they ripened,
were deposited loose in the abdominal cavity and extruded
through a genital pore behind the anal opening. Some members
of this Society may recall that at the Washington meeting in
1914, I called attention to an apparantly closed ovary in an im-
mature brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), and mentioned that
I had seen in the Sunapee char what I regarded as possible ovi-
ducts. At that time I remarked that I had not had time for
thoroughly investigating the subject, but hoped that I or some-
one might soon settle the question.

Six years have since elapsed, and I feel some satisfaction in
being able to announce that I believe that I have settled the
question. I have examined many individuals of salmonoid
fishes, comprising four species of Pacific salmon, the Atlantic
and landlocked salmon, rainbow, steelhead, redthroat, brown,
Loch Leven and other trouts, various species of chars, white-
fishes, ciscoes and the grayling ; as well as hundreds of Atlantic
smelts, both marine and fresh water. The salmons, trouts and
chars are essentially alike in their visceral structure and ar-
rangement. The abdominal cavity is separated from the ante-
rior chamber containing the heart, gills, etc., by a diaphragm-
like partition through which pass the esophagus and certain
blood vessels. Continuing from the esophagus, the alimentary

Kendall.—Anatomical Facts 45

canal extends backward a certain distance as the cardiac limb of
the stomach, makes a rather abrupt bend forward and ex-
tends as the pyloric limb forward to the liver, which is sit-
uated immediately behind the diaphragm. At its anterior
end this pyloric limb makes a sharp bend and extends back-
ward to the vent as the intestine. At the anterior end
of the pyloric limb and on the anterior end of the in-
testine is a mass of ccecal appendages or pyloric coece. Immed-
iately behind the posterior curve of the stomach the spleen is
situated, and the pancreas lies along the upper surface of the
cardiac limb. The so-called “blood’’along the dorsal surface
of the cavity composes the kidney mass. Below this is the air-
bladder extending for the entire length of the abdominal cavity.
The whole abdominal cavity is lined by a serous membrane called
the peritoneum, which sends out folds forming covering, attach-
ments, and supporting membranes to the visceral organs.

It is with two sets of folds of this membrane that this paper
is particularly concerned. First, may be mentioned the mesen-
teries which are connected with the alimentary tract. All fishes
possess a dorsal mesentery which in salmonoids is described as
originating on the middle longitudinal line of the peritoneum
covering the lower surface of the air bladder and extending to
and supporting the intestine for nearly its entire length. How-
ever, in the salmon, at least, is another mesenteric fold which
originates with the intestinal mesentery forward and connects
with the cardiac limb of the stomach. This, to my knowledge,
has not previously been described. The salmons, trouts and
chars also possess an hitherto undescribed ventral mesentery
which forms a longitudinal partition between the intestine and
and ventral surface of the abdominal cavity, extending from
just behind the pelvic region to the posterior end of the cavity.
The dorsal intestinal membrane terminates a short but varying
distance from the anal end of the intestine in the female but
is complete in the male. So far as I have observed, the
grayling, whitefishes, ciscoes, and smelts have no ventral

46 American Fisheries Society

mesentery, but the dorsal mesentery ends in the same way as
in other salmonoid fishes.

The second set of membranes comprises those pertaining to
the genital organs. From each side of the air bladder a peri-
toneal fold, termed the mesovarium or mesoarium, extends to
each ovary, which contrary to the previously stated observa-
tions, almost completely enfolds the ovary. It forms the
inner or axial surface of the ovary, and when the ovary
is in normal position, extends downward and around and
upward on the outer surface, so that the outer surface is
completely: covered and has no exposed lamine. How-
ever, the position of the ovary is such that a compar-
tively narrow surface of the edges of egg-bearing lamine,
not covered by adherent membrane, is inclined inward in
such a manner that the mesovarium lies on the free-egg sur-
face forming a covering. The laminz, instead of being situ-
ated vertically on the outer surface of the ovary, extend ob-
liquely crosswise of the somewhat boat-shaped ovary, and when
the ova ripen and burst from their inclosing follicles, instead
of falling into the abdominal cavity they are deposited in the
groove or angle between the upper edge of the laminz, or free
ege surface, and the mesovarium covering; the inner end of
each laminz is lower than the outer end.

If we follow the line of origin of the mesovarium on the
surface of the air bladder, it is observed to gradually pass
inward and fuse with the mesentery near its posterior termi-
nation. The two ovaries are seldom of equal length, the left
usually being longer. In a ripe fish the left ovary generally
extends tapering nearly to the posterior end of the abdominal
cavity, while the right terminates some distance anteriorly to
that point. In the case of the shorter ovary, or where both
are short, the mesovarium continues from the posterior end
of the ovary, uniting with that of the opposite side to form a
trough on the upper surface of the intestine behind the pos-
terior terminus of the mesentery. This trough near the geni-

Kendall.—Anatomical Facts 47

tal pore widens and becomes attached to the abdominal wall on
each side, thus forming a sort of shelf in front of the genital
pore, or what might be likened to a funnel formed by the union
of the expanded lateral edges of the trough and the peritoneum
of the abdominal cavity above. Sometimes near the posterior
terminus of the mesentery, particularly in the case of the longer
left ovary, the lower edge of the pendent mesovarium extends
to form the side of the trough on top of the intestine, while a -
membranous flap, which narrows to the posterior end of the
tapering extended ovary, lies on or against the trough.

This trough serves as an oviduct, along which the ova pass
from the ovaries to the genital pore. The outer walls of the
Ovary are supported in position partly by the shape of the
ovary and the crosswise laminz, tense with eggs, and by the
abdominal wall. The sides of the trough are also supported
by the abdominal wall. ss

Grayling, whitefishes, and others, excepting in the absence
of the ventral mesentery, are essentially the same as the sal-
mons, trouts and chars. So far as the structure and mem-
branes of the ovaries are concerned, the smelt exhibits about
the same arrangement as the fishes previously mentioned. The
mesovariums continue also from the oviducts in a similar
manner, but owing to the relative size and situation of the
ovaries, the oviducal structure is somewhat different, as des-
cribed by Huxley.

The left ovary is the larger and is anterior to the right or
much smaller ovary, as stated by Huxley, but contrary to his
statement, the ovaries are not semioval plates with vertical
laminz on the outside, but are somewhat as I have described
in the case of the Salmonide, with the difference that each
ovary might be regarded as a comparatively deep boat-shaped
organ with the bottom bent upward so as to form a groove in
which the alimentary tract lies. The anterior or left ovary
bends up to the right and the posterior or right ovary to the
left. The continuation of the mesovarium and ovarian cover-

48 American Fisheries Society

ing of each ovary, near the end of the ovary, is deflected to
the sides and attached to the left and right abdominal wall,
respectively, to form the oviducts which are open above save
for the peritoneal lining of the lower surface of the air bladder.
At the posterior termination of the mesentery the two mem-
branes unite to form a common passage. This arrangement
makes a long left and a short right oviduct. The appearance
of the ovaries turgid with eggs, when ventrally observed, is
as of one continuous ovary or mass of eggs. But by careful
manipulation, the two ovaries may be separated showing an
oblique line of separation directed backward from right to
left. When in this condition, the left oviducal membrane is
pressed against the lateral abdominal wall by the gravid right
ovary, and it is not until the right or posterior ovary is empty
that this oviduct can be filled with eggs. Therefore, a partly
spent fish may appear to have but one ovary, the right ovary
with its immature eggs being collapsed and pressed between
the turgid left oviduct and the right abdominal wall.

The previously mentioned inaccuracies regarding salmonoid
ovaries were in consequence of observations upon spent fish
in which the ovaries were collapsed and disarranged, perhaps
by manipulation. Concerning the smelt, Huxley stated that
he washed the eggs from the ovaries.

The significance of the foregoing as concerns fish-cultural
practices is that the ripe eggs do not naturally fall into the
abdominal cavity, and if by any means they are displaced into
the cavity, they cannot be extruded or expressed. The pre-
valent method of stripping the fish not only is liable to dis-
place the eggs, but to rupture the ovarian membrane, and thus
render the fish partially or wholly sterile thereafter, if the fish
does not die.

The difference in length of the ovaries suggests in the
salmon and trout, and absolutely indicates in the case of the
smelt, that the eggs do not ripen in both ovaries at exactly the
same time, and it is an established fact that the eggs do not

Kendall.—Anatomucal Facts 49

ripen all at once but rather gradually, those near the posterior
end first. Sometimes it may take almost a week for a salmon
or trout to deposit all of its eggs naturally. Therefore, the
prevalent practice of firmly grasping a fish just back of the
gill-opening and squeezing for nearly the whole length of the
fish will result in expressing some immature eggs, incapable
of more than defective fertilization, and is likely to injure the
ovaries. If a second stripping movement is made, the col-
lapsed conditions caused by the first pressure renders easy the-
displacement of eggs in the abdominal cavity and their conse-
quent retention by the fish. If time and space permitted, I
could cite many instances of such defects and injuries as I
have mentioned. [ will describe in detail only two examples
observed by me, which will serve to illustrate what often hap-
pens, and possibly suggest what some particular trouble has
been that has for a long time puzzled some persons.

Three landlocked salmon obtained at a state hatchery, which
the superintendent told me had been stripped but once, showed
displaced and retained eggs in each fish, and in two of the fish
the ovaries were so severely injured it is difficult to believe that
they could have ever functioned again. In one fish, nearly 18
inches long, the posterior part of the liver was mashed and
broken, with 6 eggs embedded in it from behind and showing
through on the outer side. Besides these, there were 21 dis-
placed eggs embedded in various parts of the anterior viscera
and 101 displaced eggs loose in the abdominal cavity. There
were 63 eggs normally situated in the oviduct and upper sur-
face of the ovaries. The ovaries of this individual were not
injured, but the injury to the liver appeared serious. There
were 191 eggs left in the fish.

A rainbow trout, a little over 18 inches long, from
another hatchery, revealed the following conditions: A small
portion, containing one egg of the anterior end of the right
ovary had been broken off; the posterior end of the left ovary
was also broken off, but still had a mesovarian attachment.

50 American Fisheries Society

In this detached portion were 27 eggs adhering together.
Thirteen displaced eggs were embedded in various parts of the
anterior viscera and 113 loose in the abdominal cavity, while
15 remained in normal position in the ovary, 6 of which were
still enclosed in follicles. This example suggests that attempt
had been made to completely strip a fish not wholly ripe.

The foregoing indicates that if the artificial means of secur-
ing eggs of these fishes is continued, the structures and
arrangements herein described must be considered, and some
modification of the method be adopted. To this end, the
Bureau of Fisheries purposes to conduct some experiments
with rainbow trout. The situation, however, involves all Sal-
monide and related fishes.

Discussion

Mr. Esen W. Coss, St. Paul, Minn.: I infer from the paper that
it is the view of the writer that our method of stripping is wrong, and
that it is very harmful to the fish. But men engaged in fish culture
have been handling the same fish year after year and getting good re-
sults through the employment of this method, and that would seem to
be a strong argument in favor of the assertion that stripping is not
harmful. Some of these men can handle their fish very rapidly, at the
rate of about one in five seconds, and most of them no not know very
much about the structure of the fish. It seems to me that the suggestion
made in the paper in this regard might be an encouragement to people
to say that fish are killed in stripping. I believe there are various
methods of stripping, if you could call them methods. Many men
handle the fish in a certain way; others take hold of them in an
entirely different way, using a different part of the hand. I myself
contend that my method is right, but other men who claim that I am
wrong seem to get just as good results as I do—perhaps some of them
get better results. What I want to know, then, is how we can apply
this information for the betterment of our work. I would like to
know also how this information in regard to the structure of the fish
could be applied practically by the fish culturist.

Dr. KenpaAtL: I did not intend to convey the idea that injury
would always result from stripping the fish, but it was my purpose to
indicate the danger of injury from improper handling; that one conse-
quence of stripping the fish was that there were a lot of eggs deposited
in the abdominal cavity, which is not the natural place for them; and
after they are there, it is with difficulty, if at all, that they can be
removed. In fact, almost every fish that I have examined after strip-
ping, has contained a variable percentage of eggs that were not obtained

Kendall.—Anatomical Facts Si

and, as a rule, were in the abdominal cavity. The eggs, as I stated, do
not all ripen at the same time; of that I am quite positive; those in
the posterior part of the ovary ripen first.

The methods of stripping, as Mr. Cobb suggested, vary with dif-
ferent strippers. My observation leads me to believe that the trouble
has been due to rough handling; the caution I intended to express was
that in stripping the fish, more attention should be given to its struc-
ture. This is based upon two or more years’ observation of fish that
had been stripped in various hatcheries. At some hatcheries there was
a decline in the number of eggs obtained from the brood stock; at
others the eggs were glassy and defective. The disclosure of these _
conditions brought about an investigation in connection with the ana-
tomical work upon which I was engaged. It was found that while in
many instances there was apparently no injury to the ovary or oviduct,
many eggs were loose in the cavity, having fallen down and
moved forward and become embedded in the viscera away up between
the liver and the diaphragm and various parts of the visceral anatomy,
which is an abnormal place for them to be.

As for the injuries, they are not always apparent. As Mr. Cobb
says, some men have been breeding fish for many years, in some cases
breeding them from the same brood stock for a long time, with
apparently no damage to the fish. On the other hand there have been
a great many losses through death of brood fish, poor eggs, and various
other abnormal conditions. Many of these, it seems to me, may be
ascribed to rough handling of the fish. The Bureau of Fisheries in-
tends to conduct experiments this fall looking to an improvement in
the methods of handling brood fish. It remains to be ascertained what
is the best method in order to secure best results. It is possible that
all of the eggs cannot be secured by stripping, or that even with careful
stripping some may be left. Then the question arises as to whether the
fish is harmed by having the eggs remain in it. Possibly there is no
injury. It is possible that they are naturally expelled; there is some
evidence to that effect.

It is my suggestion, then, that we must have regard to the anatomy
of the fish in stripping, and that more care must be exercised in the
operation. I would suggest that squeezing the fish several times until
blood and fecal matter are extruded is often the cause of injury. 1
have seen that done at some of the hatcheries in order that the very
last egg might be obtained; undoubtedly it injures the fish. Instead of
beginning the pressure away up forward, as some do, and pressing down
along the whole length of the abdominal cavity until the fish is collapsed
and flabby, and then dumping it into a pond to recover, it would be
better to begin at the back and very gently press out all the eggs
possible; then put the fish back and let her ripen some more eggs and
thereafter press them out too. Of course, it would be impracticable to
continue this indefinitely if the fish takes a week or two in ripening her
eggs; but it is possible that all fish do not take that long. Some ripen

52 American Fisheries Society

more quickly than others, but we know that fish will not deposit their
eggs unless conditions are congenial and natural, until all the eggs that
are going to ripen have done so.

Mr. J. W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: Dr. Kendall has described
certain methods of squeezing the fish and getting out all the blood and
gurry in an effort to obtain the last egg. If I found a man at any of
my hatcheries stripping fish in that way I would discharge him imme-
diately; we do not call that spawn taking or stripping. We always
caution our men as to the methods of stripping fish; our foremen in
charge pick the best men and educate them for that particular work,
and only those who will take all the necessary precautions are continued
at that class of work. A good stripper should command more wages
than does a man in any other branch of fish-cultural work, although we
know that anyone who does practical work in connection with fish
breeding and that sort of thing should have particular qualifications.

Mr. Witt1am H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.: This paper is of great
interest to me, as it is to anyone who is in charge of or exercises super-
vision over a hatchery. I have caught trout and salmon in the spring
of the year in the wild state which still retained the spawn of the fall
before. Dr. Kendall intimated that trout would not spawn if conditions
were not right. Well, trout of that kind are not found in commercial
hatcheries. I have thousands of trout that I do not make any attempt
to strip, and it is my experience that they deposit their eggs in the tank
with the other fish. Of course, the eggs are eaten by the fish; they are
never fertilized.

Dr. Kendall spoke of the eggs being pressed into the liver of the
fish. I do not know by what process that coiild be done; it surely
would not be spawn-taking. I saw a trout one time which weighed over
three pounds and which had been caught in the spring in a perfectly
wild pond. It had two large ovaries with the eggs; each one was as
large as my hand. I do not think that that trout would ever have got
rid of those eggs; I think it would have died. If it had been the
product of a hatchery, the result would have been attributed to handling.
In this case, of course, the condition of the ovaries was not the result
of any handling. I think that spawning is a very critical time in the
life of the fish, and that in many cases they die either during the process
or as the result of not spawning. In the spring many dead fish are
found by men who drive logs in the rivers, fish not the product of any
hatchery.

Mr. James Nevin, Madison, Wis.: A good man will not leave
many eggs in the fish after he has handled it. If when the fish is taken
up in the hand the eggs do not come freely, he should drop it and not
handle it until the next day or perhaps not for four or five days. I
have examined hundreds of fish after they have spawned, and have
found very few eggs in them. There is a great knack in handling fish;
the whole thing is to do it properly.

Mr. Titcoms: In the case of wild trout held in pens and stripped

3

cn

Kendall.—Anatomical Facts

from day to day, I have found that if in stripping we leave one or two
eggs, the trout will stay around the spawning bed until it gets rid of
those eggs. We find that they are very persistent. We have penned
fish two miles from the spawning beds and taken what we believed to
be all their eggs, and within twenty-four hours we have found those
same fish over on the spawning beds two miles away. I inferred that
these fish were there to get rid of two or three eggs that we had left
behind in the stripping process.

We have taken eggs from year to year from the same brood stock.
I have in mind a thirty-five acre pond which yields 7,000 or 8,000 wild
trout annually, all of which ascend the stream to spawn. That has
always been the best trout pond for angling that I have ever known or
have had the pleasure of fishing for ordinary sized trout; the fishing
has been kept up by returning about ten or fifteen per cent of the
progeny of the eggs taken. No mortality was ever noticed among the
adult fish there, although they have been stripped annually for more
than twenty years; the fish are all in fine condition.

I do not think any of us can say too much about proper handling.
But I want to emphasize what Mr. E. W. Cobb said, namely, that we
fish culturists cannot afford to have it go out from this Society that the
method of spawning fish is injurious. I received a letter recently in
New York City about the depletion of whitefish in a certain lake where
the fish are caught on licensed lines. The complaint was made that
five or six years ago the Conservation Commission operated a field
station there for the collection of whitefish eggs during one season only,
and that the depletion of the whitefish is attributable to that action on the
part of the Commission. Of course, there was caught only a very small
portion of the spawning fish in the lake which is fifteen miles in length.
We run up against these things constantly, but certainly conditions as
to public sentiment are not as bad as formerly. In the early days, if
a fish culturist operated on lakes to get the spawn of wild fish, no
matter what the species, it was claimed that he was injuring the fish,
and if the fishing was poor the next year that condition was always
attributed to the taking of spawn by the fish culturist. Of course, we
know that is not the case.

Mr. Nevin: I may say that we handle in the neighborhood of
16,000 spawning fish every spring. We lose on the average from 25 to
125 fish a year. Some die three or four days after spawning, some
a week afterwards, but we always make a point of picking up the dead
fish and putting the fact on record. But we lose very few fish.

Dr. KENDALL: Possibly the impression prevails that I was stating as
a fact that inevitable injury results to the fish in the stripping process.
Now, one fish culturist may have all the success in the world; he may
not injure the fish in any way and he may get all the eggs that nature
will provide. So far as he is concerned if he maintains that condition
he has solved the problem. But my paper was directed to the improve-
ment of conditions with a view to eliminating certain dangers in the

54 American Fisheries Society

stripping process which some other fish culturists, to my mind, have
disregarded, the result being injury to the fish. I know of many such
instances; I have specimens of fish from various state hatcheries as
well as our own where undoubted injury has resulted to the ovaries or
some other part of the fish. But I wanted to emphasize the fact that
I do not say that artificial propagation or stripping of the fish is neces-
sarily fatal to the fish; injury is the result of careless or improper
manipulation of the fish. Many things should be considered in that
connection besides merely the stripping process. I have seen a so-called
spawn taker grab a fish around the neck, if it had a neck, put it down
between his legs—he would be wearing a rough, oilskin suit—and
squeeze out the eggs until he could not get any more; then he would
fling the fish, with a collapsed abdomen, into the water. There the fish
would remain until the abdomen inflated again, and after a while it
would struggle up and swim off, feeling very sick. Take that fish after-
wards and open it and you would find it full of water. It is such people
that I want to caution. It was to help in that direction that the Bureau
of Fisheries proposed to conduct some experiments at one of the stations
with the rainbow trout. There have been set aside at that station a
thousand or so fish, with controls, raceways and so on, so that experi-
ments may be made in the taking of eggs by various processes and note
made of the results.

With regard to the suggestion that fish sometimes retain the eggs,
I myself know that to be a fact. It may be due to a natural or to an
unnatural cause; it is not necessarily to be taken for granted that they
have been stripped. Some other factor may have been a consideration
in the matter. So I repeat that I do not seek to convey the impression
that artificial taking of eggs is necessarily injurious, but that artificial
taking of eggs in the wrong way may be injurious, as is shown by certain
specimens in my possession.

Mr. Titcomge: The rainbow trout, of course, in eastern waters has
always caused trouble. Since the early days there are references in the
reports to glassy eggs obtained from rainbows. You will get them
from rainbow trout the first year they are stripped; if any ill effects are
shown as a result of stripping, the subject would be a very interesting
one for study. I wanted to ask Dr. Kendall just how be obtained the
specimens that he has to show. Were they taken at random?

Dr. KenpALL: Some were sent to me from our hatcheries with a
request for information as to what the trouble was. Other fish were sent
pursuant to instructions to forward a certain number of females of a
given age. Some had been stripped and some had not. Some of my
fish I obtained at random in state hatcheries, fish that had been stripped
once; some of our fish had been stripped twice. Others I obtained
myself and had them sent in. I had no voice in the selection of the
fish; I simply got the fish that were sent. The first intimation of
trouble with the ovaries and eggs was before I recognized the exact
anatomical arrangement of the fish. Several years ago some fish were

Kendall.—Anatomical Facts 55

turned in from one of our stations for examination to determine whether
the trouble of subnormal egg production was not due to inbreeding.

Mr. Titcomp: Where the fish are in poor condition I find that
they frequently hold their eggs over a year; this suggests that some-
thing other than the mere stripping may be responsible. Does not Dr.
Kendall think that a diseased condition of the fish is as likely to be the
cause of failure to spawn naturally as the handling of the fish in
spawn taking?

Dr. KENDALL: Well, so far as the retention of the eggs is con-
cerned, that may be so. But ruptured ovaries, the presence of masses _
of clotted blood, and all that sort of thing, would hardly be due to any
slight unnatural condition.

Mr. Wittiam F. Wetts, Albany, N.Y.: There is one phase of
this paper which has not been brought out very prominently, and before
the discussion is closed I think it ought to be mentioned. I refer to
that aspect of fish-cultural work which has to do with the relation of
the scientist to the practical man. This discussion has been entirely
along practical lines. There is no question that Dr. Kendall has done a
wonderful piece of scientific work; he has disclosed facts which, if they
do not succeed this year or next year in bringing about the production
of one more fish from artificially stripped eggs, may in the long run
have more effect on fish-cultural methods than can now be anticipated,
Here is involved the question of the relation between the anatomist and
the surgeon. The anatomical facts that have been determined during the
last thousand years are the basis of our surgery today. The wonderful
surgery of the present generation is due more to those great anatomists
than to the wonderful surgeons who are alive today. In due respect to
science, therefore, I think we should say that Dr. Kendall has done a
wonderful piece of scientific work, and the fact that he can arouse so much
interest on the part of the practical man shows that his work is one of those
rare instances of scientific accomplishment which connects pure science—
in itself worth while—with the work of the practical man, who, perhaps,
is not always inclined to appreciate the ultimate results of scientific work.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE COLLEGE OF
FISHERIES

By Joun N. Coss

Director, College of Fisheries, University of Washington
Seattle, Wash.

At the College of Fisheries, of the University of Washing-
ton, we are trying to do something new. We have the only
representative educational institution outside the Empire of
Japan which is giving full courses of instruction in matters
connected with the oldest industry in the world. In the case
of Japan, a beginning was made in the work about ten years
ago.

The establishment of our College of Fisheries was largely
due to the initiative of Dr. H. M. Smith, United States
Commissioner of Fisheries, who in 1914 attended the first
meeting of the Pacific Fisheries Society and was so enthusias-
tic on the subject that he got the university people started.
But the university happened to be without a head at the
time; and then the war came on and it was thought best to
defer definite action. In 1919, Dr. Suzzallo, our President,
and the Board of Regents, believing the time ripe, provided
officially for the establishment of the college and then turned
over to me the entire matter of working out details. We
were entering upon a new line of work and had practically
nothing to guide us, so we had to build from the bottom up.
We made some mistakes, but we have not been afraid to ac-
knowledge them at once and to change our methods when
necessary.

During the war the U. S. Naval Reserve used a part of
the campus of the University of Washington, and at the con-
clusion of hostilities there was left a group of buildings of
which fortunately we were able to utilize three. One of
them, Fisheries Hall No. 1, contains the administrative offices,

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 57

and has a class room seating about 40 students, a net labora-
tory where the making and preservation of nets is taught, a
testing laboratory, and a fisheries museum in which we prob-
ably have the finest collection of models of fishing apparatus to
be found in this country. In the second building, Fisheries Hall
No. 2, we have the hatchery and the ichthyological laboratory ;
also a lecture hall seating 150. Our hatchery is equipped with
troughs, batteries and tidal box, and we can handle there about-
7,000,000 eggs at a time. The arrangement of the hatchery
is somewhat out of the ordinary. Each trough is seven feet
in length, set crosswise, and has its own intake and outlet
pipes. Each student is responsible for his particular trough,
and that alone. Alongside this building there are a number
of rearing ponds, and we are adding to them as fast as the
need becomes apparent.

In the third building, Fisheries Hall No. 3, we have a
complete cannery and saltery, mild-curing establishment, and
barrel-making plant, and we intend to add to these a small
smoke-house and freezer. In this cannery we are able to can
any species of aquatic animal in any type of container. We
can cook in water, steam, or oil. We have also a small dryer
for partially drying the fish, and we have facilities outside
for sun drying. We are trying to conduct the technological
work along practical lines, in fact, as much as possible like
the actual work in commercial plants.

We have three classes of students. First, there is the
regular university student, the one who passes through the
high school and comes to the university with all the necessary
requirements. We enroll him for a four-year term, at the
end of which time, if he passes the necessary examinations, he
may attain the degree of bachelor of science in fisheries;
he may remain an additional year, when, if he qualifies, he
will obtain the degree of master of science in fisheries.

Second, there are scattered throughout the country a
number of earnest men very much interested in fisheries and

58 American Fisheries Society

desirous of increasing their knowledge along these lines, but
who lack the necessary educational requirements for admis-
sion to the university as regular students. So we devised a
plan of taking these people in as special students. In other
words, they come in and stay one year, two years, three, or
four, or any length of time they please, conforming to the
ordinary regulations at the university. They are not eligible
for a degree, unless during the course of their studies they
make up their deficiencies in the requirements for admission;
if they do so, they automatically become regular students.
But most of them never will be regular students; they are
merely seeking, for instance, instruction in fish culture or
fisheries technology. We let them take, out of the different
courses offered, just what they want; they are not compelled
to observe any set course. We have now four students who
are specials. One who wanted fish culture came from New
York, and we are planning that he will get through in about
two years.

Third, in order to provide for men regularly employed in
the industry, we established the short course. In the Univer-
sity of Washington we divide the year into four quarters. The
student may take one quarter, then drop out one, two, or three
quarters, if he wishes, and come back for another. But if he
wants to take the four quarters in a year he can finish the regu-
lar work in three years instead of four. On the Pacific coast
the fishing vessels usually come in about December and tie
up for two and one-half or three months, and in March refit
and go out again. Asa result of this we selected the winter
quarter, from January Ist to March 27th, for the short course.
The only requirement of the student who desires to take ad-
vantage of the short course is that he shall be at least twenty-
one years of age, though we are not particular to insist that he
prove this, and be able to read and write English. We have
been emphasizing frequently and insistently the fact that one
does not have to be a high school graduate to take these
courses; one does not even have to be a graduate of a grade

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 59

school, provided he can read and write English, has fair intel-
ligence, and a desire to increase his knowledge of the fisheries.

In these courses we eliminated all the higher mathematics,
all the chemical formulas, and everything that would tend to
confuse a student of this type. The lectures are written out
in the plainest possible language. Some of these students may
have acquired the habit of study when they were at school, but
if so, most of them have been so long out of school that they
have lost it, so we arrange the courses so that it is unnecessary
for them to study at home unless they feel like it. Most of the
work is done in the morning so that those who are employed
in town, in canneries or offices, have a chance to work half a
day there.

We started the first year with 40 students in the short
course. We could have had 80, but we refused more because
we had been carrying on the work for only about two months
at that time, our equipment was rather scanty, and we did not
think we could do justice to so many. We had 38 regular
course students, making a total of 78 students taking both
short and regular courses.

We offered courses in the history of the fisheries, classi-
fication of aquatic animals, canning of fish and of fishery
products, the curing of fishery products, pickling, mild-curing,
smoking, the curing of herring, etc. A great deal of stress
has been laid upon the proper cure of herring; we teach both
the Scotch and the Norwegian cures. This year, in addition,
we are going to offer courses in pond culture, fish culture, and
diseases and parasites of live fish. These are the diseases and
parasites that the fish culturist is apt to meet with at some time
or other during the course of his hatchery work. We also offer
bacteriology of foods, which, next to canning, has been the
most popular course. This is not surprising when you remem-
ber that the greater part of the fishery business on the Pacific
coast is the preservation of fish by canning, salting, smoking
or freezing.

Many of the fishermen also wanted to learn navigation, so

60,” American Fisheries Society

we offered simplified courses in navigation to meet the needs
of those operating not far from shore. On the Pacific coast
there are approximately 1,000 power boats that are used as
cannery tenders and in connection with the other fisheries.
Each one must have a captain and an engineer, so we also offer
courses in marine gas engineering. Also we offer a course in
first aid to the injured. Most of our fishermen carry on their
work far away from home; doctors are scarce, and conse-
quently there is frequent need to treat injuries of various types.

We have a rule that regular students must, if possible, en-
gage in some branch of the fisheries during their vacation, and
we aid them in securing such positions. The student draws a
regular salary while employed in this work; that is one thing
that we have always insisted upon, as we think that the laborer
is worthy of his hire. Every student we had last year, with
the exception of two, participated in fishery work during the
vacation period. Many of them took up work in connection
with the inspection service of the National Canners’ Associa-
tion in Alaska; others were employed in different plants. Our
rule is that if a student is employed this year in a salmon can-
nery, doing inside work, next year he must take up some other
line of fishery work. He is expected to spend one summer of
the four in a hatchery.

There are 36 salmon and trout hatcheries in the State of
Washington owned and operated by the state, and seven owned
and operated by the United States Bureau of Fisheries. In ad-
dition to these, a number of the counties have fish and game
commissions, and a few of them operate small hatcheries ; there
are also five or six private hatcheries. With all of these we
have a considerable demand for men, but we find our chief
demand coming from outside our own country. We have had
inquiries from a number of countries in Asia, and from South
America.

Students who will enroll this quarter come from Siberia,
Japan, China, Mexico and Canada, and from a number of

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 61

States in the Union. We are trying at present to cover the
whole North American continent, but I see very plainly that
our real work is to be carried on in connection with the fishery
activities of the countries bordering on the Pacific Ocean. We
have a wonderful field there,—probably the greatest unde-
veloped fishery resources in the world are in the countries abut-
ting on the Pacific Ocean, and there is no doubt that this great
section alone will keep us busy. We have been very willing,
therefore, to welcome into the field any other college of the
same type, particularly one established on the Atlantic.

I have just talked to the fishermen in Boston and Glou-
cester on this subject. They invited me to go down there and
outline to them what we have done at the College of Fisheries
in Washington. I did so, and I believe they are very enthu-
siastic in the matter. I found them laboring under a
misapprehension, and possibly some of you people are in the
same position. We are not turning out fishermen and we have
not the slightest intention of doing so. Now, that is usually a
shock to many people, but there are very few men who would
care to devote four years of the best period of their lives to
learning to be only a fisherman. What we are trying to do in
our technological course is to turn out men of executive
ability with a thorough understanding of the fisheries. A
student with the broad training thus acquired may have a lit-
tle more difficult time for the first four or five years, but at the
end of that period he will go further and do better than one
who has devoted his attention, we will say, to canning alone.
In addition to that, we are trying to turn out fish culturists with
good scientific training. All of our students have that, as we
give them excellent training in chemistry, zoology, bacteriology,
and botany before they begin with the fisheries work. Some
men, of course, will develop along purely scientific fishery
lines, and they will have plenty of opportunity for doing so.

We are devoting much attention in our courses to busi-
ness administration; we are offering courses in elementary
accounting, cost accounting, business management, employ-

62 American Fisheries Society

ment management, marketing, etc., because the man who ex-
pects to attain to an executive position in a large company, not
only in this country but elsewhere throughout the world, needs
this particular training. Having it, he will be able to go into
almost any plant and know at once whether or not the work is
being properly done.

University life has many attractions. I never had very
much of it in my time, but from the little I have had I know
it to be exceedingly attractive. I have also discovered that it
can be too attractive, and when I find myself growing a little
bit detached from the commercial end of the industry, I put on
my hat, tramp about a mile from the college, get on a street
car, go down town and walk along the water front, dropping
into different fish houses in order to get a little more of the
commercial atmosphere. Our great trouble is that we have a
tendency to grow away from the commercial fisheries, and if
we begin to do this we are going in the wrong direction. We
should keep closely in touch with the commercial end of the
industry; its problems are our problems. As far as possi-
ble, therefore, we are confining our attention just now to prac-
tical problems. We do not have to go very far to find them,
as they are numerous on the Pacific coast.

Every man at the university is engaged in some line of re-
search that will benefit the fisheries in some way. Dr. G. C.
Embody, who has recently joined our staff, is preparing to en-
gage in research work bearing upon the question of the rear-
ing and feeding of fish. In the preparations laboratory, Mr.
C. L. Anderson and myself are carrying on canning and cur-
ing experiments. We are taking many species that are com-
mon there, but which have never been canned or cured in any
way, and are preserving them in various ways. We are now
preparing to take over from the State of Washington a con-
siderable area of oyster ground, with a view to developing
it and endeavoring, as best we can with the limited means
at our disposal, to arrive at a solution of some of our many
oyster problems. All of these things work for the benefit of

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 63

the industry, and I am pleased to say that the industry appears
to recognize it.

We have an advisory board in connection with the college,
composed of a representative of the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries,
the State Fish Commissioner, the publisher of the leading
fisheries paper, one of the prominent fishery supply house men,
one fresh fish dealer, and five cannery men, all selected from
different parts of the state. We put many of our problems.
up to that advisory board with a view to obtaining their sug-
gestions. Every member of the board is at the head of a
large business; they are all men of ability and we get many
valuable suggestions from them. In this way we keep closely
in touch with the industry, and the industry keeps closely in
touch with us.

We have a little fishery club in the college to which we
invite persons passing through our city who have a fish story
to tell, and this club is officered and managed solely by the
students. They invite these people there and ask them to
give talks, not lectures. The meetings are quite informal,
and when a man is asked to speak to the students he may
address them standing up if he wishes, or he may sit on a
chair, or on a desk, whatever he finds most convenient. We
have had people there talking on how tin cans are made, on
cannery insurance, accident insurance, safety first, almost
anything you could think of that has any possible relation
to the industry.

During our short courses we bring in lecturers on all
sorts of subjects. We have had two or three of the Na-
tional Canners’ Association inspectors, men from the sardine
and salmon industries, men from the United States Bureau
of Chemistry, and so on—any man who had a story to tell
that would benefit the students or increase their knowledge.
We find that all of these men are anxious to help us.

Many of you, of course, are interested in our financial
affairs. I do not wonder at this, because when you come

64 American Fisheries Society

down to it, finances are at the bottom of about everything.
We were fortunate in obtaining buildings that could be re-
modeled to suit our purposes. Of course, they are not of the
most permanent construction but they will answer until we
can get permanent ones, which we hope will be in three or
four years.

We started shortly after the Legislature had adjourned,
so we have never as yet asked for a special appropriation.
The institution is a state university, the money necessary for
its operation being obtained from a percentage of the taxes;
we get a certain number of mills on each dollar of all state
taxes. The percentage thus set aside is divided among the
different colleges, and our share was $7,000. It did not look
very large, and I did not think we would get very far with
it, but they told me that if I could worry along with it until
the Legislature met in January, 1921, they would see that
something more was done for us then. So we have managed
to get along thus far and still have some money left, though
there will not be any by the time the Legislature meets. But
here is where the commercial men came in. I put my problem
up to the machinery men and they came through very hand-
somely. They asked what we wanted; I told them, and the
next day the machinery came out with men to install it. Other
men came forward with different things that we could use,
and in that way we saved several thousand dollars. Our
hatchery was installed through the courtesy of the U. S.
Bureau of Fisheries. We have been very fortunate in ob-
taining assistance from so many different sources, and we are
now trying in every possible way to justify their faith in us.

In our first quarter, the spring quarter of 1919, we were
too late for the high school graduates of the first semester,
but we had 13 students, all ex-soldiers. Most of these we
trained so that they could go out the following summer as
members of the National Canners’ Association inspection serv-
ice. Our real start, however, came in the autumn quarter,

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 65

when we had 36 students. In the following winter quarter,
we had 38 regular students and 40 short course students, a
total of 78, a number which taxed our capacity to the limit.
This last quarter (the spring quarter) we had 40 regular
students, and in addition five or six vocational students from
the army whom we are educating in fisheries. We have also
a number of students from other colleges in the university
who are taking certain courses with us—Pacific fisheries, _
history of the fisheries, the economic fishery resources of
North America, and the like. We have been assured by the
board of regents and the officials of the state that we have
already practically justified our existence.

We get a great many inquiries from all over the world on
various fishery subjects, methods of canning and otherwise
preserving various species, fishing methods, etc. We devote
a great deal of our time to answering these queries. We
are also giving frequent demonstrations for the benefit of
individuals who want to engage in fishing and canning. We
take a person’s product, run it through the laboratory for him,
and tell him whether or not it will prove satisfactory. Of
course we can only give snap judgment right then; the gen-
eral rule in connection with our experiments in canning is
to give out nothing favorable until the end of the year. Nat-
urally there are certain products in connection with which
we can render a verdict within a shorter time, and in such
cases we do not hesitate to do so. Sometimes if there is a
difficulty it is purely a question of finance—it may be impos-
sible to pack the product and make the enterprise a com-
mercial success at the price that would have to be charged;
or it may be that bad qualities develop which make the product
unfit or unsafe for marketing. We have taken cognizance of
all these inquiries and have done our very best to answer
them; any institution established will have to do the same
thing.

Sometimes I think the whole world is seeking informa-

66 American Fisheries Society

tion. In one day we had a letter from Norway, one from
Australia, two from Siberia, one from Japan, one from Can-
ada, two from Mexico, and one from Chile, showing that
undoubtedly by that time a knowledge of the College of Fish-
eries had managed to circulate throughout the whole world.
You will notice that practically every part of the world is
covered in this list except Africa, and I presume we shall
hear from Africa in due time; probably the mails were a
little bit delayed down there.

We have now reached the stage where we can really
begin to do something. Of course, we are very much ham-
pered by lack of money; all educational institutions are, for
that matter—we, perhaps, more than some because we are
in a rapidly growing country. In the fall of 1919 the regis-
tration at the University. of Washington jumped from 3,500
to over 5,000, and it is probable that this fall (1920) it will
go still higher. These great increases mean much from a
financial standpoint, but we are managing to pull through.
If we need assistance that we cannot get in any other way,
undoubtedly the commercial men will help us, so that we are
optimistic as to the future. If any of you feel that in your
section you want to start a college of fisheries, we will tell
you of all our mistakes, what caused them, and how we
got around them, if we did get around them, so that you
may profit by our experience.

Discussion

PresipENT Avery, St. Paul, Minn.: Does anyone wish to ask ques-
tions of Professor Cobb or to discuss his paper?

Mr. GeorGE N. MANNFELD, Indianapolis, Ind.; I desire to inquire
as to the rates of tuition for the fishery courses which Professor Cobb
has outlined.

ProFessor Copp: The University of Washington is a state institu-
tion, and for a long time there were no tuition fees, but at the request
of the student body a few years ago the tuition fee was fixed at $10
a quarter, the revenue derived from this source being devoted to a
building fund. The cost of tuition, therefore, is $40 a year, if the
student remains for four quarters. Usually he remains only three

Cobb.—College of Fisheries 67

quarters, the summer quarter being omitted; that would make $30 a year.
The laboratory fees run from $1 to $3 for each laboratory course,
of which there would probably be two or three in each quarter. In
addition to this, each student is assessed $10 a year by the student
body, which manages all the activities of the students. This fee covers
the daily newspaper issued by the student body, admission to all the
student activities, such as football, baseball, basket-ball, etc., and medical
and hospital attendance. These items would cover practically all ex-
penses except board and lodging, so that the cost would run from $25
to $30 a quarter.

PRESIDENT Avery: Are the conditions the same for non-residents ©
of the state as for residents?

ProFessor Copp: Exactly the same. It does not make any dif-
ference where you come from, the same conditions prevail. Returned
soldiers pay no tuition fees at all.

Dr. R. C. Ossurn, Columbus, Ohio: May I ask Professor Cobb
whether he is thoroughly satisfied that the arrangement of the long -
course and the very short course is a satisfactory one? I speak of that
because in the agricultural colleges we have a somewhat similar situation
—a four-year course for regular agricultural students, and various types
of short courses. For instance, at the Ohio State University, in addition
to the four-year course, we have a three-year course for students who
begin work about the middle of November and continue until the first
of April; which runs for eight weeks during the midwinter ‘season. I
was wondering whether Professor Cobb thinks that having the long
course with the degree and the much shorter practical course is the
most satisfactory arrangement that can be made in connection with the
work.

Proressor Copp: We are not wedded to any one plan but are pre-
pared to change the moment we find that the conditions require a change.
I am thinking of establishing a short course in the summer time to
meet the requirements of another class of students. These matters are
still in the formative stage. I doubt very much, though, whether we
would change the long course except in regard to the subjects offered;
these we change quite frequently. It was most difficult, starting out as
we did, to know what we ought to offer; we are finding out new things
all the time and we are making the changes as we go along. We are
making some changes now so as to increase the number of business
courses offered; we find that the training involved in these courses has
the effect of broadening the vision of the students. We are also in-
creasing the number of elective hours. There are certain subjects which
if taken in high school the student does not have to take in college and
as a result the elective hours vary from 30 to 45 during the four years.
In the short course we are hampered by the conditions that prevail in
the industry; we have difficulty in getting these people except during the
winter quarter. We would probably have better success if we started
about the middle or early in December; but that would require quite an

68 American Fisheries Society

administrative change in the university, and we have not felt like asking
for it.

Dr. OspurN: The winter period runs from January to March?

ProFessor Cops: January to March 27th. We have a vacation
period for Christmas. The short course students arrive home from the
fisheries in December, and some of them leave again early in March,
and if we could start early in December we could be through before any
of them had to leave for their regular fishing activities. But we are in
doubt about this because it would require special enrollment in one
quarter and the finishing up of the course in another. You who are
familiar with the internal workings of a university know how un-
favorably a registrar would look upon a proposal of that kind.

THE SCIENTIST AND THE PRACTICAL MAN IN
FISHERIES WORK

By Dr. Raymonp C. OsBuRN

Oho State University
Columbus, Ohio

In discussing the above topic it is not the purpose of the -
writer to elaborate upon the special merits of the .members
of either of these classes, nor to weigh the value of the efforts
of either against the other, but rather, to indicate the value
of cooperation and to show how the work of one class may
be furthered by that of the other.

Before proceeding with this it may be well to define clearly
what we understand by the terms “scientist”? and “practical
man.” Briefly stated, the scientist is engaged in discovering
new facts and general truths and in making them a part of
organized knowledge, while the practical man accepts this
knowledge and makes use of it in connection with his work.
The one investigates and discovers, the other applies.

In the membership of this Society, both classes are repre-
sented and there are all gradations between them. The sci-
entist is a practical man in so far as he works directly toward
the application of his discoveries to useful ends, and the prac-
tical man is scientific to the extent that he works out ideas
or lays open new truths in connection with his practice. Fur-
thermore, many scientists are particularly interested in the
organization of knowledge for practical purposes, and many
practical men are keenly on the track of every advance in
science, in order that they may put it to use in their work.
We recognize these intermediate fields by the terms “prac-
tical science’ and “scientific practice.”

Now, after a good many years of membership in this
Society, and of more or less close association with its mem-
bers, the conclusion has been forced upon me that our science

70 American Fisheries Society

and practice are not pulling together as well as a good team
should in order to achieve the best results. Science too often
plunges ahead for a short distance, sometimes even without
knowing where it is going, and without regard to practical
ends. Practice, on the other hand, is too much of the time
merely treading up and down in the same place, apparently
working hard, but without making any advance; getting re-
sults, but no new ones. Science is a radical by nature and
practice inclines to conservatism, and such a team is a most
difficult one to make pull together. The truth is that they are
both good, but it is equally certain that they are not suff-
ciently accustomed to each other to pull well together.

It would certainly be well if practice could advance a little
faster on the heels of science, that we might make practical
use of advances in knowledge as soon as they become avail-
able. Eventually, of course, our practice does follow science,
but it may be a long way behind. For example, all of our
modern fish-cultural practice is based on the fish-cultural
science of past years, but some of it is rather antiquated in
spots.

Now, I have no desire to place any high and mighty sci-
entific control over the work of this Society. I do not belong
to that so-called aristocratic set of scientific men who profess
to think that science is a sufficient end in itself. Personally,
I have always been a little dubious about those who pretend to
think so, and am of the opinion that every one of them would
be only too glad to extend his discoveries into the field of
practical work if he only knew how to do it. Similarly, I am
morally certain that the occasional practical man who pro-
fesses to scorn scientific work and holds to the beaten track
would be only too glad to make scientific applications to his
own work if he only knew how.

To my mind, all scientific investigations are merely a
means to the end that we may make greater knowledge appli-
cable to our problems. Scientific investigation is futile if

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 71

unapplied, and fish-cultural practice and commercial fishing,
unaided by investigation, are bound to be wasteful and slow
of progress. We must render science applicable and under-
standable, and make practice as scientific as it is possible to
make it.

I know of no scientific men in this Society who “sit in
the scorner’s seat”; most of them have some knowledge of
fisheries practice. On the other hand, there may be an occa-.
sional fish culturist, or commercial fisherman, though perhaps
none such would be a member of this Society, who has not
kept abreast of the times and who may have some doubts as
to the value of scientific research in his work. That is, he
is in the same class with the farmer who works like his father
did before him and maintains that that is good enough for him.
But the old-fashioned farmer need only observe the scientific
farmer’s greater results to realize the value of new methods,
and the same will apply to fisheries work. Usually, however,
such a man is given merely to cursing his luck for his failure
instead of seeking the reason.

Now, we will agree, I think, that practice should follow
scientific advances just as rapidly as possible, and the only
question is as to how we are to achieve this result. Between
the scientific man who is unskilled in practical work and the
practical man who is unlearned in science, there is a wide gulf
—they speak a different language—but, as I have said, there
are at the same time all sorts of intermediates. The most
practical of the scientists and the most scientific of the practical
workers must be the interpreters between the extremes.

The scientist, in his ignorance of matters outside of his
particular field, may not know the problems which confront
the practical man, but, being shown them, he may be able to
assist in their solution. The practical man, with his limita-
tions of knowledge, may not know that the solution of his
troubles has already been found, nor where to apply for as-
sistance.

v2 American Fisheries Society

Our agricultural brethren, with their numerous experiment
stations, colleges of agriculture, extension service, county
agents, publicity work, etc., ramifying into every phase of rural
life and work, are much ahead of us. It is true we have
made some progress along the same lines, but how pitifully
inadequate! Some experimental work has been carried on
since the establishment of the United States Fish Commission,
fifty years ago, but research has been comparatively limited
for the reason that the Division of Scientific Inquiry has not
had the appropriations necessary for its work. A few bio-
logical stations for fisheries work and one fisheries products
laboratory have been established, but you can count them a’!
off on the fingers of one hand. Without exception they are
far behind the average agricultural experiment station in per-
sonnel, this being due to insufficient financial support. The
deficiency has partly been made up by the cooperation of
investigators, mostly college professors, for a couple of months
during the summer, the Government bearing little more than
the actual expense of the investigation, while the investigators
work on problems that interest them and which bear on fish-
ery matters. It has been productive of good results as far as
it went, but it is altogether insufficient.

In the matter of education we are in still worse condition.
Our first school of fisheries in America was established only
a year ago, and a few universities are offering some courses
which will give partial training to men entering fisheries work;
but hitherto practically all of our research men have been re-
cruited temporarily from among the biologists who were inter-
ested in aquatic life, and who have found an outlet for their
extra energy along this line, while making a living by teaching.
Our fish culturists, conservationists, and commercial fisheries
men have been compelled to do without special training for
their important work.

Extension work, properly speaking, does not exist, as far
as J am aware, though information is spread to a slight extent

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 73

by the occasional visits of superintendents and other officials
to the men in the field or at the hatcheries. Many of our
game protectors are doing good work in educating the people
along the line of conservation, and in some states, at least, the
sportsmen’s associations afford excellent channels for the dis-
semination of information of certain kinds. Much more
might be done in this way with proper organization.

Again, in the matter of publicity, we have the occasional -
reports and bulletins from government and state sources, while
in the agricultural work, there are floods of such bulletins
touching every phase of practical work and setting forth
every new idea and every result of modern research. Through
the agricultural extension service these touch every part of
the country.

Now, it is perfectly evident that, in fisheries work, we
cannot meet the agriculturists on any such program. Even
if we had all the necessary funds for government, provincial,
or state work, we should still be unable to carry out fully such
a plan, because we lack the number of men trained to such
duties. While for years the agricultural colleges have been
turning out large numbers of men, and experiment station
employees, county agents, etc., are all college men with special
training for their work, our fisheries departments have of
necessity been manned by men of practical experience only,
most of whom have grown up in the work from the position
of untrained assistant. Many of these are very able men,
educated in the university of hard knocks, and the great body
of our Society is made up of them. They probably know their
limitations better than anyone else and whether a more liberal
education would not have benefited them.

If we could begin right now and fill all vacancies with
young men of scientific education, I am sure we would notice
a great improvement, after these men had added experience
to education. But we haven’t the men nor, in most cases,
sufficient funds to make positions attractive to them. Such

74 American Fisheries Society

being the case, the question arises as to whether there is any-
thing else that can be done to bring science and practice closer
together in fisheries work. I desire to offer a few suggestions
that may be of use.

Ist. To the scientific man not regularly engaged in fish-
eries work: Get in touch with your state or local fish men;
cultivate their acquaintance and learn what are their problems
and difficulties and interest yourself in their solution. Any
problem is a good one for the scientist, and in its solution you
will render a service to the state and to humanity. If you
are a teacher, make your summers and other spare time count
in such service.

2d. To the practical man: Get acquainted with the scien-
tific men who can help you—zoologists, botanists, chemists,
bacteriologists, etc. ; tell them of your difficulties and enlist their
services in your problems. They may know nothing of your
particular difficulties, but, because they are trained in methods
of research, they may be able, with study, to help you.

If possible to make such an arrangement, get at least one
man with scientific training on your staff, either in an advisory
capacity or, better still, as a regular employee. Most of our
state fisheries bureaus and large commercial firms have no
scientific men employed. If you can do no better, place a
scientific staff in the field, or at the hatchery or station, during
the summer. University men are often free at this time
and can be interested in your problems.

Make every station and hatchery into a research laboratory
as far as possible, by interesting the scientific men of your
neighborhood, if there are any; universities and colleges are
so numerous that you will probably find one not far distant.
If you have water problems go and talk to the chemist. The
chances are that he will be interested in finding out what is
the matter. The botanist and zoologist will be glad to know
what organisms are in your streams and ponds. Most of
these men are peculiar in that they would rather work for

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 75

nothing on some matter of interest to them than to draw a
salary for doing something that does not interest them. But,
of course, they are human and are none too well paid as a
rule, so they will in all probability welcome some financial
arrangement when it can be made. Sometimes, too, you may
be able to offer them material of use to them in their teaching,
and this is always acceptable. In the problems connected with
commercial fisheries work, this will apply with equal force.

I am satisfied that there is a great deal of talent, the
country over, that might be employed, even if only temporarily,
in our fisheries work, if our superintendents and others in
charge of such work were not too bashful to ask for it, and
especially if a little money could be had for the temporary
employment of scientific men, when not engaged upon their
regular duties.

One thing more, you will create an interest in fisheries
problems among the class of men where it will count for the
most in future years; that is, among educated, scientific men;
for the time will come when we will train our young men for
this work just as we do now in entomology, plant pathology,
and a host of other kindred practical sciences. You must
help to create the demand for them which fisheries work
requires.

Let us scientific investigators and practical fish men get
better acquainted for the good of both of us, that we may
make common issue against the difficulties which stand in the
way of greatest production and utilization.

Discussion

Pror. J. N. Cops, Seattle, Wash.: There is no doubt that for some
time past there has been considerable complaint and dissatisfaction on
the part of commercial men with regard to the apparent lack of interest
manifested by the Society in their problems, and also in them indi-
vidually. Now, I do not want you to look upon this as being said in
any carping spirit, because I am up against the same problem in con-
nection with the activities of the Pacific Fisheries Society, which I am
trying to solve myself. Perhaps some of the men who are here may be

76 American Fisheries Society

able to offer suggestions that would help us and at the same time help
out the American Fisheries Society.

There is no question that we do not get the commercial fishermen,
the big dealers, and so on, men who could be of vast assistance to us
in our work if we could only induce them to attend some of our meet-
ings. There are times when the meetings are held at an inconvenient
season of the year. We on the Pacific coast often find that to be the
case; the only time we can arrange things so that we shall be able to
meet the commercial fishermen is to hold our gatherings in October or
November, because most of our people are in Alaska during the summer
and early autumn. I strongly hope that the members of this Society
will give this matter serious consideration; I think we should devise some
scheme for reaching these people. In connection with the work of the
Pacific Fisheries Society we have found these men always glad to help
us out financially, but we want more than that—we would rather have
the man than have his money. If the man wants to come in with his
money, of course that is another matter. If the members of this Society
have anything to offer now in this respect, I would like to hear it. I
believe this is a matter to which we should give serious consideration,
with a view to bringing it up at our next meeting. But the fact has
to be faced that we are not reaching the great body of the fishermen who
are really the backbone of the fishing industry in the United States
and Canada.

Mr. W. F. WeEtts, Albany, N. Y.: At the meeting of the Fisheries
Commissioners, at Atlantic City, and, more recently, the meeting of the
Oyster Growers’ Association, in New York, questions came up which
bear directly upon this subject. The oyster industry is one of the
biggest fishing industries. It is the one which is most susceptible to
cultural methods, as you all know. Shell fish production is a farming
proposition; those engaged in this work like to ally themselves with
farmers, and in one state experiments have been conducted by the
Department of Agriculture. Now, at the convention in Atlantic City, the
Commissioners felt that they were losing their grip. It is a painful
fact that the shell fish industries are declining to a point where the
Commissioners feel that there will be not much more need of shell fish
commissioners. Rhode Island is a good example; their receipts have
dropped from $125,000 to $50,000. The marine district office in New
York is faced with a similar decline; Connecticut is right on the ragged
edge, and New Jersey is in the same position. I do not know about
Maryland and Virginia; they were not represented at the meeting.

Every effort of the oyster growers to obtain “set” has failed and
the Commissioners have done all in their power to meet the situation.
The last hope is offered ‘by the scientists who may be able to discover the
causes for these failures. The period of life which the oyster passes
before it “sets” is very little understood and, because the larval oyster
is so small, requires special methods of study. The oystermen are not
in a position to tell what changes have taken place, and all their old

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 77

theories have been disproved many times during the last few years.
Without being too confident in the instruments of science which have
accomplished so much in other industries, and in the oyster industry of
France, it may be reasonable to hope that technically equipped men may
be able to do something for the oyster industry.

I would like to emphasize the point made by Mr. Radcliffe this
afternoon with regard to the intermediary between the scientist and the
practical man—the technologist. The motto of the Massachusetts Insti-
tute of Technology is Mens et manus, the head and the hand. In chem-
istry, in physics, in engineering, in fifteen or sixteen different courses
they fill in the gap between practice and theory. Biology is included in
the list; and one side of biology, of course, is this fishing industry.

Mr. Lewis RapciirFe, Washington, D. C.: My work takes me out
among the commercial fishermen a great deal, and it would be a surprise
to many of you to know how open-minded and interested the men in
the commercial fisheries are with regard to the scientist’s work. In some
plants they are maintaining laboratories at considerable expense, and
they have an open mind in regard to these matters. I am wondering
how long this Society would last if there were no commercial fisheries
in this country. It seems to me that we have a common interest and
that we ought to work together.

Let me digress a little to point out that in connection with the work
of the Bureau of Fisheries we carried out a technological investigation
into matters affecting the salting of fish. The technologist was not a
practical salter, and it would have taken him many months to learn the
practica! end of it. What we did in that case was to hire a practical
salter, bring him to Washington and have the technologist teach him
our method. While a few experiments of his own failed, the practical
application of the method he was taught by the technologist was suc-
cessful. Thus the technologist and the practical man come to have a
higher regard for the work of each other.

Pror, E. E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada: I think the connection between
the scientific man and the practical fisherman has already been accom-
plished to some extent, because, as I understand it, at the Pacific meeting
in San Francisco the practical men did come forward and subscribe to
the funds of the Society. They made donations of various kinds, and
some of them become honorary members. The point is to get them to
come to the meetings and take part in the work of the Society. I was
delighted with Professor Osburn’s paper. He has set forth in a clear
and concise way the importance of that connection between the practical
and the theoretical which can only bring the best results.

It may be said that there are three main divisions of the fishing
industry. First there is the fisherman, then there is the merchant, the
wholesaler and retailer, then there is the scientist. The interests of
these three branches have appeared opposed to each other. The fisher-
man and the merchant do not pull together; there is no doubt about
that. There has been founded in Canada an association called the

78 American Fisheries Society

Canadian Fisheries Association, which started out with the idea of
holding meetings in fishery centres and getting the merchants and the
fisherman together. I do not think that they have brought about results
in accordance with their expectations; it is the old story of oil and
water not mixing very well. Later the United States Fisheries Associa-
tion was started in the United States on the lines of the Canadian
Fisheries Association, and both have invited scientific men to take part
in their proceedings. I know that Canadian scientific men have several
times taken part in meetings of the Canadian Association. We have
given them some scientific material. I think that a committee ought to
be formed with a view to holding a conjoint meeting of this Society, of
the United States Fisheries Association, and the Canadian Fisheries
Association.

It is important to get the men in the trade to take an interest in
the work of the American Fisheries Society. Of course, we in this
Society are all doing a great work among the people engaged in the
fishing industry, the significance of which we may not fully realize.
For instance, the fishermen and fish merchants read the papers that are
published by this Society from year to year, and re-publish, for example,
in the New York Fishing Gazette, and that is most valuable in spread-
ing information. The Canadian Fisherman is another journal which is
doing the same thing. But I do think that personal contact is the
desirable thing, and I suggest that a committee be appointed to arrange
for some kind of joint meetings. I say again that I have been delighted
with Professor Osburn’s paper; I am sure that it has been listened to
with a great deal of interest by everyone present.

Mr. W. A. Founp, Ottawa, Canada: Mr. President, I have very
little to say, but I would not like this opportunity to pass without
expressing a word of very real appreciation of the paper that Professor
Osburn has read. It struck me that he would be an extremely good man
to have as publicity agent for the universities. I am one of those who
have been educated in the university to which he made some reference—
the university of hard knocks—and I have some appreciation of what is
needed from the universities. I have often felt that on this continent,
certainly in this country, the university has been too largely regarded as
a kind of something apart from practical, everyday life—-rather a polish-
ing institution for the sons, and latterly the daughters, of those who are
blessed with sufficient of this world’s wealth to meet the cost of a
university education for their children. One of the principal things that
the war has taught is that a very close relationship does intrinsically
exist between the universities and the practice and business of the world’s
life. In this country where we have a comparatively small population
and a very large area, and where there are so many opportunities from
a financial standpoint, the people have possibly been prone to give little
thought to the man who is content to study the problems of life. But
the time is coming when industry will look to science for the answer to
an ever-increasing number of questions; it is realizing more and more

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 79

clearly as the days go by that to ensure success the knowledge and
results of research of the scientific men must go hand in hand with that
of the practical administrator. A number of our larger fishing concerns
in this country are realizing this, and, as Mr. Radcliffe has said, are
ready to give every encouragement to those who will take up questions
that are bothering them.

One of the distinctions of the fisheries as contrasted with many
other industries is that few have been engaged in it who are affluent
enough to spend money on things that they feel they can get along
without. But governments are realizing more and more the need for
this kind of cooperation, and the people are realizing it more and more. ;
The College of Fisheries that has been started in the State of Wash-
ington is an evidence of it; the activities of that educational institution
have already lighted quite a flame and caused the eyes of the people
of this country to be turned to the possibilities that exist along these
lines. If we can do something to bring the universities into closer con-
tact with the problems that we are trying to solve, a great deal will be
done. With Professor Osburn’s permission I shall seek to have as
much publicity as possible given to a great many of the remarks that
he has made, through the Publicity Division which we have recently
established in our Department; because it does seem to me this doc-
trine of his is one that needs to be preached with fervor at this time.

I am not quite certain about the matter of amalgamation of associa-
tions; I do not quite understand the conditions existing in the United
States. Here we have the association to which Professor Prince has
referred, and which is paving the way to quite a successful career. That
association is in charge of men who realize the necessity for scientific
guidance. That is evidenced very largely by one incident which I will
explain to you. It was learned by the Canadian Fisheries Association
that representatives were not being sent from this country to the confer-
ence of scientific experts meeting this year at Honolulu, and appreciating
the desirability of taking action in that regard the Association assumed
the financial responsibility of sending a representative of the Biological
Board to the conference. There clearly is hope for the future in
the matter of bringing the university, and the practical people into closer
cooperation.

Dr. OspurN: I myself think that there is distinct hope for the future.
The suggestions I made at the end of my paper were merely in con-
nection with bridging the gap as best we can until we have our men
trained for this work, as they undoubtedly will be in the future. In
other lines of work such as I, have mentioned—entomology, for instance—
we have made this connection between the university and the state in
practically all our states, and I know that the same is true of some of your
provinces. The same may be said of plant pathology in connection with
the botany department, and of bacteriology in connection with the water
department, and so on. There is no reason in the world why we should
not do it in the fisheries work, but it certainly has not been done to any

80 American Fisheries Society

great extent. In a few universities we have had this sort of contact, but
only in a few of our states up to the present. We must, therefore, train
a much larger body of men for fisheries work before we can begin to
meet the demand, and in the meantime we should get in touch with the
biologists, wherever we can find them, and get out of them all we can.

Mr, Cuartes O. Hayrorp, Hackettstown, N. J.: Two years ago Pro-
fessor Foster and I carried out some experiments in fish culture, he
attending to the scientific side of it and I to the practical side. We
decided that he was to be my student in the practical work and I was
to be his in the scientific work. When Professor Foster would see any
of the employees handling the fry roughly, he would take one of these
little fish, put it under the microscope, and show the man just what he
was doing. In a year’s time we had a different crew of men as a result
of pursuing this method, and there was a great difference in their work.
We had one man there who spoke of the scientific man as the “long-
haired fellow.” We could not seem to get him started so far as the
application of the scientific to the practical was concerned. One day
Professor Foster came along and saw a toad sitting in a concrete pool.
He called the fellow there and said to him: “I want to show you some-
thing in the way of protective coloration; that toad is of the same color
as the concrete.” Do you know that one thing got that fellow; it made
him look at it in a new light. He commenced to notice that the dark
fish frequented the dark, shaded parts of the pond and the fish of light
color the lighter places, and so on. Well, today that man is the most
careful we have in the hatchery, and he cannot sign his own name. -

Mr. S. P. Wuiteway, St. John’s Newfoundland: Mr. President, with
your permission and that of the gentlemen present I should like to add
a word on the subject of the practical as well as the scientific man.

The staple industry of Newfoundland is her fisheries, especially the
cod fishery; but we have often found to our cost that a large catch is
almost as much in the nature of a calamity as a small one, the cause
of which is that we are virtually marketing our whole catch in the same
way now as we did centuries ago. We are, therefore, now contemplating
not only a better cure for fish marketed in the usual way, but also the
marketing of a portion of the catch by some more scientific method of
cold storage. Hence, Newfoundland is in search of some practical
scientist along these and other lines; and as I am now in the presence
of the greatest experts in connection with the fisheries of the United
States and Canada, I should like to make that fact known, as it may
lead to our securing the right man to become the general superintendent
of the Newfoundland fisheries.

The practical man we have with us already. His opportunity came
and was availed of in 1908, when we had one of the largest catches of
cod on record; partly for this reason and. partly because the capitalist
having lost much money the previous year owing to a bad cure and a
“slump” in the markets and must needs be reimbursed, the price fell
from $5 per cwt. to $1.50. This was a fell blow to the fishermen.

Osburn.—Science and Practice in Fisheries Work 81

And so in the autumn of 1908 at a small settlement called Herring
Neck, in Notre Dame Bay, a Mr. William F. Coaker, a man of the people,
organized some nineteen fishermen into a union with a view to protec-
tion, among other things, against such a recurrence in future. The
Fishermen’s Protective Union, of which the nineteen were the nucleus,
and of which Mr. Coaker has ever been the president, now numbers
some 20,000 fishermen directly, and indirectly some forty or fifty thou-
sand. The policy of the Union is cooperation and its motto Cuique suum
or “To each one his own.” And to this end, halls and cooperative stores
have been established in various settlements throughout the island where
matters of local and general concern regarding economics, trade and
commerce, and politics are discussed by the fishermen, while a supreme
council is annually held at Port Union, Mr. Coaker’s headquarters.
Thus an opportunity is given to the fishermen for free self-expression
and self-realization, which means in turn education.

Mr. Coaker advocates a better cure for codfish, fair and honest
marketing by the capitalist, and a good price for a good article from
the consumer. Owing to the lack of competition during the war and the
great demand for foodstuffs, the price of cod became supernormal while
the cure became subnormal. By reason of Mr. Coaker’s cooperative
stores, his borrowings from the fishermen, the concentration and mobili-
zation of thought in the various local halls and at the annual Supreme
Council, he has become a powerful factor in the trade, commerce, and
politics of Newfoundland. In the autumn of 1920 he joined forces with
R. Anderson Squires, a rising and able lawyer, in a political campaign
which defeated the late government. Mr. Coaker thus became a very
able lieutenant to Mr. Squires, who gave him a seat in his cabinet with
the portfolio of Minister of Marine and Fisheries, a post which gives
Mr. Coaker ample scope for his great energies to carry on his forward
policy. ‘

And so last year he visited the various countries of Europe to ascer-
tain the quantity, quality, and grades of cure desired by each country;
and on his return he introduced such legislation, on the assembling of
Parliament, as would seem to meet the situation all around. This legislation
has met with considerable opposition from certain local capitalists, the
opposition press, and buyers in Italy; but the Minister is making sub-
stantial, if slow progress, maintaining good prices, obtaining a good cure,
and keeping faith with the fishermen. What Mr. Coaker has accom-
plished in such a short time in his vast undertakings commercially, eco-
nomically, and politically, is so extraordinary that it had better be ex-
pressed in the language of Lord Morris, ex-Prime Minister and prede-
cessor of Mr. Squires, “Coaker is a mystery.”

Such is our practical man, and should there be anyone among the
present society who could help us in the securing of our scientific man,
we should feel exceedingly obliged, as great results would accrue thereby
—the scientific man with the practical—to Newfoundland.

Mr. J. W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: I hope that the scientists of the

82 American Fisheries Society

country will all read Dr. Osburn’s paper. If you go back twenty years
you will find that the average scientist in the Bureau of Fisheries did
not believe in practical scientific work; he did not believe in taking up
any question in applied fish culture. Today look at the difference. Ten
years ago there were hardly any scientists in this Society; today we are
getting more scientists than fish culturists, and they are helping us.
Twenty years ago the fishermen on the Great Lakes did not attach much
value to fish culture. Last year I went to a meeting of the Great Lakes
Fisheries Association, and I was astonished to find that all these fish pro-
ducers of the Great Lakes are believers in fish culture. Now we are
trying to produce more fish for the sportsman as well as for the com-
mercial fisherman. In the United States, certainly in my state, it is the
sportsman who makes most of the legislation; the commercial fisher-
man gets in only when he wants to protect his interests. The agitator
who pushes for appropriations and legislation and all that sort of thing
is the sportsman, the angler. Mr. Rowe, who is raising trout for the
market, has come here at his own expense from the State of Maine.
He is going to sit around here for three days and listen to all that is
said, and possibly during the whole of the three days’ session he will
get an hour of practical information to carry back with him. Now, if
we can all contribute something of value so that the representatives of
the different interests can get something practical to apply to their work,
others will be induced to come in with us. While I am very optimistic
about this Society, whose efforts may have been responsible for the
starting of these two colleges of fisheries and fish culture, I do not think
we can expect to get all the commercial fishermen or all of the anglers

with us as members, but we want to get all we can of them.
AOD

THE ALASKA FUR SEAL: AN INTERNATIONAL
ASSET

3y Hucu M. SMITH

United States Commissioner of Fisheries
Washington, D. C.

Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen: You will realize.
what a far cry it is from what Professor Prince has just
been talking about to what I am going to say. I have no
formal paper to present, and I do not intend to inflict on
you any general discussion of the Alaska fur seal; it is alto-
gether too comprehensive a subject to be dealt with fully at
this meeting.

My excuse for appearing before you is that the Alaska
seal has emerged from a violent and, at times bitter, inter-
national controversy and has really come into its own. Its
present condition is highly satisfactory, and in that condition
the people of the United States and of Canada are especially
interested. It is very appropriate that at this noteworthy in-
ternational gathering there should be shown the results of
international accord in handling a very troublesome fisheries
question which, at one time—twenty-five or thirty years ago
—looked as though it might precipitate belligerency between
Canada and the United States. The difficulty was with re-
gard to jurisdiction in Bering Sea and collateral questions,
the circumstances connected with which some of you will
recall.

The Alaskan seal herd is undoubtedly the most valuable
herd of wild animals in the world. Its value will be appre-
ciated when, I say that if it belonged to a private concern it
could probably be capitalized at $50,000,000 as it stands today,
and could be depended upon to pay a very handsome return
on that capitalization. I happen to be the official custodian
of that herd; I am administering it to the best of my ability,
in trust for the United States, Canada and one other power,

84 American Fisheries Society

which, by virtue of its citizens having been engaged in pelagic
sealing many years ago, acquired an interest in and claim on
the Alaska fur-seal herd.

The original size of the Alaskan seal herd cannot be stated
with any degree of definiteness because of the difficulty in
deciding from the early accounts whether there were two and
one-half million or four million adults in the herd. But
there is reason to believe that there may have been not less
than two and a half million seals in the herd at the time the
United States acquired Alaska from Russia, and in former
times the number may have been considerably greater.

The decline of the Alaskan seal herd was a very pitiable
event in the history of our fisheries. It was due, as we now
believe, wholly to pelagic sealing—the indiscriminate slaugh-
ter of animals at sea by vessels under the United States,
British and Japanese flags. As we look back on pelagic seal-
ing, I think we are in accord in holding that it was a wholly
indefensible practice. There was a most terrible waste of
valuable life, because of the indiscriminate manner in which
the killing had been done. The animals were shot at sea,
and for every one recovered three or five or more were
wounded or killed and not recovered. Then, too, there was
a great waste due to the starvation of the pups on shore and
the sacrifice of the unborn pups. So that in 1911 the Alaskan
seal herd had dwindled from two and a half million animals
to approximately 125,000.

This brings me to the Fur Seal Convention of 1911,
which resulted in restoring or putting on the way to restora-
tion this valuable herd of wild animals. This convention,
participated in by the governments of the United States,
Canada, Japan and Russia, decided that so far as those coun-
tries were concerned pelagic sealing should stop, and three
of these countries at that time became pecuniarily interested
in the Alaskan seal herd and have since been reaping rather

Smith.—The Alaska Fur Seal 85

satisfactory financial returns, in connection with which, how-
ever, only a beginning has been made.

The Congress of the United States, in the exercise of its
power, in 1912 imposed a five-year close time on commercial
sealing on the seal islands. I think I can say without indis-
cretion that it was an unfortunate act, based on insufficient
information and representing an excited state of public opin-
ion at the time the act was passed. The principal effect
of the close time imposed by Congress upon commercial
sealing was the accumulation of surplus male seals that could
very properly and profitably have been taken for the benefit
of the interested countries. Not a single fur seal was added
to the fur-seal herd as a result of the five years’ close time
which Congress imposed.

Since 1911 the Alaskan seal herd has had a rather inter-
esting growth. We have endeavored to take a census every
year, but the taking of a census has become more and
more difficult, and during the last two or three years an in-
creased amount of approximation has been absolutely neces-
sary. In the year following the suppression of pelagic seal-
ing a census of the herd showed that it contained 215,000
animals. That was increased in the next year to 258,000 and
in the subsequent years to 294,000 and 363,000. Last year,
1919, there were 524,000 animals in the herd, and this year’s
tentative figures indicate about 550,000, exclusive of about
28,000 that have been killed for their skins. Since the ex-
piration of the close time, which prevented all commercial
killing and simply permitted the taking of the inconsiderable
number of seals required for food purposes by the natives on
the seal islands, there have been taken about 90,000 seals.

One of the first problems which confronted us in 1917
when the close time expired was the handling of the old
males that had been accumulating during the five years’
period. I am happy to say that as a result of measures
which we took the surplus male accumulation was gradually

86 American Fisheries Society

eliminated and at this time the herd is very well propor-
tioned. These old males which have attained the age of
about seven years are known as “wigs,” probably because of
the development of a mane which was suggestive of the wool-
sack worn by English judges. This name became known to
the trade in the early days when that trade was first centered
in London, and has continued up to the present time. In
the days of regular commercial sealing there was very little
market for “wigs.” The skins are very large; the leather
part is extremely thick; and when these seals were taken in
the olden days and sent to London for sale, they were sold
for the most part to Russia and used for the lining of the
sod houses of the Russian peasants. Their value was from
$3.50 to $7.50 each. It occurred to me that there ought to
be a market for these large skins which had been accumulated
during the enforced close time, and at our suggestion a St.
Louis firm that dresses and dyes furs experimented with them.
It seemed to me that they might be useful for automobile
wraps or robes in an undyed condition. It developed, how-
ever, that under proper treatment these very heavy skins
could be trimmed down, dressed, dyed and used for ladies’
furs; and the most interesting development of the seal busi-
ness in recent years has been the use that we have been able
to make of these formerly discarded elements of the herd.
They have, in fact, become the most valuable part of the seal
herd today, their skins bringing higher prices than the best
grade of skins from smaller seals. At one of the recent sales
these “wigs,” of which I am going to show you some samples,
brought $169 apiece as against their former price of $3.50
to $7.50—when they could be sold at all.

Now, just a word about the financial results of the present
arrangement. The United States has certainly profited by
the stoppage of pelagic sealing. During the past ten years

the net revenue from the seals taken in that time is about
$6,000,000. Some of these skins have not yet been sold, and

Smith.—The Alaska Fur Seal 87

I am estimating their value. Under the terms of the Fur
Seal Convention of 1911 Canada is entitled to fifteen per cent
of the proceeds; and Canada will be entitled to about $500,-
OOO as her share of the seals taken since 1917.

I believe that the Alaska fur-seal herd is bound to in-
crease. There is nothing in sight to prevent its rapid in-
crease, possibly to the extent of 8 to 10 per cent annually;
and I would not be at all surprised if within a comparatively
few years we would be taking 100,000 animals each year,
made up wholly of surplus males selected with reference to
their economic value, due regard being had, of course, for
the needs of the herd.

Canada, it seems to me, may ultimately be expected to
realize half a million dollars annually from the Alaskan seal
herd. I may say that the convention to which I have referred
runs until 1926, and may be terminated by any of the parties
to it upon the giving of certain notice. I want to express the
hope and belief that no nation will be willing to return to the
carnival of waste and ruin that necessarily characterize pelagic
sealing, and that the present arrangement, modified as cir-
cumstances may require, will be indefinitely continued, so that
the Alaskan fur seal, under United States custody, may be-
come a great permanent international asset.

Discussion

Pror, E. E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada: Are the trimmings ever util-
ized for leather?

Dr. SmitH: Some experiments are being made with a view to
utilizing the trimmings. I cannot say now that any very important use
has been found for them.

PROFESSOR PRINCE: In the leather trade they very often slice up
and split the hide.

Dr. SmitH: That is not possible with fur-seal skin; you cannot
split it as you would a porpoise hide. These skins have to be ground
down, and in order that the skin may not be ground too thin in any
one place the grinding is done by touch; the fingers are used to deter-
mine when the grinding shall stop. I may say that in the evolution of
the seal-skin industry in this country, it has been necessary to devise
special apparatus for handling the skins, and some very ingenious

88 American Fisheries Society

devices are resulting from the exigencies of the situation. Mr. Found
visited the plant in St. Louis last year, and may be able to say some-
thing about it.

Mr. W. C. Apams, Boston, Mass.: Is this killing done by regu-
larly authorized agents of the Government?

Dr. SmitH; All the killing is done under direct Government super-
vision, with a Government agent present.

Mr. ApAms: It it done by one government for the benefit of all?

Dr. SmitH: All the killing is necessarily done by one government.
We have a force of agents and their assistants on the seal islands, and
we have 325 natives by whom most of the work of killing is done. These
natives were taken there in the old Russian days, shortly after these
islands were discovered. There may have been four million fur seals
there at that time, but there were no people; there was no labor to
utilize in obtaining the skins. These people have now become the wards
of the Government; they have to be supported, fed, clothed, educated,
given medical attendance—in fact, everything a community of 350 people
needs has to be supplied by my Bureau.

Mr. W. H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.: How are the seals captured?

Dr. SmitH: The killing is done by means of clubs. The fur seal
has a rather thin skull and is easily rendered unconscious by a rap over
the head with a heavy hickory club. It is then immediately stuck and
bled, and the skin is removed. I do not know of any form of trapping,
or killing, or butchering that is more humane than this method of kill-
ing fur seals under Government supervision.

Mr. Rowe: Are these seals not afraid of man? My observation of
the seals on the coast of Maine is that they would dive into the water
if anyone attempted to approach them.

Dr. SmitH: That is the hair seal, a very different creature from
the fur seal. During summer, fur seals haul out on land in large
numbers. Bodies of them can be cut off from the water and driven like
cattle inland for longer or shorter distances, sometimes several miles.
They are rounded up, selectons are made, the females and unsuitable
males are discarded, and the others are killed on the spot.

PRESIDENT Avery: Is any use made of the carcasses?

Dr. SmitH: During the long time that commercial sealing was
carried on by Russia, and during the forty years when the seal islands
were leased by the United States Government to the highest bidder, no
use was made of the seal carcasses except for small quantities of the
meat eaten by the natives and fed to the blue foxes on these islands.
A reduction plant, however, has now been established, and although it
has not been operated very successfully as yet, being only in its initial
stages, we plan to utilize every bit of seal carcass. It makes an ex-
cellent fertilizer, and a splendid oil is obtained from it. I may say
that this oil last year brought $1.50 a gallon for the best quality. It
has been found to be the best oil known for automobile tops; it gives
them an elasticity that no other treatment gives, so far as we know.

Smith.—The Alaska Fur Seal 89

That oil can be sold at great profit for that particular purpose, and the
demand for it exceeds the supply. We ought to get two gallons of oil
from each seal carcass, so if we kill 30,000 animals in a year we will
get 60,000 gallons of oil; that ought to be worth $75,000, anyway.

Mr. S. P. Wuiteway, St. John’s, Newfoundland: When is your
killing season, Dr. Smith?

Dr. SmitH: The seals arrive on the islands in May and June.
The killing begins at that time and continues until the 10th of August,
when the skins begin to deteriorate. The fur is then not so valuable.
as it is earlier in the year; accordingly, the killing is suspended about
that time.

Mr. Wuiteway: You speak of the seals gathering on the islands.
Does that mean on the ice or on the rocks?

Dr. SmitH: On the rocks. The shores are very rough and rocky,
consisting of boulders, for the most part.

Mr. WHiItEwAy: What is the thickness of the fat between the
carcass and the skin?

Dr. SmitH: It depends on the condition and size of the animal.
There is quite a thick layer of blubber fat which is very useful in the
subsequent dressing of the hide and is in demand at the factory in
St. Louis, where all these skins are now treated.

Mr. Wuiteway: The Canadian seal is similar to the seal of New-
foundland?

Dr. SMITH: Yes.

Mr. Wuiteway: Of course, in the case of the Newfoundland seal,
the oil is the most valuable feature.

Dr. SmitH: The old males come to the islands in advance of the
other elements of the herd. They arrive in May and stay on land with-
out food or water for several months, usually until about the end of
July. During that time they live on their stored fat; they have a vast
accumulation of fat under the skin and throughout their tissues.

Dr. R. C. Osspurn, Columbus, Ohio: Dr. Smith brought up a very
interesting point in connection with practical conservation and the effects
of study of biological conditions. Canada, since the beginning of the
killing after the close season, has, I believe, received perhaps twice as
much as the whole seal herd would have been worth at the beginning
of the time when steps were taken to have the herd properly cared for.
Dr. Smith has spoken of the much greater value of these larger skins
taken from the six and seven year old males. I assume that it will be
the policy to continue taking the three year skins, as formerly—that
no change will be made in the killing age.

Dr SmitH: The three, four and five year skins are those that will
make up the bulk of the killing. There is a natural mortality which
increases with the age of the seal. Although the value of the skin is
greater with increased size, the mortality is also greater; so we are
trying to arrive at the happy medium,—to take the skins when it will

90 American Fisheries Society

be most profitable to utilize the surplus males. That is probably when
they are four years old, or thereabouts.

Dr. Osspurn: The killing of two year olds has been stopped en-
tirely, has it not?

Dr. SmirH: It is not prohibited, but there is no reason for killing
seals of that small size.

PRESIDENT AvERY: Dr. Smith suggested that Mr. Found might have
something to say with reference to the handling of seals at St. Louis.
Have you anything to offer, Mr. Found?

Mr. W. A. Founp, Ass’t Deputy Minister of Fisheries, Ottawa,
Canada: Mr. President, the Pelagic Sealing Treaty of 1911 seems to
me to speak so loudly for itself that the only requisite to securing ap-
proval of it by the people is some degree of publicity with regard to
what it is and what it has accomplished. I share the hope uttered by
Dr. Smith that when the treaty expires in 1926 the good sense of the
participating countries will cause them, while possibly eliminating some
crudities that are in the treaty itself, to establish beyond peradventure
this method of conserving to the participating countries an asset that
was so rapidly reaching the vanishing point.

When Dr. Smith was speaking it occurred to me, as one from the
north side of the line, that the impression might be given that pelagic
sealing was an illegal operation. While I agree with all that has been
said regarding undesirability of pelagic sealing, I would not want that
impression to prevail, because pelagic sealing was a perfectly legal
operation, established by the highest court of the world, that of inter-
national arbitration.

The treaty provides, for instance, that Canada shall receive fifteen
per cent in number and in quality. One does not need to have had very
much experience in dealing with the matter to realize what a difficult
thing it would be to carry out the apportionment of fifteen per cent of
the quality of the seal skins. The governments, therefore, made an
arrangement—an eminently satisfactory one to Canada, and we have
every reason to feel that in its handling of the matter the United States
is treating us with every courtesy and consideration—by which the
United States are carrying the whole load of killing the seals, and con-
veyed the skins to the St. Louis factory, where they are processed,
letting us come in with a little more than taking over the money. Of
course, we not only may, under the treaty, but are cordially invited from
time to time to have representatives on the seal islands watch what is
going on; but up to the moment it has not been found necessary to do
much in this direction. All the skins are being handled in St. Louis,
and you have before you an actual illustration of the work that is being
done. I had the pleasure during the last winter of going through the
plant of Funsten Brothers & Co., at St. Louis. That plant is certainly
a very great credit to the owners; they have developed an article which
is unusually attractive and which commands a very high price. For
instance, if I remember correctly, $178 was the price of each of a

Smith.—The Alaska Fur Seal 91

number of skins of the type to which Dr. Smith has made reference.
The plant is one which is well worth visiting, the skins being put
through over one hundred different processes. The general results are
certainly very satisfactory.

Dr. SmitH: I do not want to prolong the discussion; I simply want
. to say that the only grievance we entertain with regard to the fur-seal
business as it affects Canada is that Canada has persistently refused to
send anybody up there to see what we are doing. We hope that this
does not indicate any lack of interest. We want everybody to know.
what we are doing, and suggestions from Canada or from any other
source are always in order. We have many problems to solve, and not
the least important of them is the sending of supplies to the natives.
It is impossible to do anything for them in winter; we have to make
trips up there in open weather, and if for any reason the supply vessels
do not get there, this community is in danger of starvation. It has been
on the point of starvation several times. This year a large vessel which
went up there loaded with supplies was unable to discharge its cargo
owing to the tempestuous seas, and, in the absence of docks or harbors,
was obliged to come back with three-fourths of its cargo on board. We
hope that of the next trip, which may be on now for all I know, a
different story will be told; if not, the condition will be a serious one
for these natives, who are absolutely dependent on the outside world
for everything they need except the seals that they eat in small quan-
tities and the eggs of wild birds that nest in the rocks.

ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC SALMON*
By Henry B. WARD
University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.

History repeats itself with monotonous regularity and
the most patent facts of scientific knowledge apparently
make no impression on the people at large even where
their own interests are vitally concerned. They try over
and over the same experiment and after the clearly fore-
told results have been secured they lament the unfortu-
nate consequences. Not only that but an expenditure of
money to improve the situation is often rendered useless
by action which passes without adequate protest from
those most immediately interested.

In former centuries the Atlantic salmon ran yearly in
the rivers of the New England coast in such numbers as
to excite the amazement of our forefathers. They
thought the supply inexhaustible, but in 1798 a dam was
erected on the Connecticut River and the results are thus
described by Jordan and Evermann:

The salmon was at one time very abundant in the Connecticut, and
it probably occurred in the Housatonic and Hudson. * * * The cir-
cumstances of their extermination in the Connecticut are well known,
and the same story, with names and dates changed, serves equally well
for other rivers.

In 1798 a corporation known as the Upper Locks and Canal Com-
pany built a dam 16 feet high at Millers River, 100 miles from the
mouth of the Connecticut. For two or three years fish were seen in
great abundance below the dam, and for perhaps ten years they con-
tinued to appear, vainly striving to reach their spawning grounds; but
soon the work of extermination was complete. When, in 1872, a soli-
tary salmon made its appearance, the Saybrook fishermen did not know
what it was.

The experiment has been tried in many other places
and each time the result has been the same. We have
heard much in recent years about the dangers confront-

* Published in “‘Science,’’ September 17, 1920, p. 264.

Ward.—Atlantic and Pacific Salmon 93

ing the Pacific salmon which furnishes so important a
part of the food supply of this country and of other parts
of the world. Scientific men have called attention to the
serious dangers which ill-considered promotion and care-
less destruction of spawning grounds have brought to bear
on the supply of this splendid fish.

In response to these warnings President Roosevelt ap-
pointed a commission for the investigation of problems
connected with the Pacific salmon and its fisheries, and
Congress continued the work of studying the situation
and of aiding the fish to maintain its position by the es-
tablishment and development of hatcheries. One of the
oldest and most prominent is at Baird, Cal. It is accord-
ingly with grave apprehension that I have read the fol-
lowing paragraph in a recent publication:

Only a few spring-run fish have been seen in McCloud River at Baird,
Cal., and the dam without a fishway in the Sacramento River is to a con-
siderable extent responsible for the condition which threatens to render
the Baird hatchery useless.

In California certain state officials have suggested that
since the dam was constructed without a permit from the
War Department, action to correct the evil should be
taken by the United States authorities. But since the
‘Sacramento River at the point in question has not been
adjudged a navigable stream, no permit was required and
the matter falls legally wholly under the control of the
State of California. It is pertinent to ask whether that
state is so lacking in foresight and its officers so devoid
of responsibility for public interests that they will con-
tinue to permit conditions that menace thus directly the
public welfare.

But the question has an even broader aspect. These
fish are a national asset. They are born in the waters of
an individual state but they soon pass into the ocean,
glean from it without expense from any state or nation the
supply of energy that brings them back at stated periods

94 American Fisheries Society

to contribute to individual enterprise and to national food
supply a harvest that is of all which man gathers the most
profitable because it demands least care and utilizes for its
production otherwise unused sources of energy.

The nation is vitally concerned with the impending dan-
ger. It has contributed the means by which the hatchery
is maintained and it has a moral if not a full legal right
to see that no private agencies thus in irresponsible man-
ner destroy the results of its efforts. Some way should
be found and some agency invigorated to the point where
it will insist upon the maintenance of proper fishways
even though this involve expense upon the interests con-
cerned.

This is, however, only one phase of a question which
has many aspects. The run of Pacific salmon has entirely
disappeared in some streams. In others it has been tre-
mendously impaired. In districts like Puget Sound it has
sunk to a fraction of its former size and during 1919 only
one district in Alaska reported a catch that equalled 100
per cent of the number for the preceding ten years. Fur-
thermore these results were obtained by the use of more
boats, more men, more gear and other destructive appli-
ances than had ever been in service before.

In his latest report the United States Commissioner
of Fisheries calls attention to the situation in so far as it
concerns Alaska waters and the salmon therein, in the
following terms:

For about eight years legislation affecting the fisheries of Alaska
has been pending in Congress. Protracted hearings have been held, and
a large amount of testimony and data has been presented to the appro-
priate committees of the two houses. The necessity for a radical revi-
sion of the existing salmon law has been especially pointed out by
various agencies and persons interested in the welfare of the fisheries of
Alaska, and congressional committees have made favorable reports on
bills embodying new legislation.

No new fishery laws have, however, been enacted; and the fisheries

of Alaska, at the most critical period of their history, remain subject
to laws which have been shown to be obsolete and inadequate. The

Ward.—Atlantic and Pacific Salmon 95

Bureau of Fisheries is thus placed at a great disadvantage in administer-
ing the salmon fisheries of Alaska and cannot justly be held account-
able for conditions, practices and developments which, while having the
full sanction of law, are not necessarily compatible with the perpetua-
tion of the supply and in some respects are directly opposed thereto.

Concerning the magnitude of the problem the same
report speaks in another place thus:

It is the salmon industry which gives to the fisheries of Alaska their
great importance, and it was the salmon industry that contributed most
notably to the increases that occurred in 1918. The value of all salmon
products was $53,514,812, of which $51,041,949, represented canned fish
to the number of 6,605,835 cases. Thus, 50 years after Alaska became
a part of our national domain, the salmon resources alone yielded a
product valued at over 71%4 times the purchase price of the territory.

The public interest thus put in jeopardy is of the first
magnitude and the danger both real and immediate. Biol-
ogists know how rapidly the progress of destruction pro-
ceeds and how soon the end comes when the diminution
in numbers of any species has once become conspicuous.
Increasing values always lead to redoubled efforts and
multiplied appliances for securing a catch and the vicious
cycle gains in velocity as it decreases in diameter.

The commercial interests are strangling the goose that
has laid for them so many golden eggs and some are be-
ginning to be apprehensive for the future. Unless public
sentiment can be developed, unless the efforts of the
Bureau of Fisheries can be supported by adequate appro-
priations, and unless the taking of salmon can be subjected
to reasonable restrictions, that splendid fish will in a short
time be as much of a luxury on the Pacific coast as its
congener is today on the Atlantic.

FOREST PROTECTION AND ITS EFFECT ON
FISH AND GAME LIFE

By Honore MERCIER
Minster of Lands and Forests, Quebec, Canada

My first words must be those of gratitude. On my
own behalf and on behalf of all your guests from the
Province of Quebec I tender you sincere and _ hearty
thanks for your warm welcome and generous entertain-
ment of us on behalf of the Department of Marine and
Fisheries of the Dominion of Canada. Coupled with this
feeling of gratitude I am bound to admit that there rankles
in my heart a certain amount of jealousy. To be frank,
we in Quebec are envious of Ottawa for having secured
the privilege which we feel that we should have had of
welcoming you all in the Old instead of the New capital
of Canada. I feel that we have a grudge against my
good friend, Professor Prince, for stealing a march on us
by going down last year to Louisville and securing for
Ottawa the first Canadian visit of the American Fisheries
Society and the International Association of Game, Fish
and Conservation Commissioners. Had we in Quebec
known that Canada could have had these conventions in
September, 1920, and that my friend, Professor Prince,
was going to Louisville to secure this privilege for Ottawa,
I can assure you all that he would have had a hard fight
indeed to prevent the delegation that we would have sent
to Louisville from storming the convention there. There
is only one way for Professor Prince to obtain absolution,
and that is to undertake to work as hard for Quebec as
the scene of these conventions as he did for Ottawa, just
as soon as the two societies are willing to once more
favor Canada with their most welcome visits. I under-
stand that it is practically decided that the next meeting

Mercier.—Effect of Forest Protection 97

place is to be in either Wisconsin or Pennsylvania, but in
order that there may be no misunderstanding as to fu-
ture plans, I give notice that Quebec is in the field to
receive and welcome both societies at the earliest possible
occasion.

We may possibly be unable to do everything for you
that Ottawa is doing, but we will do our best to give you
the time of your lives, and you may perhaps not be un-
aware of the fact that Quebec is credited with certain
attractions for which our friends and neighbors of Ontario
have some cause to envy us.

I have been asked to say a few words to you on the
importance of forest protection in connection with its
effect on fish and game life.

It is a remarkable fact that man alone, of the animal
creation, is responsible for any disturbance of the har-
monies of nature. So exact was the balance of both veg-
etable and animal life as it left the hand of the Creator
that so far as we are able to judge, it might have remained
so to the end of time, subject only to the conditions of
natural development, were it not for the changes produced
by human action.

It is true that man, finding himself in the rudest stages
of life dependent upon spontaneous animal and vegetable
growth for food and clothing, has protected and propa-
gated to advantage certain birds and quadrupeds, and has
warred at the same time upon rival organisms which prey
upon these objects of his care or obstruct the increase of
their numbers. But what havoc has he not wrought with
many of the useful wild things of our woods and waters!

Wise laws and many state, provincial, national and in-
ternational fish and game protective organizations are at
work to prevent further improper destruction of fish and
game, and to repair as far as possible the damage caused
in the past.

98 American Fisheries Society

Amongst the most serious dangers now threatening
the existence of fish and game in the inland portions of
North America, I believe, we may count the rapid disap-
pearance of the forests. The forest is the original guard-
ian of both fish and game. It furnishes to the first men-
tioned, pure, fresh and well aerated water, protected from
pollution by natural filtration and well capable of sustain-
ing life and of favoring activity. Open everywhere to the
air, full of freshness, and offering to wild game a suc-
culent food of buds and berries and a variety of herbs and
fruits, and protecting it from the heat of summer and the
biting blasts of winter, the forest, with its flooring of soft
moss affords it a hospitable shelter. The forest is so
necessary to many species of game that they desert the
locality when it is destroyed, but return when it reappears.

In Scotland the former deer forests have largely dis-
appeared, and although certain moors are set apart for
the propagation of this species of game, Sir William
Shlich declares that the animals shot on these deer ranges
are nothing like the fine beasts found in woodland areas,
but that if a large part of the country was once more
brought under forest we should no doubt improve the
breed.

In the middle ages, as well as in earlier and later cen-
turies, attempts were made to protect the woods by law,
both because of their necessity for the breeding of deer,
wild boars and other game, and for the purpose of fur-
nishing building material and fuel for future generations.
In feudal times the creation of so-called forests for the
sole purpose of forming hunting grounds grew into an
abuse of public and private rights. William the Con-
queror is said to have destroyed sixty parishes and to have
driven out their inhabitants in order to form a forest for
his own hunting and that. of his friends. It must be re-
membered, however, that the name forest was then given

Mercier.—Effect of Forest Protection 99

in hunting phraseology in England to any low growth of
cover for game. The Conqueror punished with death the
killing of a deer, a wild boar, or even a hare. The con-
quered English were hanged for the murder of a plover,
death was inflicted on those who spread nets for pigeons,
and those who had drawn a bow upon a stag were to be
tied to the animal alive. In France up to the time of
the Revolution the slightest trespasses on the forest do-
main were severely punished, and game animals were held
strictly sacred, even when they ravaged the fields of the
peasantry.

Many of the most valuable forests of both England
and France, which proved so extremely important for the
supply of timber during the late war, owe their preser-
vation to their employment as hunting preserves. The
enormous value of our forests today to many of our lead-
ing industries, and especially, as we all know, to that of
pulp and paper, largely overshadows their importance
from the fish and game point of view, and as protectors
of these last mentioned we may rejoice that this is so, and
that there are so many other weighty reasons for the
preservation of the woods that are so essential to our fish
and game life.

When last I addressed an association of those inter-
ested in fish and game protection in New York—lI believe
it was the American Game Protective and Propagation
Society—I was at the head of the Department of Coloniza-
tion, Mines and Fisheries of the Province of Quebec, and
spoke upon the fish and game resources of the Province.
It so happens that now, when I have had the honor of
saying a few words upon the importance of forest pro-
tection to fish and game, I happen to be Minister of Lands
and Forests of the same Province, and you may perhaps
like to know what we are doing in my department for the
protection of the natural nursery of fish and game.

100 American Fisheries Society

An important provision of our law which operates
against the unnecessary diminution of our forest area, pro-
vides for such classification of public lands as permits
the sale for colonization purposes of only those which are
really fit for cultivation.

One of the worst enemies of the forest is fire. Our
system of fighting this evil is based upon a study of those
adopted elsewhere, modified to meet local conditions and
perfected according to certain ideas of our own based upon
experience. Would I go too far in saying that one of
the main causes of our forest fires has been the burning
of slash by farmers on the border of the forest? This is
now prohibited at any time except for clearing purposes,
and then only from the 15th of November to the 31st of
March of the following year, except by a permit from an
officer of the department who must see that all necessary
conditions are carefully complied with. Nobody is per-
mitted to set fire to standing trees at any time except
when they are at a distance of at least a mile from the
forest. Any person who sets fire anywhere inside the
forest or even at a distance of less than a mile from it is
obliged first to clear the place where he is to make this
fire, of all inflammable materials, and to totally extinguish
the fire before leaving the place.

Locomotive engines used on any railway passing
through any forest in our Province must be provided with
necessary screens or other appliances to prevent the escape
of fire or sparks. The engine driver in charge of a loco-
motive passing over such a railway must see that the
above appliances are properly utilized. For contraven-
tion of this law, railway companies are liable to a penalty
of not more than $1,000 and not less than $250. The
railway companies, moreover, are obliged, under a penalty
of $100, to clear away all combustible materials from the

Mercier.—E ffect of Forest Protection 101

sides of their respective roadways by burning the same or
otherwise.

The Lieutenant-Governor in Council may create, by
proclamation, fire districts. During the construction and
operation of its line through any fire district, every rail-
way company and every license holder, whose license is
located in any territory forming part of a fire district, shall
place under the control and have at the disposal of the
superintendent of forest fires, such number of men as may
be required in case of fire. The salary and expenses of
such employees are to be borne by the railway company,
the licensee, and the Minister of Lands and Forests jointly.
Penalty for refusing to comply with the above section
ranges up to $500. Moreover, the Minister is authorized
to employ in each fire district such number of men as he
may deem necessary. All persons who drop burning sub-
stances, such as ashes from pipes or cigars, on the ground
or elsewhere, whether in the forests, open fields or other
places, are bound to extinguish such burning substances
before leaving the spot. Contravention of this article is
punishable by a penalty not exceeding $50 or by imprison-
ment for not more than three months in the common jail.

Last year a number of new and important modifica-
tions were made in the law for the protection of forests
against fire, chief among which are the following:

Every holder of a license to cut timber on crown lands must, at
all times between the Ist of May and the lst of November in each year,
have his timber limits patrolled by competent fire-rangers paid and
selected by him, but appointed by the Minister of Lands and Forests,
and the latter may prescribe the number of fire-rangers who must be
so employed. Such fire-rangers must devote their whole time to such
patrol.

The Minister may, however, require that the limits be patrolled
also in the month of April, in certain parts of the Province where it is
expedient to do so.

Every license holder must, between the first and the fifteenth of each
month, during the period above mentioned, make a return to the Depart-
ment showing the number of fire-rangers employed by him during the

102 American Fisheries Society

preceding month; the number of fires which started; the number of
fires extinguished, and of those not extinguished; the extent of terri-
tory burned; and the amount of expense, if any, incurred by the license
holder in extinguishing the fires.

If a license holder fails to make a return within the delay fixed or
if he does not employ the number of fire-rangers fixed by the Minister,
the latter may then have the patrolling done, with all necessary super-
vision and charge the whole cost thereof to the license holder, and the
amount fixed by the Minister shall be final.

The return made by an association of holders of licenses to cut
timber, for the protection of their limits against fire, shall be sufficient
if it includes all the limits belonging to each member of such association.

The formation of district forestry associations on a
business basis is encouraged by the Department, and all
timber limit holders are required to join their district asso-
ciation or to patrol their limits themselves. Where there
is water communication, patrol is made by canoe. Along
the railways which traverse the forest, speeders are em-
ployed. There is also a hydroplane service and a tramp-
ing patrol through the woods, besides lookout stations on
elevated points, telephone lines, pumps, etc. Lectures
are given in various sections of the Province on forestry
problems by members of the forestry service, illustrated
by moving pictures and lantern slides.

You do not need me to tell you of the necessity of
forest preservation for the maintenance of the regularity
of the flow of water in our rivers and streams, for the pre-
vention of inundations, or for assuring to our water powers
the necessary capacity to produce all desired energy es-
sential to the public welfare. As business men you realize
the potential value of the forest to industries and to the
capital and labor alike interested therein. As sportsmen
you probably have not needed me to insist so much upon
the necessity of the forest to fish and game life. All
sportsmen are lovers of the woods, and surely it becomes
us all to raise our voices whenever and wherever the op-
portunity occurs for their preservation. Settlers and
others in this New World are too apt to regard a forest

Mercier.—Effect of Forest Protection 103

tree as anenemy. “Cut it down,” is the battle cry; “why
cumbereth it the ground?’ I wish that all such men
would bear in mind the quaint remark of an old writer
on forest trees quoted by Evelyn:

Trees and woods have twice saved the world, first by the Ark, then
by the Cross, making full amends for the evil fruit borne by the Tree
in Paradise by that which was borne on the Tree of Calvary.

That accomplished botanist and brilliant writer, Dr.
Hugh Macmillan, speaking of the influences and functions
of a pine forest, says:

The pine is the earth’s divining-rod that discovers water in the
thirsty desert, the rod of Moses that smites the barren rock and causes
the living fountain to gush forth, * * * We see the presence and
hear the voice of the Creator among the pine trees as among the trees
of the garden of Eden. Each tree is aflame with Him as truly as was
the Burning Bush.

If I have said anything at all that may suggest addi-
tional precautions against forest fires, or that may tend to
enlist your further sympathy and aid for the promotion of
forest growth, I shall feel that I have spoken a good word
for the fish and game life in which we are all so much in-
terested.

I address an appeal to the members of the American
Fisheries Society to work with us for the preservation of
fish and game. May I be allowed, sir, to point to one
special instance and to ask their help in securing the adop-
tion of a uniform system between the different provinces
of Canada, as well as between Canada and the United
States?

A few years ago we in Quebec enacted a law by which
we established a system of controlling the commerce in
all fur-bearing animals trapped or hunted on our terri-
tory. Other provinces have passed a similar law. One
of the clauses of that law is that if any of our game war-
dens learn that any wild animal has been killed outside
of the close season established by law, no matter where

104 American Fisheries Society

it comes from, on instruction of the Minister he returns
the animal, or the skin, to the country or province in
which it was killed. This law has been productive of
good results. We have been working in cooperation with
the sister Provinces of Ontario and New Brunswick, and
animals killed in these respective provinces out of season
have been seized and returned to the province in which
they were killed. The government of the province con-
cerned may then take action against the party responsible
for the infraction of the law. A year or two ago one of
our citizens living in the Province of Quebec near the
Vermont border killed a deer on American territory. In-
structions were given to send that deer back to the State
of Vermont. If this law were applied by all provinces
and by all states, I am sure that poaching would be
stopped. An international law as between the United
States and Canada would, I am confident, bring about
splendid results along these lines. If, for instance, the
customs officers on both sides of the line were given au-
thority to seize the skin of any wild animal killed out of
season when an attempt was made to ship it across the
border, and if they would seize also any skins not bearing
the tags or stamps required by the laws of the province
or state whence they came—if these skins could be seized
and returned to the government of the state or province
in which they were killed, we would go a long way towards
preventing poachers from sending from one country to the
other or from one province to the other, the skins of ani-
mals taken illegally.

Mr. Chairman, I wish to express my delight at
meeting again some of the delegates from the United
States whom I had the pleasure of meeting a few years
ago in New York, and later in St. Paul, Minn. I do not
know whether I am authorized to do so here at the federal
capital, but I should like, sir, as a Canadian to say to our

Mercier.—Effect of Forest Protection 105

friends from the other side of the line that they are wel-
come to our country, and to express the hope that they
will come back soon, so that we may again have the
pleasure of working together, through a meeting held in
this country, for the welfare of both countries in connec-
tion with the preservation and propagation of fish and
game in North America.

NOTES ON FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES OF
THE DIVISION OF FISHERY INDUSTRIES
OF THE U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES

By Lewis RADCLIFFE

Assistant in Charge of Fishery Industries, U. S. Bureau
of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

The taking of stock to determine the condition and trend
of a business is a recognized practice. It is likewise important
that those of us engaged in governmental activities should
from time to time review our functions and take stock to de-
termine in what degree we are fulfilling our duties for the
benefit of our creditors, the taxpayers, and our own peace of
mind. I hope that such a review of some of the functions
and work of the Division of Fishery Industries (Statistics and
Methods of the Fisheries) of the United States Bureau of
Fisheries during the past eighteen months may be of interest
and may perhaps give to some a wider acquaintance with the
importance of its work to the industry and its relation to fish
culture and biology.

DEVELOPMENT OF FISHERIES

Attributable in large measure to the Bureau’s effort to
secure a wider use of fishery by-products such as fish leather,
oil, meal, scrap, etc., fisheries for sharks, porpoises and other
unutilized aquatic animals have been established, not alone by
fishermen in the United States, but by Canadian fishermen as
well, and have attracted world-wide attention and considera-
tion as evidenced by the volume of foreign inquiries for spe-
cific information. At the time of my visit to one such fishery
last year, 44 porpoises were taken at one set and the daily
catch of sharks ranged from 30 to 75. This afforded a hith-
erto unequalled opportunity for the biologist desirous of learn-
ing more about the habits, life history and diagnostic characters

Radcliffe —Division of Fishery Industries 107

of these too little known forms. In the light of the predatory
character of sharks capable of consuming upwards of 50
pounds of fish at a single meal and the fact that they have pre-
viously been neglected by the fishermen seeking marketable
species, the value of the establishment of such fisheries is seen.
Another fishery receiving attention is that for black drum, a
little used fish of large size of the south Atlantic and Gulf-
section, for which specific information as to seasons and 1o-
calities of abundance has been lacking.

IMPROVEMENTS IN FISHING OPERATIONS

In the spring of 1919 the Bureau suggested to menhaden
companies the desirability of giving seaplanes a trial for spot-
ting the schools of fish to increase production and eliminate
unnecessary trips on the part of the fleet of vessels in seeking
the fish. Later the Bureau was instrumental in having naval
seaplanes detailed for the work to determine the commercial
possibilities of their use in this fishery. One menhaden com-
pany has installed radio equipment on two of its vessels
and at its station; vessels and planes are using charts in which
the fishing areas are blocked off in lettered squares which are
subdivided into numbered squares, and when a school is sighted
its location is sent by wireless to the fishing boats. The work
thus far has proved very successful and it is believed that the
use of seaplanes may become a regular adjunct to the fishery.

The Bureau is also making preparations for the establish-
ment in a limited way of a Fishery Intelligence Service, suit-
ably located lightships and lighthouses along the New England
coast sending daily reports of the presence of schooling fish
to the Bureau’s local agents at Boston and Gloucester, Mass.,
and Portland Me., for the benefit of local fishermen.

HANDLING, DISTRIBUTION AND MARKETING OF FISHERY
PRODUCTS

For years the Bureau has been advocating the necessity of
making certain improvements in the handling of fish from the

108 American Fisheries Society

time they are caught until offered for sale to the consumer,
as, for example, the elimination of the practice of forking the
fish. Not infrequently fish receive as high as 9 to 12 fork-
ings, with the result that putrefactive bacteria may be intro-
duced into the tissues and self-digestion of the cells promoted.
The needless bruising of the fish resulting from this method
of handling further promotes autolysis. This matter has re-
cently been receiving the attention of fishery journals in the
United States and Canada. The Bureau of Fisheries is en-
deavoring to learn what, if any, economical methods of hand-
ling may be substituted for the present practice, and is pre-
paring to wage an active campaign to eliminate this practice.
It is noteworthy that those in the industry are also apprecia-
tive of the necessity for the adoption of some other method of
handling the fish, and express a willingness to aid in lessen-
ing the number of times the fish are forked.

TECHNOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS

An entire paper could well be devoted to the phase of the
Bureau’s work which deals with technological investigations of
the underlying scientific principles governing the preservation
of fishery products to determine the feasibility of their pres-
ervation by untried methods, and to discourage the use of
unsatisfactory, wasteful, or uneconomical practices. Suffice
it to say that the Bureau has developed improvements in the
methods of fish salting, whereby it is possible to salt fish at
higher temperatures and therefore in warmer climates, and
this year gave practical demonstrations of the methods, re-
sulting in the successful salting of 80,000 fish on the St.
Johns River, Fla., where previous attempts failed. It has
also developed satisfactory methods of canning the west
coast mackerel and other local fishes. A packer on that coast
recently received an order for 10,000 cases of mackerel pre-
served in a certain manner, and he came to the Bureau for
the results of its experiments in canning fish by this method
in order that he might undertake to fill the order. The Bureau

Radcliffe-—Division of Fishery Industries 109

imported the first plant for freezing fish in brine, made pre-
liminary tests of brine freezing as compared with air freezing,
and is initiating studies of certain of the basic principles of
refrigeration for which there is need in the industry. Very
properly in this field of technological investigation, it is doing
work for the fisheries of like character to that done by the
U. S. Bureaus of Plant Industry and Animal Industry in the -
field of agriculture. As specific examples, reference may be
made to the work of the former in the technical investigation of
the storage of vegetables, and of the latter in the determina-
tion of causes producing soft pork and the development of
preventive or remedial measures.

INCREASING THE USE OF FISH FOR FOOD

In this exceedingly important field, the Bureau has con-
ducted eminently successful practical demonstrations and lec-
tures in fish cookery. Within a year its agents reached di-
rectly about 15,000 persons, mostly housewives, and many
more indirectly. These demonstrations have been of great
value in extending the use of the cheaper, more abundant
species, and have served to introduce appetizing, inexpensive
methods of cooking fish, to conserve labor, eliminate the use
of expensive cooking fats and oils, and to encourage the use
for food of parts of fish usually discarded. While fish com-
pares favorably in protein content and digestibility with
meats, our per capita consumption of fish to meat is approxi-
mately in the ratio of one to nine. In addition, experiments
have been made to develop suitable recipes for preparing little
used fishes for the table; and cook books, placards and post-
ers recommending the use of fish have been freely distributed
for the use of the trade.

At the present time when there is an over-production or an
under-consumption of fish, or both, it will be evident that work
of this character is of the highest importance. The Bureau re-
grets the limitations upon its operations in this field. As an
example of the importance of such work, it is interesting to

110 American Fisheries Society

note that the catch in the Gulf States of black drum increased
from 136,053 pounds in 1890 to 2,011,288 pounds in 1918,
and of groupers from 427,781 pounds in 1890 to 5,935,825
pounds in 1918. Were it possible to continue such demon-
strations, the use of these and other neglected fishes such as
the haddock, sablefish, rockfish, whiting, etc., would be greatly
extended and the number of markets handling such fish largely
increased.

DEVELOPING USE OF BY-PRODUCTS AND UNUTILIZED PRODUCTS

Only the briefest mention can be made of the Bureau’s va-
ried activities in this field in increasing the production of fish
leather, meal, oil, scrap, the saving of the scales of native fishes
for the production of essence d’orient which is used in the man-
ufacture of artificial pearls, the drying of shark fins, an oriental
delicacy, the greatly extended use of oyster shells for poultry
grit, the recovery of old salt and brine for reuse, and the like.
It has recently been determined that tuna oil is superior to
linseed oil as a drying oil, and a number of inquiries have been
received from paint and varnish manufacturers desirous of
obtaining supplies of this oil. Last year fish and shrimp meal
in excess of 2,500 tons was produced in the south Atlantic and
Gulf region for the first time and, if necessary equipment
can be obtained, it is expected that about double that amount
will be produced this year in these regions, or as much
as was produced in the entire United States until recently. I
believe the possibilities of using this material for feeding pur-
poses by fish culturists merit serious consideration, partic-
ularly in view of the rising prices of feeds in use. As indic-
ative of the increasing importance of this phase of the indus-
try, it may be noted that while in 1890 the value of the by-
products of the Gulf states fisheries was practically negli-
gible, in 1918 the production amounted to 17,409,496 pounds,
representing a value to the fishermen of $310,682.

Radcliffe —Division of Fishery Industries 111

INTRODUCTION OF USEFUL FOREIGN METHODS

Detailed scientific investigations as to the preservation of
nets, the development of new methods, and improvements in
old ones have largely been conducted by Norwegian technol-
ogists. The only preservative used to any great extent by our
own fishermen is tar, and its use is confined largely to the
coarser kinds of nets. The value of the fishing apparatus used
by fishermen in the United States exceeds fifteen million dol-
lars, a very considerable part of which consists of lines and
nets. It is therefore evident that the introduction of useful
foreign methods which will materially lengthen the life of
nets, gives promise of effecting large economies in the ex-
penditures for fishing gear.

One of the Bureau’s technologists has recently translated all
the important articles in Norwegian on the subject, and has in
press a paper summarizing the important principles and methods
of applying preservatives developed in Norway and other coun-
tries.

COLLECTION OF STATISTICS

One of the most important functions of the Division of
Fishery Industries has to do with the making of statistical
inventories and the dissemination of statistical information
for the use of the trade. Such information is also of value as
showing the trend of the fisheries, the need for and the re-
sults of fish-cultural practices, and the need for more ade-
quate protection to properly safeguard the fishery harvests of
the future. It shows the areas of greatest production and
provides a permanent record for governmental use. Recent
canvasses of the fisheries of the Pacific coast states, the Great
Lakes, the south Atlantic states and the Gulf states have been
made, in addition to the collection regularly of the statistics of
the vessel fisheries centering at Boston and Gloucester, Mass.,
Portland, Me., and Seattle, Wash., and the completion of
statistics regarding various minor fisheries. A canvass of the
fisheries of the New England states is now in progress.

112 American Fisheries Society

Of special interest to the conservationist and fish culturist
are annual canvasses of the shad fishery of the Hudson River
begun in 1914, and the shad and alewife fishery of the Potomac
River initiated in 1919. In the former stream the rehabilita-
tion of the fishery depends upon natural reproduction and local
protective measures, and in the latter material aid is being
given these agencies through extensive fish cultural operations.
It is hoped that by conducting such canvasses annually over
an extended period of years, informative data of considerable
value may be secured.

CONCLUSION

In this brief statement mention has been made of some of
the important functions of the Division of Fishery Industries
and of some of its efforts in each field to render the commercial
fisheries the aid they so richly merit. In conclusion I wish to
emphasize the close interrelationship of its activities, which
have been very properly correlated in one place, and the close
relationship with the work of other divisions in this branch
of the service. In the Bureau of Fisheries, there is working
side by side with the Division of Fishery Industries, a division
devoted to the biology of fishes—their habits, food, mi-
grations and interrelations—which serves as an ever-present
check on the increasing efficiency of exploitation. It tells us
that the life in the waters is communal, and that interference
not carefully restrained, may upset the balance in the waters;
that sound biology and regard for the future forbid us to take
unlimited advantage of everything we know about exploiting
fisheries. There are, for example, known methods of taking
fish more efficient than many of those in legitimate use, but
sound policy requires that such methods be discouraged. Thus,
the work of exploitation must be governed not only by the
needs of the trade, but by the needs of the community of ani-
mals in the water. Species such as sharks, gars, and the bow-
fin, that appear injurious and destructive to the whole com-
munity of fishes, are receiving particular attention in prefer-

Radcliffe —Division of Fishery Industries 113

ence to those already more or less sufficiently exploited. Men-
tion has already been made of the relationship to fish culture.
whereby the statistical canvasses may show the need for and
the results of fish culture.

This brief reference to some of the Bureau’s activities is
given in the hope that we may have the pleasure of hearing
of the excellent work Canada is doing in the upbuilding of her
commercial fisheries, and that both may profit by an inter-
change of views.

[At the close of his paper Mr. Radcliffe exhibited samples of essence
d’orient, fish meal, shrimp meal, shark and porpoise leather; also a pair of
shoes, one made from cowhide and the other from shark leather. ]

Discussion

Dr. R. C. Ospurn, Columbus, Ohio: Shark hide will wear better, will
it not?

Mr. RApcLIFFE: I do not know; that has not yet been determined. I
wore a pair last winter and they were very satisfactory. As yet there are
no shark hide shoes on the market.

Dr. OspurN: The porpoise leather is from the porpoise proper, I as-
sume, not from the white whale?

Mr. RapcLiFFE: The porpoise, Tursiops tursio.

Mr. JoHN W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: The fish meal industry has been
extended a great deal in the South. Is the fish meal now exhibited made
strictly out of the by-products of fish?

Mr. RapciirFE: On the Atlantic coast it is made of menhaden in es-
sentially the same way as fish scrap except that a little more care is exer-
cised in using fresh fish and avoiding scorching in the drying. After dry-
ing it is put through a swing hammer grinder to break up the small needle-
like bones. It is used for hog feed. It consists of the whole fish, flesh,
bones and scales, with the oil extracted.

Mr. Titcoms: Is it being used as fish food?

Mr. RapciirFE: Prof. G. C. Embody might know. I am not acquainted
with that feature of it.

Dr. H. M. SmitH, Washington, D. C.: I think that Mr. Radcliffe has
not brought out what I consider to be a very important feature of the
manufacture of fish meal, as distinguished from fish scrap. Fish scrap,
as made in the menhaden industry for many years, is used for growing
crops, largely for stock feed. Now, this fish meal is given directly to the
stock, so that you save a year’s time and all the expense in connection
with the harvesting and selling of the crop of grain.

Mr. RapcLirFE: I may add that we are working hand in hand with
the Bureau of Animal Industry, Department of Agriculture. That Bureau

114 American Fisheries Society

is recommending to the farmer that he give more protein feed to his hogs.
The farmer, in turn, asks where he can get the protein feed, his princi-
pal source of supply now being the tankage from the meat-packing con-
cerns. Officials of that Bureau tell us that a hog which has reached 225
pounds should have consumed 100 pounds of protein feed. Last year the
farmers raised something like 70,000,000 hogs, which would require a large
amount of protein feed if the advice of the Department of Agriculture
were followed. We are helping out in this. We advise the fisherman to
produce fish meal; the Bureau of Animal Industry advises the farmer to
use fish meal, so our work dovetails in that way.

Mr. Titcoms: There is one point I would like to bring out, in case
there may be some misunderstanding in regard to the use of fish meal.
Mr. Radcliffe spoke of Professor Embody. Three or four years ago Pro-
fessor Embody gave us a very interesting and valuable paper in which he
referred to the use of fish meal. I do not think that the records of the
Society have been properly corrected, but it turned out that the fish meal
which he was using at that time was really a meat meal made in Chicago
and sold as fish meal. Of course, fish culturists want to know the dif-
ference; we want to know that the fish meal which we are now talking
about is really made from fish. Possibly, we have not experimented suf-
ficiently along this line. We might be able to find some dry feed that we
could keep in storage for the feeding of fish.

Mr. RanpciiFFE: I may say for Mr. Titcomb’s benefit that we are as-
sembling lists of actual producers of fish meal in this country. On the
west coast about nine-tenths of the fish waste is now being converted
into fish meal, only one-tenth into fish scrap. There is a production of
something like ten thousand tons on that coast every year, but on the east
coast they have been slow to recognize the value of fish meal. The best
use we can make of fish is to eat it; the next best is to feed it to our stock,
and then, as Dr. Smith pointed out, what you cannot use for these two
purposes should be put on the land.

Mr. W. A. Founp, Ottawa, Canada: We are discussing what seems
to me to be a matter of extremely great importance to the fishing indus-
try, as well as to the agricultural interests. The Pacific coast does not
present the problems in this connection that the Atlantic coast does. On
the Pacific coast, on both sides of the line, we have a large industry with
centralized operations, the offal being produced in one place, or in con-
nection with the salmon canning industry; and the rush of fish is great
while the work is going on. On our Atlantic coast in Canada we have two
essential fisheries, or, I should say, two essential parts of the fishery indus-
try. The one may be regarded as the principal factor—the inshore fisher-
man who operates his own boat, sometimes with three men in a boat, and
takes his fish to his own centre. This comprises by far the greatest por-
tion of our industry. The wholesale end of it, the schooner and trawler
fishing, where the fish are all brought to central ports, comprises as yet
the smaller part of our industry. We are possibly wasting many hun-
dred thousand ‘tons of valuable material each year around our coasts; it

Radcliffe —Division of Fishery Industries 115

has been estimated at 300,000 tons. If science can find a practical means
of saving it from deterioration so that it can be brought to some center
and there turned into commercial products, either fish scrap or fish
meal, it would indeed be a step in advance. The value of fish meal as
animal food is not a new thing; the manufacture of this material has
been a big industry on the continent for many years. If we can do
something along this line we shall solve a problem which is giving the
Fisheries Branch of the Department of Marine and Fisheries in Canada
a good deal of concern. We have the raw material, but it cannot be-
collected cheaply enough at any one centre to enable the carrying
on of a paying business. If we can devise a method of collection or
of economical operation on the spot, we shall accomplish something that
will be of national benefit.

Mr. RapcLirFFE: We now have machines, adapted from the meat-
packing plants, for converting small quantities of waste into scrap or
feed. These machines have been successful in some places, but I fear
that they will not work as well in others, particularly with material rich
in glue. These are some of the problems with which we are faced. I
may say that we have gone a step further and asked the Department of
Agriculture, through its Bureau of Animal Industry, to carry on, as
soon as it can, a series of feeding tests with material cooked at the
fishing center, with a view to devising a method of enabling the little
fellow, who has only a small amount of material, to produce a suitable
feed for his hogs. If we could do this for our whole coast line, it
would considerably increase the feed supply.

‘Pror. JoHN 'N. Cogs, Seattle, Wash.: I was glad to hear Mr. Rad-
cliffe say that somebody had devised a machine that would handle small
quantities, because that has always been our problem on the Pacific
coast. In a section where there are a number of salmon canneries
within reach, it is easy enough to build a chute and a tank on the end
of a dock and gather the material inside, but in the case of the single
small plant located in an isolated section, it has been almost impossible
to do anything with the fish waste. In order to make good fish meal,
the scrap ought to be fresh; if it is not, it can be used only for fer-
tilizer.

I have watched closely the fish-meal and fish-scrap industry of the
Pacific coast, and I am sorry to say that I no not think any of the
plants have made much money. During the war, oil was very high, fer-
tilizer was high, and fish meal was high; so they had a chance then to
make a little money. But the unfortunate thing has been the great
initial cost of a plant and the fact that the plant could be operated only
a very short period in the year; in other words, the plants must lie idle
for eight to ten months of the year. It is thus very difficult to make
a profit on an investment of something like $30,000. It would be well
if some small plant could be established at each cannery, for instance,
or at each fishing station, to handle this material, much along the line
of the little plants formerly used in connection with the sardine can-

116 American Fisheries Society

neries of Maine. These plants prepared what might almost be termed
a paste which the farmers would take in this shape and put on their
fields. These plants really did little more than extract the oil from the
material, and did that very crudely. But I hope that this cheaper
machine for the handling of small quantities of scrap will be found to
be practical, because even out on the Pacific coast we have considerable
glue in the scrap and most of the plants are experiencing trouble in
handling it.

Mr. WittiAM F. Wetts, Albany, N. Y.: There is another aspect of
this discussion which is of interest to those who are troubled with the
question of preventing the pollution of streams and waters. Perhaps
in the particular cases spoken of, disposal of waste material was more
important .than the question of pollution. It is true, however, with
other waste products if not in the case of fish products, in which these
same questions have been raised, that a solution of the problem of
waste disposal will go a long way toward preventing conditions which
have an important bearing upon the fishing industries. The pollution of
waters, due to the discharge of organic wastes, which we have much
difficulty in reducing with profit, is causing a great deal of damage and
we must face the question of preventing negative profits or losses.
In other words, looking at it from the point of view of pollution, we
have to admit that even though we cannot reduce some of these materi-
als with a profit, it may be necessary to ask certain industries to suffer
a loss in order to obviate an even greater loss to the fishing industries.

Mr. RapcLirFE: I have in mind the case of a plant which was
dumping from twenty to thirty tons of waste in one day. This plant
is located in a city; they have only a short season, and they may be
getting large quantities of waste one week and none the next. In another
case, prior to taking up the question of manufacturing shrimp meal for
the canneries, a plant was paying $15 a day for the services of men
to dig holes in the ground to bury the waste. Today that manufacturer
is producing from the waste a product for which he is asking about
$85 a ton.

Mr. WeELts: I would like to mention a law prohibiting the dis-
charge of all wastes except the refuse from menhaden factories. When
the fishing industries go to the legislature and ask for a law to prevent
everybody else from putting waste into the waters and specifically omit
the waste they themselves are producing, it does not seem very consist-
ent, and, naturally, is not convincing.

Mr. CHartes O. Hayrorp, Hackettstown, N. J.: I would like to
ask Mr. Radcliffe whether shrimp meal can be procured in other than
comparatively small quantities. Recently, Professor Embody advocated
the use of this shrimp meal. Now, in our hatchery we are using sheep’s
plucks, beef melts, pig melts, beef livers and butterfish. We find that
if we mix these feeds somewhat as the age of the fish advances, giving
them different combinations from time to time, we get a much hardier
and more contented fish. Professor Embody advocates the use of this

Radcliffe —Division of Fishery Industries ray,

shrimp meal, even if mixed with the other foods, to supply vitamines.
He tells me that in the experiments made at Cornell the fish took the
shrimp meal very readily when it was sprinkled on the water. But the
experiment has never been made on a large scale. At the station where I
am in charge we use approximately 75 or 100 tons of fish food a year. It
occurs to me that if we could obtain information as to the approximate
quantity of this feed that is used by each state, as well as by govern-
ments and by private individuals, and if the relative values of these
foods could be determined by tests carried on by the Bureau of Fish-~
eries, there might be a greater demand for it than there is, particularly
in view of the fact that the price of meat has so largely increased
during the last few years. We formerly bought butterfish in 180-pound
crates at two cents a pound; now they are charging us four or five,
and do not care whether they sell to us or not. The fish culturist who
gets a price of ten or twelve cents a pound on a certain kind of food
will compare it with some other food the price of which is only three
or four cents a pound. There is nothing to enable us to check up the
relative values of the different foods that are being used.

Mr. RapvciirFE: Shrimp meal will run between 43 and 47 per cent
protein, and fish meal from 55 to 60 per cent. You would think, there-
fore, that fish meal would be the better feed, but the experiments car-
ried on by the Bureau of Animal Industry in feeding hogs showed
that when shrimp meal was fed the results were just as good as those
obtained from the feeding of fish meal. The value of this feed lies in
some of the other elements, such as vitamines.

Mr. Titcoms: This last phase of the discussion brings very forc-
ibly to my mind the importance of having, in connection with the United
States Bureau of Fisheries, an experiment station similar to agricul-
tural experiment stations, where these problems concerning fish feed
can be dealt with. The relative values of shrimp meal and fish meal and
of the livers and plucks of various slaughtered animals—the relative
values and the relative prices possibly, of some of these by-products—
ought to be given publicity. We ought to be able to feed our fish in-
telligently, in order to get the best growth for the least money. That,
to me, is a function of the Federal Government, because all the states
are interested in the problem. The College of Agriculture at Cornell
is doing a little of that work on a very small scale, and I assume that
Professor Cobb’s college on the Pacific coast will also do some work
in that connection. I know that the present Commissioner of Fisheries
has been very desirous of getting an appropriation from Congress for
an experiment station. I think that the colleges which offer courses
in fish culture and fishery industries should have federal as well as
state support, and be operated on the same extensive plan as is the case
with the agricultural college. I cannot let this opportunity pass without
expressing my view that the Federal Government ought to support that
branch of experimental work in fish culture and all that pertains to it,
including the study of fish diseases. A resolution on the subject adopted

118 American Fisheries Society

by this Society at this time, if we have not had one in the past, might
be a step in the right direction. I think that the subject is a very im-
portant one.

Mr. WiLLt1AM H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.: I am using in my
hatchery some 75 tons of feed a year. On the strength of what Profes-
sor Embody said in his paper two years ago, I wrote to the firm that
manufactures shrimp meal, but got no satisfactory reply and have never
been able to get any of the meal.

Mr. RApcLIFFE: We have lists of producers of shrimp meal, and we
are assured that they will take up actively its manufacture if they can
be sure of a market for the product. I think that in the solution of
these problems the services of trained technologists are necessary.

Proressor Copp: Professor Embody informs me that he intends
to carry on extensive experiments in the feeding of fish. I may say
that in one of our private hatcheries out west the fish are fed with
ice cream cones broken up so as to float on the surface of the water.
Of course, the diet is occasionally varied with liver, but this hatchery
man said that they did very well on ice cream cones, one of the cheap-
est foods he found. Some of you might try that, along with fish meal
or shrimp meal or anything of that kind; they ought to go well together.

Mr. Titcoms: I want to bring up one more point in this connection.
Men cannot afford to buy ice cream cones or any other food that they
know nothing about, feed their live stock on it for three or four months,
and then have them all die on their hands. They are carrying on a
live stock proposition and they know that they can pursue certain lines
and carry their fish through to a marketable size; they do not know
what may happen if they feed something else. We have heard a good
many of these stories about cereals and all kinds of foods, but the
commercial fish culturist cannot take chances on a live stock proposi-
tion in the carrying on of experimental work. Experimental work of
general public importance should be done by the Federal Government.
The very best fish culturists, scientists, and pathologists should be en-
gaged in the work.

Mr. Rowe: I have been told that macaroni is good food for fish.
Reference has just been made to ice cream cones along the same line.
Now, Professor Embody told me that there was absolutely no food value
in bran cereals for fish; that no growth could be secured from the use
of these things. Mr. Chamberlain, who carried on the experiments for
Professor Embody, worked with me during one summer season, and he
also stated that cereals were of no use as food for fish; that all they
were good for was simply to hold the other articles together.

Mr. Rapciirre: This fish meal need not necessarily be a finely
ground material. Do not think that because you get it finely ground that
it is the only way in which it can be produced. It can be manufactured
to suit your particular needs.

Mr. J. A. WittraMs, Tallahassee, Fla.: I may say that if any fish
culturist here is desirous of getting in touch with the shrimp-meal

Radcliffe-—Division of Fishery Industries 119

people, our department will be glad to put him in touch with those who
will produce shrimp meal for him.

PRESIDENT AvERY: To my mind this is a very excellent paper, deal-
ing not only with an important branch of the Bureau of Fisheries, but
indicating also a weakness in our own Society. While the discussion
took a somewhat different tack, the paper dealt largely with matters of
importance to the commercial fisheries, which are not represented in the
Society to any great extent. I think it would strengthen the Society,
and perhaps be beneficial to the trade as well, if we could arouse their ~
interest in our activities. This is!a suggestion to those who are working
upon the problem of enlarging our membership, and strengthening the

Society.

PRINCIPLES INVOLVED IN THE PRESERVATION
OF FISH BY SALT

By Harpen F. TAyLor

Assistant for Developing Fisheries and for Saving and Use of
Fishery Products

U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

The art of preserving fish by means of salt is of great
antiquity. It was practiced by the Phcenicians and Greeks,
and was brought to a high degree of perfection by the Romans.
Mixed with spices, salt was used in the time of Christ on the
shores of the Mediterranean and the outlying country, for
the preservation of food, reference being made in the Sermon
on the Mount to a salt which has lost its savor, meaning a
salt in which the spices have lost their aroma by evaporation.
In the centuries following, the art continued, both in the
Occident and the Orient, to play an important part in world
economy. Shakespeare puts in the mouth of his most won-
derful character, Falstaff, the words: “If I be not ashamed of
my soldiers I am a soused gurnet’”*—a pickled gurnard, the
gurnard being held in such light esteem that it was a term
of contempt; whether “‘sousing’”’ or pickling made the fish
doubly contemptible had better be left to the philologists to
determine. Less than twenty-five years after Shakespeare
wrote that play, the Plymouth Colony landed in America and
brought with them the arts of sousing and pickling fish. The
descendants of the pilgrims are still pickling fish around Cape
Cod, and particularly at Gloucester.

To a great many people it may seem that science has con-
tributed little or nothing to the improvement of methods of
preserving fish by salt, perhaps this view is shared by a con-
siderable number of people who are engaged in the business
of salting fish. To them it may appear that salting fish is

*King Henry IV, Part I, Act IV, Scene II.

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 121

just salting fish, and “‘that’s all there is to it.’ It may be ad-
mitted readily that science has not so pervaded and dominated
the fish pickling industry as it has other ancient arts, but it
has contributed something, and is capable of contributing a
great deal more, and here lies the purpose of this paper. That
purpose is to present the rationale of salting and pickling fish
so that the reasons for the various steps and modifications ~
will be readily understood and appreciated, to the end that the
art may be practiced more intelligently and successfully. It
is a further purpose of this paper by showing what the few
attempts made by science have done for the art, to convince
and persuade those on whom the industry depends for its
existence and progress, that science can be expected to do a
great deal more than it ever has done if it is energetically
studied and applied.

HOW SALT PRESERVES

Salt preserves by extracting water. Spoiling is a series
of chemical activities for which water is necessary ; remove the
water and spoiling is arrested. The removal of water by
means of salt is in some senses a truer dehydration than
actual drying in air, for changes of an undesirable sort take
place in air drying that are never corrected, while salting may
be done in such a way that few changes other than removal
of water are brought about. The statement that salt pre-
serves by extracting water is to be taken strictly and literally,
for salt has no peculiar preserving or antiseptic quality, as
many people seem to think. Things live, die and putrefy in
the sea, which is one-fifth saturated with salt. But by suff-
cient concentration, salt, an otherwise almost inert, harmless
substance becomes a powerful preservative, merely because, if
concentrated sufficiently it extracts water. The process of
transferring water from one place to another, as from the
inside of a fish to the outside, under the influence of con-
centrated solutions, is known to physicists and chemists as

122 American Fisheries Society

osmosis. This principle of osmosis is of almost universal
application in nature, and is used by men in the arts, but a
good understanding of it is not common. By osmosis our
food is taken from the intestines to the blood without any
communicating opening; by osmosis, oxygen is taken from the
air into the blood, without any leakage of blood; by the same
principle the kidney tubules remove undesirable substances
from the body while holding back all desirable substances;
by osmosis the roots of plants select the necessary minerals
from the soil; a weak sugar solution will readily ferment,
but if made concentrated it destroys yeast and bacteria by
osmosis, and is therefore an excellent preservative of fruits.
Salt is also a preservative by virtue of its concentration. Any
other neutral mineral substance equally soluble would preserve
in the same way that salt does, but salt happens to be the only
one that the human palate and stomach will tolerate.

HOW SALT EXTRACTS WATER

At the risk of appearing verbose, the writer undertakes to
elucidate the principles that govern osmosis because osmosis
is nearly the whole principle of salting fish. Without a
knowledge of osmosis people may salt fish successfully by rule,
but without such a knowledge it is quite impossible to under-
stand the process.

If a thin animal skin or membrane separates two liquids,
and if the liquids are alike, nothing happens. But if they are
unlike, one or the other, or both, of the liquids will pass
through the skin to the other side; this passage through the
skin or membrance is called osmosis. Just what components
pass through the membrane, and in what direction, and how
much, depends on many circumstances. For the purposes of
salting fish, water is always the liquid, plus whatever is dis-
solved in the water, and the skin and cell-membranes are the
dividing membrane. We thus have water and salt outside,
cell-membrane between, and fish juice or protoplasm inside,

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 123

and we desire to know what will happen, and how we can
influence the process to suit our needs. The quantity and
direction of flow through the skin or cell-membrane will de-
pend on (1) the nature of the dividing membrane; and (2)
the nature and quantity of the substances dissolved in the
water on each side.

The nature of the dividing membrane will be considered ©
first. Almost any substance can be made into a thin film
or membrane. Such things as glass, tinfoil and mica may be
exceedingly thin, but are totally impermeable and therefore
uninteresting in the present connection. But other membranes
or films, such as parchment paper, gelatin films, animal blad-
ders, and gold beaters’ skins, are permeable to a greater or
smaller degree. Suppose pure water were on one side of a
membrane and water containing dissolved salt on the other.
If the membrane is perfectly permeable to all constituents,
water will pass through to the salt solution, and salt will pass
through to the water, and these movements will continue until
the two sides are alike, and then stop. It is always the ten-
dency for the two liquids to come to equilibrium, and they
would do so if the membrane were perfectly permeable.
Nearly all membranes, however, permit a freer flow of the
solvent, in this case water, than they do of the solute, that
which is dissolved, in this case, salt. If the membrane per-
mits the water to flow, but absolutely prevents passage of a
dissolved substance, the membrane is said to be semi-perme-
able. In the example taken above, of pure water on one side,
and salt solution on the other, if the membrane were semi-
permeable, then the water would pass through to the salt solu-
tion, but the salt could not get through to the water. The
level of the pure water would fall and that of the salt would
rise; the difference in liquid level would exert a pressure
called osmotic pressure. Ideally semi-permeable membranes
are not realized in nature, though some of the membranes in
plants and animals approach ideal semi-permeability while they

124 American Fisheries Society

are living. Ideal semi-permeability with respect to particular
dissolved substances has been achieved, and is found in living
organisms.

It is to be remembered that in case of semi-permeable
membranes, the solvent will flow from the less concentrated
to the more concentrated side of the membrane, so that if we
wish to extract water we need only to make the outside more
concentrated than the inside, if we wish to add water we make
the outside less concentrated than the inside, i. e., we use pure
fish, and that permeability increases at temperatures near the
freezing point of water.

It is also to be remembered that membranes do not neces-
sarily hold their degree of semi-permeability unalterable; the
permeability of the membrane can very readily be changed,
as will be seen later. There is reason for believing, for ex-
ample, that the permeability of fish to salt increases after
death, for stale fish strike through more quickly than fresh
fish, and that permeability increases at temperatures near the
freezing point of water.

The tissues of fish consist of cells; each cell is a bag of
semi-liquid, like the white of egg. The surface of every cell
either is, or acts like, a semi-permeable membrane. If we sur-
round the cell with water, the inside will be more concentrated
than the outside, and water will go in; if we surround the cell
with strong salt solution, water will pass out to the salt. Some
salt will also pass into the cell, which fact shows that the cell
wall is not ideally semi-permeable.

But what of the protein within the cell? Why does it not
come out while the salt is going in? The answer to these ques-
tions makes it necessary to pass from a consideration of the
nature of the membrane in osmosis to a consideration of the
nature of the dissolved substance.

By a great many experiments it has been found that some
dissolved substances never pass through membranes under any
circumstances, while others will pass through some membranes,

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 125

It is found that those which never pass through are also those
which on drying out do not crystallize, but shrink to a tough
mass. They are called colloids; examples of them are glue,
albumen, gelatin, and soap. The smallest possible particle of
these substances is comparatively large, too large, we may
imagine, to go through the texture of the membrane. They
are not only large of molecule but complex in structure. The
bulk of animal bodies consists of colloids called proteins, dis-
solved in water. The other class of substances, those that may
pass through membranes, are the crystalloids — substances
which, on drying out, crystallize in regular geometrical shapes.
Examples of this class are salt, sugar and like substances. It is
not to be supposed, however, that all crystalloids will pass with
equal facility through any given membrane. Nearly all mem-
branes are in some measure selective of particular crystalloids.
The ideal semi-permeable membrane permits none to pass, but
as membranes degenerate from ideal semi-permeability to com-
plete permeability, they permit more and more of these dis-
solved things to pass through.

The phenomena of osmosis having been briefly reviewed, one
may readily perceive the importance of applying the principles
to the salting of fish. Salt is brought in contact with the ex-
terior of the cell, it dissolves in some of the moisture, forming
a saturated solution. This solution is separated from the con-
tents of the cell by a cell membrane, which is more or less
semi-permeable. Water passes out of the cell to the salt and
the processes of decay are stopped because of insufficiency of
water. The membrane, not being absolutely semi-permeable,
permits some salt to enter, and the fish remains salty. The
contents left in the cell are proteins or the valuable food ele-
ments of the fish which, being colloids, are not permitted by
the cell-membrane to pass out. Thus, the fish is preserved.

When the time comes to eat the fish the process is exactly
reversed. The fish is bathed in pure water. The cell contents
are more concentrated than the exterior, so water passes in.
The cell-membrane is to some extent semi-permeable, so the

126 American Fisheries Society

protein does not escape, but the salt does. This exchange is
carried to a point where the meat is again plump and the desir-
able quantity of salt left in.

Thus, we have, by exposing the meat of fish to salt, removed
the water and caused some salt to enter the meat; we have
stored the fish; we have then by exposing the fish to water,
put water back in the cells and taken out the excess salt. The
actual food material of the fish, the cell protein, is still where
it was, for practical purposes, unchanged. If every step has
been sctentifically correct we have at the end very nearly the
fresh fish we had to start with. But thereistherub. At every
turn it is possible to depart from the scientifically correct.

The principles of osmosis here very briefly stated are the
fundamentals of the art of salting fish. They are the starting
point for the investigations for which the writer has been
responsible. In all that follows there will be frequent
occasion to refer to osmosis.

FACTORS AFFECTING PERMEABILITY OF FISH CELLS

The preservation of fish by salt is practiced extensively in
the cooler parts of the United States, but very little has been
done south of Chesapeake Bay. The reason fish have not been
salted in the warmer part of the country is that the process has
not been satisfactory. Repeated efforts to salt alewives on the
St. Johns river in Florida previous to 1920 uniformly resulted
in failure. In 1918 research on this problem was undertaken
under the immediate direction of the writer. The results of a
part of this program were published this year,* but continu-
ation of the program planned is held up for lack of funds.

The hypotheses which guided this work were somewhat as
follows: During the course of “striking through” the fish, two
things are happening, (1) the flesh is breaking down by auto-
lysis (a process to be explained later) and (2) the salt is pene-
trating the flesh. Salt arrests autolysis when it arrives, but con-

*Tressler, D. K. Some Considerations Concerning the Salting of Fish. Report of
the U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries for 1919, Appendix IV, 54 pp., 1920, Washington.

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 127

siderable damage may be done before the salt has reached the
innermost parts of the fish. Now, these two processes, salt
penetration and autolysis, are runing a race, so to say; if the
salt penetrates to the innermost parts before autolysis has de-
stroyed them, the salt wins the race, and the fish is saved; if,
before the salt can get to the innermost parts, they have been
decomposed by autolysis to an intolerable degree, then auto-
lysis wins and the fish spoils. High temperatures accelerate both
processes but while accurate measurements have not been made,
we know by practical experience that at high temperatures
spoilage is increased much more than penetration of salt, so that
at a sufficiently elevated temperature the fish will invariably
spoil. Now, to make certain that the race mentioned shall
always be won by the salt, we may do one of two things, viz.,
retard the rate of decomposition or accelerate the penetration of
salt. Working at a lower temperature is the only practicable
means of retarding decomposition, but since we desire a method
suitable for warm climates it is necessary to accelerate penetra-
tion of salt. How can the salt be caused to penetrate fish more
rapidly ?

The physiologists have shown that in living animals salts of
calcium, barium and magnesium have a marked effect in retard-
ing or arresting penetration of membranes. By examination of
numerous analyses of commercial brands of salt it was found
that the salts of calcium and magnesium are those nearly always
present as impurities. A few of these analyses are given here-
with, as reported by Tressler and others.

ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS SALTS FOR CURING FISH

Turks Trapani Iviza |Diamond Flake

Determinations Island Italian Spanish Domestic
salt salt salt salt

Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent

Sodium chloride (salt) | 96.52 95.82 98.05 99.78
Calcium chloride . . . Teen 4 A9 ie
Calcium sulphate. . . 1.53 mae ee Ki
Magnesium chloride. . 1.20 1.19 hate 00
Magnesium sulphate. . 80 75 80 .00
SG i ea 3 oe .06 .00

128 American Fisheries Society

By appropriate methods of measuring the rate of penetra-
tion of salt into fish it was found that if absolutely pure salt
is used, a very rapid penetration is obtained but even small
additions of from ¥% to 5 per cent of these salts of calcium and
magnesium cause a very pronounced retardation of penetration,
In order to bring about a much more rapid penetration of the
tissues, then, we have but to obtain a salt free from these
impurities. The time gained by the use of pure salt enables fish
to be salted at a much higher temperature and yet not spoil. Fish
were salted in an incubator room in Washington last January
at a temperature of 90° F. at first, rising to 100° F.—the
hottest summer weather. No unpleasant odor developed, and the
fish, upon being cooked and eaten, were pronounced excellent.

There was a further and somewhat unexpected difference
between the effects of pure and impure salts. The flesh of the
fish salted by impure salt is white, opaque, or chalky in appear-
ance, and much harder or firmer in consistency; that of fish
salted with pure salt is translucent and somewhat yellowish and
much softer. While the former white, firm, fish is the custom-
ary quality demanded in commerce, there are strong reasons for
believing the softer and yellowish fish produced in pure salt to
be superior. There is reason for believing that the whitening
of the fish in impure salt is explained by the fact that the calcium
coagulates the protein, just as heat, by coagulating egg white,
causes it to be white and firm. But where there is no calcium in
the salt, the protein retains its natural translucency and yellow-
ish color. The calcium in impure salt is retained by the fish, a
matter that will be discussed later under the subdivision on
flavor of salted fish.

At this point, mention should be made of another effect of
salt upon the protein constituents of fish. Strong solutions of
salt precipitate certain protein substances, different substances
falling out successively from a mixture of dissolved proteins as
the concentration of salt is increased. The nature of the pro-
teins is not altered by this precipitation, for upon replacement of
the salt solution with fresh water the proteins redissolve and

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 129

appear to be restored to their original condition. Salt thus
causes a temporary precipitation or fixation of proteins in fish,
to a certain extent hardening the tissues, and reducing the like-
lihood of changing.

Not only does quite pure salt penetrate the fish more rapidly,
but when the time comes to cook the fish it is found to soak out
more rapidly also. Practical experiments in the experimental
kitchen of the Bureau of Fisheries indicates that fish preserved
in very pure salt soak out in from a third to a half the time
required by fish preserved in crude salt.

What is the practical lesson of this work? It shows that by
the judicious selections of salt, not on the basis of its cheapness,
but on the basis of composition, one can produce a salt fish of
almost any desired quality. If salting is to be done in very
warm weather, it will be necessary to use the purest grade of salt
to secure very rapid penetration. In this way a soft yellowish
fish of excellent quality is obtained. Where weather is cool
enough to permit, a salt containing more calcium and magne-
sium may be used, in which case a whiter and firmer fish will be
produced.

Can these very pure salts be obtained commercially? Sev-
eral brands of salt of the highest degree of purity are available
both on the east and west coasts and at a cost not much above
the price of cruder salt. In many cases the single item of fish
saved, that might otherwise spoil, will repay the extra cost of
pure salt, to say nothing of the improvement in quality of the
salt fish.

FLAVORS OF SALT FISH

The calcium and magnesium are taken up by the protein in
the cells and held, not coming out when the fish is soaked. Now
these impurities, particularly calcium, have an acrid taste,
and greatly accentuate the “saltiness” of salt. Pure salt is not
as “salty” as crude salt. If the calcium is held by the tissues at
the time of soaking out, while the salt is removed, then after
soaking there is a much greater amount of calcium present in

130 American Fisheries Society

proportion to the amount of sodium than there was in the orig-
inal salt, and a correspondingly more acrid “salty” taste. It is
therefore necessary to soak out fish much longer, or until they
are “flat” if they have been cured with crude salt, while with
pure salt they may be soaked out until they suit the taste, after
which they retain their original flavor.

Certain improvements in the flavor of fish have been noted
after they have been salted by improved methods. The fish
variously known as mud shad or gizzard shad (Dorosoma cep-
edianum) is plentiful in certain parts of the country, but held
in very low esteem because of its muddy, unpleasant flavor.
After being washed free from blood and salted in pure salt, this
unpleasant flavor disappeared, and the fish compared very favor-
ably with fish commonly more esteemed. The muddy taste of
the carp and other fish from muddy ponds and streams is be-
lieved by some to be caused by species of Oscillatoria, a blue-
green alga growing in the slime of the fish; by others it is
believed to be humic acid derived from the mud. Perhaps
the two views could be entirely reconciled ; but the actual chem-
ical compound or compounds responsible for the unpleasant
flavor seems to be removed by the brine.

If this lead were followed in detail it is quite possible that
salting would turn out to be the best method of utilizing fishes
that are of a rather poor edible quality when in the fresh condi-
tion. This aspect of the matter deserves particular attention of
the canners. Many species of fish of great abundance could be
profitably packed if the flavor were inviting. With highly
improved technique in salting, the undesirable flavors might be
removed by curing and soaking out before canning. This pro-
cess would be unthinkable on the basis of the customary salt-
ing methods where there is in the end an excessive saltiness or
flatness of flavor, but the mild, sweet fish prepared by improved
technique and pure salt is a much more promising possibility
for canning.

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 131

DRY SALTING AND BRINE SALTING COMPARED

The next question taken up in the investigations referred to
was that of the relative merits of the application of the salt to
fish in the dry state and as a concentrated brine. In the Chesa-
peake Bay region the herring are usually pickled in brine. By
a strict comparison of the two methods it was found that there
is developed a smaller quantity of the products of decomposi-—
tion, the amino acids, when the salt is applied dry. Not only
this, but it was also found that salt applied in the dry condition
penetrates the fish more rapidly.

Among the products of protein decomposition are amino
acids. A determination of amino acid nitrogen was taken as a
measure of decomposition—the more the amino acids the
greater the amount of decomposition. This being true, the fol-
lowing table, summarized from Tressler’s results, will show the
superiority of dry salt over strong brine for preserving fish.

Amounts oF AMINO AciIp NITROGEN ForRMED Per KILOGRAM oF FisH AT
DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES

Amount of amino acid per kilogram of | Condition

Method ee fish after — at end of
of salting a ——— salting
19hrs. | 67hrs, | 5 days| 7 days |9days| Period
Grams | Grams |Grams| Grams \Grams|
Dry salted .| 63 0.078 | 0.083 | 0.085 | 0.085 | 0.119} Good
Brine salted| 63 089 | .129 S035). 183 + tw 254 «
Dry salted .| 70 084 | 086 | .098| .097 | .126 «
Brine salted..| 70 100 =| .165 158 | .190 | 292 “
Dry salted .| 75.5 077 | .092 099 104 | 134! Fair
Brine salted..} 75.5 102 | .186 179 228 | .316 a
Dry salted .| 80 074 | .086 119 141 158 .
Brine salted..| 80 .086 189 210 300 .383 | Spoiled
Dry salted .| 87 076 | .089 SA Oi A 2 a
Brine salted.,.| 87 097 | 244 AOS: |) 377 Si Y/ iF
Dry salted .| 93 065 | 105 eas cs ee
Brine salted..!| 93 080 238 320 | .465 666 us

It is seen that the brine salted fish consistently undergo a
greater decomposition than those salted with dry salt, as shown
by the abundance of decomposition products, amino acid nitro-
gen. The average excess of amino acid nitrogen in the six lots

132 American Fisheries Society

pickled in brine over the six lots in dry salt is 51 per cent, a very
material difference. It will be noticed in the last column of the
table that spoiling of fish pickled in brine takes place at a lower
temperature than it does in dry salt. Fish were satisfactorily
salted in dry salt at 80° F., but at this temperature fish pickled in
brine spoiled.

To complete the evidence in favor of using dry salt the fol-
lowing table in substance from the same paper shows the rate of
penetration of salt into squeteague when applied dry in com-
parison with brine:

PENETRATION OF SALT

Method Percentage chlorine in dry sample after—
Section of fish

of salting lday {4days | 7days 10 days

Dry salted..../Outer layer, from

surface to adepth

of 32 Vemery Fo i\s,| tS. i V162 19.6 19.5
Dry salted....JInner layer, from

% to 1 cm. below

SHTTACE. su. ax eee OLD 11.0 16.0 18.7
Brine salted..| Outer layer, as

ADOWEs hyo pena 1.8 15.3 17.3 17.8
Brine salted..| Inner layer, as

ADOVE st see. POA 7} e889) 122 157

What is the reason for the superiority of dry salt over
strong brine or pickle, especially since the dry salt very shortly
forms its own pickle? In answer to this question it is necessary
to refer to the principles of osmosis. It was shown that the
flow of water is from the less concentrated to the more concen-
trated. The relative concentrations govern the direction of flow
and also the rate or quantity of flow. Salt is going into the cell
and water coming out. If brine is used, it is losing some of its
salt which penetrates the cells, and is being diluted with water
which is coming out. This process rapidly brings the contents
of the cells into equilibrium with the brine, that is, with the
film of brine immediately in contact with the fish. Stirring, as
usually done, may cause a momentary increase of penetration
by removing the film of dilute brine adjacent to the fish, but we

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 133

may imagine that a new dilute film forms again very rapidly.
If, instead of brine, dry salt is placed in contact with the fish,
very material differences are at once apparent. Part of the salt,
dissolving in the free moisture, forms strong brine which
begins its extraction of water from the cell. The water coming
from the cell is not able to dilute the adjacent brine, because
some of the excess of dry salt present immediately dissolves
and thus assures saturated brine at all times. It should also be
obvious that since the very purpose of using salt on fish is to
extract water, the addition of water to begin with simply sup-
plies just so much water to the salt and satisfies the affinity of
salt for water to that extent. The water should come from the
fish and not elsewhere.

To put the conclusions from this section of the paper into
words, when salt is applied dry to the fish, there is a more rapid
penetration of salt, less decomposition of fish, and it is possible
to preserve fish at a higher temperature; the superiority of dry
salt over brine resides in the fact that the brine in contact with
the fish is not permitted to be diluted when salt is present in
crystalline condition.

OTHER FACTORS THAT AFFECT PERMEABILITY

While no investigations appear to have been made on the
influence of temperature on the permeability of fish flesh, inves-
tigations have been made on a great variety of other living
things, so that it is probably safe to generalize cautiously
regarding such influences on fish. Osmotic pressure varies,
approximately, as absolute temperature.* That is, if we double
absolute temperature, osmotic pressure is doubled, other factors
being held constant. The range from freezing to 100° F.
within which fish salting is usually done is, on the absolute scale,
rather narrow (491.4° to559.4° A.), so the maximum variation
due to this cause would be about 14 per cent. It is, however,
a common experience in pickling fish that the warmer the tem-
Bert arcitic temperature is based on absolute zero, the point of no heat, or absolute

cold, which is — 273° C. or — 459.4° F. If we use degrees the same size as Fahren-
heit’s degrees, then o° F. is 459.4 absolute; 50° F. is 459.4 + 50 = 509.4 absolute, etc.

134 American Fisheries Society

perature, the more rapid the striking through, a difference too
great to be accounted for by temperature variations of osmotic
pressure. The cell-membrane itself must change. Whether any
more free permeability caused by warm temperature is perma-
nent after the fish is chilled again is not known, but the ques-
tion would be well worth investigating. Cold, when in the
neighborhood of freezing, also promotes permeability, as has
been proved by various experiments. It is quite possible that
fish chilled to a point near freezing would strike through much
more quickly than fish at the customary warmer temperature.
This matter also should be investigated.

Stale fish, i.e., fish whose cell-membranes have died, are
more permeable than fresh fish. The past spring some fish
were held in the laboratory all day at a temperature of about
75° F., and toward night were salted in pure salt and put in
an incubator at 100° F. By the next day they were struck
through. The combination of stale fish, high temperature, and
pure salt brought about extraordinarily rapid penetration.

LOSS BY FISH OF NUTRIENTS IN BRINE

The liquid that comes from fish during the salting process
is not pure water, as every fisherman knows, but contains a
quantity of material derived from the fish. Most of the nitroge-
nous matter found in brine represents just so much good
food gone to waste, and just so many pounds of fish that might
fetch a good price gone overboard. The quantity of protein
that escapes into the brine is highly variable, for reasons that
will appear later. That some idea may be had of the magnitude
of the loss of fish substance in brine, the following figures
are given; these figures were obtained in the course of inves-
tigation on the recovery of valuable materials from old brine.

Loss gy FisH or NutRIENT MATERIALS IN BRINE

Bri | Grams dry protein Avoirdupois
las per liter of brine | ounces per gallon
Rockfish brine from Alaska....... 29.30 39
Herring brine from Gloucester... 34.80 9.8

Cod brine from Gloucester........ 73.30 46

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 135

Since all the nitrogen in the brine was calculated as protein,
these figures are undoubtedly too high, but the bulk of the nitro-
gen is certainly of protein origin, so the figures may be taken
to illustrate the point made. If we assume fresh fish to be 75
per cent water and 25 per cent dry protein, the figures show
the equivalent amount of food fish flesh dissolved in brine
to be 15.6, 39.2 and 18.4 ounces, respectively, or from 1 to
2% pounds to the gallon of brine. Bitting* calculated the
losses in the curing of codfish as follows: Loss of weight in
dressing, 40 per cent; loss in salting, 40 per cent of what re-
mained after dressing; drying on flakes, 9 per cent of the salted
fish. The 40 per cent of the dressed fish contains much pro-
tein or valuable nitrogenous food. It would certainly seem
to be worth our while to examine into the causes of this loss
and to prevent or salvage it if possible.

How does this protein get out of the fish? It was said
above that protein is a colloid, and that colloids do not diffuse
through membranes. A small amount must come from the
blood, and from the cut surfaces on the fish, but most of it
will probably be found to come from the interior cells by a pro-
cess not yet investigated. We do know something directly
about autolysis, however, the great enemy of the fish dealer,
which liquifies the contents of fish flesh, and we have every
reason to believe that if autolysis were stopped the losses of
protein into brine would be reduced to a minimum. What is
autolysis, and how does it do its damage?

Protein, the colloid, cannot pass through an osmotic mem-
brane. But proteins can be decomposed into simpler substances
which readily dissolve and pass through. The agency which
breaks protein down into these simpler substances is called an
enzyme, and protein must always be so liquified or digested by
enzymes before it can be absorbed through membranes. Hence
the necessity of digestion in the stomach of animals prepara-
tory to absorption through the intestines. Now animals, includ-

*Bitting, A. W. Preparation of Cod and Other Salt Fish for Market. U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, Bureau of Chemistry, Bulletin No. 133, 63 pp., 1911, Washington.

136 American Fisheries Soctety

ing fish, require a certain amount of new protein to support
body activities which failing, the animal would immediately
perish. But the hazards in the existence of any animal often
make it obligatory to do without food for a shorter or longer
period. If the stomach became empty because of temporary
shortage of food or an injured mouth, the animal would die
unless special provision were made to supply protein from some
other source. But nature has kindly provided a means whereby
the proteins in the less important parts of the body can be
used, for the time being, to support the activities of the abso-
lutely necessary vital parts. The stored protein is within cells,
and could not possibly be carried by the blood stream to the
point of need unless it could get out. So there is in each cell
stored along with the protein some enzyme ready in case of
threatened starvation to break the protein down into simpler
substances which penetrate outward into the blood for trans-
portation to the point of need. The writer, in certain experi-
mental work, kept some pigfish (Orthopristis chrysopterus) for
three months absolutely without food. They lived at the
expense of their own bodies, the proteins apparently being
digested by autolytic enzymes.

These enzymes, present in every part of the fish, while
almost an absolute necessity to the living fish, become the
greatest enemy of the dead fish, for they soften and liquefy
the cell contents, cause unpleasant tastes and odors, and permit
the contents to escape from the cell into brine. The proteins
could not escape as long as they were proteins, but when they
are broken down by autolysis into simpler substances the latter
rapidly diffuse into the brine and are lost. This, at least, is
the hypothesis supported by some facts. ;

What factors promote autolysis, and what factors oppose it?
Warm temperatures promote it directly. A temperature suf-
ficiently high to destroy the enzyme stops it. Low temperatures
retard it directly.

Tf cells are ruptured as they often are by rough handling of
the fish, autolysis rapidly decomposes the protein; and for this

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 137

reason every bruise received by the fish during capture and
subsequent handling results in the loss of so much protein dur-
ing salting. A bruise on a fish has about the same effect as
does a bruise on an apple, promoting rapid decomposition. The
writer is of the opinion that if the bruised fish turned brown
as the bruised apple does, the fisherman and packer would be
more careful in the handling of their fish.

Factors that increase permeability of membranes seem fo
promote autolysis; low temperatures seem to increase the per-
meability of the cells so that fish that have been chilled decom-
pose more rapidly on being warmed than fish that have never
been chilled, though as long as the fish remains on ice the low
temperature may prevent the enzymes from doing their work.
It is as if increased permeability increases the escape of the
enzymes, and that once escaped they play havoc if tempera-
ture conditions are allowed to become favorable. The opti-
mum temperature for autolytic activity is about human body
temperature, 98° F. The autolytic enzymes act under a slightly
acid condition; in neutral or alkaline medium they act very
little, if at all. It has been noticed by various investigators
that autolysis does not begin until 2 to 4 hours after death.
During rigor mortis there is a decided development of acid that
may very materially promote autolysis. It may therefore be
that salting fish imediately after capture would strike through
the fish before autolysis gains any headway. It may be possible,
also, to take advantage of the removal of soluble products by
brine in the salvaging of fish on the point of spoiling. Fish
that have been held a long time are soft and of a disagreeable
odor, because autolysis and possibly some bacteria, have decom-
posed the tissues to some extent.

One might reasonably expect research to show that if rapid
penetration is secured by means of pure salt, the amino acids
and other sour or disagreeable substances in stale fish resulting
from autolysis would be removed by changing brine a few
times, leaving the fish in a condition quite wholesome and fit
for food. It is, of course, not intended here to encourage the

138 American Fisheries Society

practice of holding fish until they are bad, and then salting
them, but it is recognized that it is in the public interest
neither to destroy food that can be used, nor to market fish unfit
for food, and it is recognized as legitimate and desirable to
develop a means of saving fish wherever they have, through
the unavoidable exigencies of the fishing business, come near
to spoiling.

It would not be profitable to present this complicated sub-
ject any further here. Enough has been said to show that the
loss in salting fish, by solution of protein in brine, is very great ;
some discussion has been presented which will serve to show
that losses of this kind are preventable, and the probable direc-
tion in which the remedy for this great loss will be found, and
also, let us hope, to assist in convincing the skeptics that scien-
tific work on this aspect of the salting process would be worth
while. It is of the greatest importance that research work be
undertaken for the purpose of discovering the conditions under
which the cell proteins are digested and pass out, and for ascer-
taining the conditions under which these processes may be
arrested. Specifically, such questions as follow should be
answered: Once the permeability of cells has been increased by
abnormally high or low temperature, does this increased per-
meability persist after a normal temperature has been restored?
When autolysis is set in action by a bruise, do autolytic enzymes
affect only the part bruised, or do they escape and attack
the uninjured cells, destroying them also? To what extent
does the acid of rigor mortis accelerate autolysis and can this
acceleration be prevented by early application of salt? To
what extent is loss of soluble material in brine due to rough
handling, and to what extent to other factors? Can advantage
safely be taken of the removal of products of protein decompo-
sition by brine to salvage fish that are on the point of spoiling?

INFLUENCE OF METHOD OF CLEANING FISH ON SALTING

In the various processes of salting or pickling fish, the fish
receive no preliminary treatment, or may be gibbed, beheaded,
split through belly, split through back, or cleaned perfectly by

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 139

being cut open, scraped and washed before the salt is applied.
By what criteria can we judge the merits of these various
methods? The best way to answer this question is: Other con-
ditions being held constant, which method or methods of clean-
ing result in least decomposition during the salting process?

A series of trials was made by cleaning the fish by the va-
rious methods and salting them by the same process and deter-
mining the amounts of amino acid nitrogen developed. Two
sets complete were tried, one consisting of one sample each
cleaned by the various methods and held at a temperature of
79° F. during the salting process; another set similar to the
preceding but held at 80° F. during the salting process. Both
temperatures are high for salting fish, and the test is correspond-
ingly severe. The results are shown in the following table
which is abbreviated from the paper by Tressler:

DEVELOPMENT OF AMINO AcIpD NITROGEN IN FISH CLEANED IN VARIOUS
Ways

[Fish salted 4 hours after capture, with Diamond Flake Salt, containing
99.78 per cent sodium chloride; salting period 9 days]

Amino acid
Average nitrogen

tempera- formed dur-| Condition of fish at end

Method of cleaning ing salting

t f - f iod
salting | Period per eginn
fresh fish
°F Grams
No cleaning, salted round 79 0.77 Badly spoiled, bloated
Sitter reese 79 63 Spoiled

Head cut off, abdominal
cavity split open, viscera,
except milt and roe, re-
MIO VEG) hs: ee) eed ee 79 68 Spoiled

Cleaned perfectly, milt and
roe removed, kidney and
and membranes scraped

and all blood washed out 79 37 Excellent condition
No cleaning, salted round 88 1.12 Badly spoiled, bloated
PipGed) s/s ss. 3s eee 88 76 Badly spoiled

Head cut off, abdominal

cavity split open, viscera,

except milt and roe, re-

M0) C0 SC er ae ot 88 82 Badly spoiled
Cleaned perfectly, milt and

roe removed, kidney and

and membranes scraped

and all blood washed out 88 47 | Excellent condition

140 American Fisheries Society

Since amino acid nitrogen indicates decomposition, the con-
clusions from this table are entirely obvious: Only those fish
were successfully salted at temperatures of 79° and 88° which
had been thoroughly cleaned and from which all blood had
been removed. While these high temperatures were chosen for
the test because severe tests bring out differences in a more
striking way, the differences will still exist even at lower tem-
peratures and manifest themselves in the poorer or better qual-
ity of product. Now it may be either the blood or flesh or both
in which thé decomposition takes place. Since the perfectly
clean fish decompose only slightly in may be that only the blood
decomposed in such cases as those given in the table, and the de-
composed blood pervading the otherwise sound tissue gives the
appearance and odor of decomposition to the whole fish. On
the other hand, it is possible that the enzymes in the blood when
present, operate to decompose not only the blood proteins, but
the tissue proteins also. However this may be, the indisputable
fact remains that if fish are to be salted in very warm weather,
it is absolutely obligatory that the blood be removed. The blood
cannot be removed by mere eviscerating and rinsing in water.
The kidney, a very bloody organ inclosed by a membrane
against the backbone, must be scraped out before the fish is
washed. If fish are cleaned in this manner, and salt of a very
pure quality be applied in the dry condition, it is astonishing
not only what severe temperatures it will stand, but also how
excellent it is when cooked.

IMPROVED METHOD OF SALTING FISH ESPECIALLY FOR WARM
WEATHER

Several factors have now been shown to have a marked
influence on the quality of fish pickled in salt, namely, care in
handling before salting to prevent bruises, use of salt free from
calcium and magnesium (less than one per cent total impur-
ity), packing in dry salt, and thorough cleaning and removal
of kidney and blood. By combining all these factors into one

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 141

method, highly satisfactory results under the most adverse con-
ditions have been obtained.

A trial of the method was made in the herring season of
1920 (March, April and May), on the St. Johns River, Florida.
This region was selected because it offered a combination of the
conditions sought. The climate is excessively warm and there
is an abundance of fish (alewives) adapted to preservation by
pickling in a region where an industry might well be built up
and where repeated efforts to salt fish in the past had failed.
Accordingly, local fishermen and dealers were interested to
cooperate in the undertaking and an experienced fish packer
from the Chesapeake Bay region was sent to Florida, after he
had been thoroughly instructed in the technology of salting,
to try the method on a small commercial scale.

The details as conveyed to the fishermen for handling the fish
were: (1) Avoid (a) bruising in removal from gill nets, (b)
walking on, and (c) piling deep in boats; (2) salt as soon as
possible; (3) wash and scale in cold water; (4) behead and
eviscerate and (a) scrape out kidney or (b) split nearly
through to the back and lay open; (5) wash in weak brine to
remove all traces of blood; (6) rub with fine salt of a high
degree of purity and pack backs down in a barrel, leaving fish
lightly covered to form their own brine; (7) after struck
through pack down and add other fish of the same lot to fill
barrel; and (8) in conclusion (a) head up barrel and pour sat-
urated brine into bunghole to cover fish for storage, or (b)
if to be sold for consumption at once, “corn” them by taking
out of the brine and rubbing in fine dry salt, then pack in
sugar barrels or other light containers and ship immediately.

The results fully justified expectations in every way. The
fish were preserved successfully and none that had been handled
in the prescribed way spoiled. They were pronounced in eat-
ing qualities as good as or better than the best commercial salt
herring from the Chesapeake Bay region. In order to test
the absolute necessity of the prescribed methods, other small
batches were put up in different ways, by using cheaper salt,

142 American Fisheries Society

leaving roes in, and such modifications. These trials were fail-
ures without exception. The Bureau of Fisheries has been
advised that plans are being made by those who received the
instructions to pack fish in carload lots by this method next
season.

The successes and failures under these extremely adverse
conditions tell us much about what could be expected under
more favorable conditions. What succeeds under severe con-
ditions will be a finer product under more favorable conditions,
and what spoils under severe conditions will be an inferior pro-
duct under conditions in which it does not actually spoil.

It should be noted that the product prepared by this method
is mild and sweet, approaching very closely fresh fish in eating
qualities, if it has been properly soaked out.

SCOTCH CURED HERRING

The discussion in this paper so far presupposes the desira-
bility of preserving, as far as possible, the flavor and eating
qualities of fresh fish. The Scotch cure does not involve this
supposition, but aims directly at giving the cured fish a new
and distinct flavor from partiy decomposed or fermented blood,
the purpose being the same as that governing the flavoring
of cheese by ripening. The blood is not removed, the fish
rather being allowed to cure in its own blood pickle, a distinc-
tive flavor thereby being imparted. They are gibbed, rubbed
with dry, fine salt and packed, more fish being added to make
up for shrinkage, and shipped or stored in the original blood
pickle. The method is suitable for cold but not for warm
climates. Since, however, Scotch cured herring come in a
special class of fermented products where different motives
and processes are concerned, the method will not be further
discussed here.

BEHAVIOR OF FAT DURING SALTING PROCESS

So far in this paper discussion has been limited to the
behavior of the protein or meat constituents of fish. It will

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 143

be found that fat is also of the greatest importance, and re-
quires very careful consideration and study. All fishes have
some fat, but the quantity is variable from species to species,
between individuals of the same species, and within a single
individual from season to season. The distribution of fat
is also different in different species of fish. Some fishes, such
as herring, salmon and alewives, contain fat well distributed
throughout the body tissues. In others, such as cod and
haddock, the fat is localized in some particular part of the
body, as, in the species mentioned, the oil is contained in the
liver, the flesh being almost entirely destitute of oil. For
reasons that will be set forth later, fat fish must not be ex-
posed to the air because of untoward changes that air causes
in the fat; but no harm is done to the protein constituents.
Therefore fish which do not contain fat may be dried in air
after they are salted.

In practice these differences are well recognized. In the
case of cod and haddock, in which the muscle tissue is free
from fat, the. greater part of free water is extracted in the
usual way by salt, later assisted by the pressure of piles or
kenches in which the lower layers are pressed by the weight of
the upper layers in the kench, and finally by drying out-of-
doors or in artificial drying tunnels. Fish prepared by this
method are packed and shipped in the dry state, with advan-
tages in saving of freight and simpler handling in general.
In the case of mackerel and herring, and such other fishes as
have fat muscle tissue, the fish must at all times be carefully
excluded from contact with air. If the fish are directly ex-
posed to air for a time, the fish “rust,” i. e., the fat becomes
reddened and rancid, and the value of the fish for food is very
greatly impaired. This rusting, especially of salt mackerel,
is of immediate and pressing practical importance, for there
is a regular waste of a large percentage of mackerel on our
northeastern coast for no other cause than rustiness and ran-
cidity. This aspect of the subject has not been investigated
to any great extent, but there is just as much reason to expect

144 American Fisheries Society

valuable results to accrue from work on this problem as have
accrued from the work already described.

Fats consist of a combination of glycerin with fatty acids.
In the absolutely pure state, which is scarcely attainable in fact,
they would be colorless, odorless and tasteless. They usually
contain a greater or smaller quantity of coloring matter dis-
solved; under certain conditions the combination, glycerin-
fatty acid may be broken down, free glycerin and free fatty
acid resulting. Free fatty acid has both taste and odor, in
fact, our choicest fishes such as salmon, shad and mackerel,
owe much of their peculiarly palatable flavor to the small
amount of free fatty acid present. But free fatty acid, on
exposure to air and light, readily oxidizes, developing during
the process a darker color and an unpleasant odor and taste
which we call rancidity. Once fats have become rancid they
can never be restored to their original sweetness.

What conditions promote rancidity? First, the fat must
be decomposed or “split” into glycerin and free fatty acid.
Next it must oxidize. Just as fish contain autolytic enzymes
that decompose protein, so they also contain fat-splitting
enzymes. These enzymes require moisture and warmth for
their activities. Fat that has been removed from the tissue
that produced it may be kept, under proper conditions, for
a long time, because only a small amount of fat-splitting
enzyme goes with the oil, but when the fat is not removed
from the original source, all the enzyme is present and avail-
able to produce decomposition. So in salt fish the fat is in the
presence of moisture and an abundance of enzyme, and
the necessary warmth is usually present also, ideal conditions
for decomposition. The fat having been split to fatty acid,
there are two factors, so far as known, namely, air and light,
which promote oxidation.

Some little study has been devoted to the effect of salts,
such as sodium chloride and calcium chloride on the splitting
of fats, but not enough is known about the effect of these

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 145

substances in concentration to be of any assistance. Whether
or not bruises have the effect in promoting decomposition of
fat that they have in promoting decomposition of protein is
not known, but would be well worth knowing, and here fur-
ther investigation is certain to be of value. It is known that
much of the fat in living fish is contained within enclosed
cells, and that even the fattest fish is not greasy when fresh.
But whenever the cells are ruptured by rough handling, de-
composition, or whatever cause, the oil escapes and is exposed
to all the unfavorable influences of enzymes, moisture, air
and light, and the fish has become greasy. Eventually it will
become rancid. And further, oil escaped from the fish, being
lighter than brine, at once rises to the top of the barrel and
is lost as food.

All sorts of possible preventives of rust are practiced or
suggested for practice; such things as impermeable barrels,
air-proof covering over the liquid, a reducing substance in the
brine to absorb the oxygen, cool, dark storage, and the like.
There is, of course, much dissolved oxygen in the juice of the
fish and in the brine and also considerable amounts of free
oxygen occluded in the cavities of the fish to effect consider-
able rancidity even if all outside air is excluded. This dis-
solved and occluded air can be removed by a vacuum pump,
but has never been tried commercially, so far as the writer is
aware. Very little improvement can be expected until the
problem has been thoroughly investigated by scientific
methods. In the improved technique recommended by the
Bureau of Fisheries in Florida, complete covering of the salt
fish by brine in tight barrels was specified.

REDDENING OF COD AND HADDOCK

If cod and haddock escape rusting because of lack of fat,
they are subject to another enemy perhaps as bad, namely,
reddening, by which large quantities of cod and haddock are
lost every year. For the past three years work has been con-

146 American Fisheries Society

ducted by Dr. W. W. Browne under the Division of Scientific
Inquiry of the Bureau of Fisheries on the causes of redden-
ing and significant results have been obtained. The cause, in
general, has been known for many years to be bacteria; but
otherwise little has been known of their origin, or of their
peculiarities.

Briefly stated, the results of the work cited are as follows:
The bacteria that cause reddening are of two distinct kinds, a
spirochzte which in colonies is pale pink, and a bacillus whose
colonies are deep red. The two organisms grow in such close
harmony that mixed colonies occur which vary in color from
pale pink to deep crimson as the proportions of the two organ-
isms present vary. The evidence points to the solar sea salts
from the tropical and subtropical seas as the source of the
infection. Solar sea salts, both American and foreign, are
infected. Mined salts seem to be free from the infection.

Every species of bacteria is acclimated to some particular
set of conditions, some of them almost incredible for living
things. These red bacteria are accustomed to live and grow
either on moist salt or very strong salt solutions. If bacteria
are particularly resistant to some condition, as to strong salt
in this case, it does not follow that they are likewise resistant
to all severe conditions; it is the bacteriologist’s business, by
studying all the habits and peculiarities of the organism, to
discover its weakest point where attack will destroy it. The
strongest resistance of these bacteria, that against salt, is also
the weakest, for it has been found that water less than 15 per
cent saturated destroys them. Thus, the best and simplest
remedy for the trouble is clean, fresh water, and plenty of it.
Of course, it would be futile to try to stop the reddening
of cod as long as every shipment of salt brings new infection,
and the butts, floors, buildings and the surroundings at pack-
ing plants are heavily infected. The remedy is to clean up
the places completely with cold water and live steam, and to
abandon imported solar salts. Facts already given indicate

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 147

also that for other reasons salt free from impurity is better.
The results on reddened cod only emphasize this advice.

The research on reddening should not, however, end here.
We are, again, dealing with questions of permeability. The
bacteria are adjusted to strong salt solutions, that is, the body
fluid is of such concentration and their covering membrane is-
of such partial permeability that when surrounded by strong
salt solution they live normally, but when water or weak brine
surrounds them, these relations are disturbed and they die.
Probably water enters the cell in excessive quantity. It is
known that the reddening does not attack fat fish. Perhaps
the fat acts directly on the membrane, or indirectly by acting
on the calcium and magnesium in the salt, to effect the dis-
turbance.

RECOVERY OF BRINE

Even crude salt now costs considerably more than coal.
Yet the fish packers who are usually very careful to economize
coal are prodigal in the use of salt. Every hundred pounds
of brine that goes overboard contains about twenty-five
pounds of salt, to say nothing of the valuable nitrogenous
matter that the brine extracted from the fish. Considerable
work has been done by the writer and his associates on the
development of a process to recover salt and other substances
of value from old pickle. A trial plant has been in use and
under observation at an important fish packing establishment
for over a year, but has not reached a satisfactory stage for
publication of details. Brine pure enough for use is recov-
ered, while a substance very rich in nitrogen is yielded as a
by-product. This substance in the dry condition is nearly
white and friable and contains enough nitrogen to command
a handsome price as fertilizer, if suitable for that purpose;
but there are other uses of it under consideration for which it
may be more valuable. The method being tried recovers
brine; for this reason some other method that would produce
dry salt may be better. In any event, this promising subject

148 American Fisheries Society

is commended to the chemists and engineers for study; we
cannot doubt that a few years will bring forth a complete
solution of the problem of recovering things of value from
brine that will make us wonder why we ever threw it away.

ACCESSORY AGENTS IN SALTING

Various other chemicals are sometimes used in salt, or
along with it for various purposes. Some of these will be
briefly discussed.

Saltpeter performs two functions in brine for the preser-
vation of meat, namely, it combines with the red substance
of blood, hemoglobin, which is unstable, to form a perma-
nently stable red derivative, nitroso-hemoglobin. By virtue
of its oxidizing power it may also oxidize hydrogen sulphide
into sulphur dioxide and water, i. e., a very foully odoriferous
stuff to a substance which both bleaches and sterilizes. Salt-
peter is, however, little used in curing fish, for the red color
is undesirable, and hydrogen sulphide is rarely troublesome.

Boric or boracic acid is added to the final application of
salt to dried salt cod. This is to prevent reddening. Un-
doubtedly it does do so, and undoubtedly most of it is re-
moved from the fish when the latter is soaked up before cook-
ing. Nevertheless, the writer is of the opinion that the end
of this practice is not distant. Boric acid has long ago been
condemned as a food preservative. With the comparatively
small amount of scientific investigation that has already been
done, we have reason to hope that not only can reddening
be prevented, but that by the general refinement and improve-
ment of methods it will become unnecessary to use artificial
preservatives to prevent reddening. Of course, it devolves
upon the scientists to make good these claims and expectations,
but it devolves upon the fish industry to provide the scientists
and provide them with means to make good.

A method of promoting the preservation of fish by salt
by the aid of sodium hypochlorite along with the salt has been

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt 149

patented. The original idea, it is understood, was to de-
compose the salt in sea water by electrolysis, sodium hypo-
chlorite being formed. It was claimed that the sodium hypo-
chlorite penetrates faster than ordinary salt. This substance
contains some oxygen that may be given off to act as a steril-
izing agent; after the oxygen is given off, ordinary salt or
sodium chloride remains. What advantages the process pos-.
sessed are not altogether apparent, for nothing appears to have
come of it. It may be said, however, that sodium hypochlorite
readily destroys urea, so that this substance might be advan-
tageous in the preservation of grayfish and sharks, but is un-
stable and must be used as soon as it is made.

OTHER FACTORS

The size and shape of the fish obviously has much to do
with the time required for salt to penetrate through. Salt
effects no preservation of parts until it reaches them. A thick
fish may spoil while a thin fish may be saved; hence the split-
ting of fish. Other methods of applying the salt to the inner
parts of fish may be used, such as a needle syringe whereby
the brine is forced into the tissues, and compressed air which
is used to force brine into fish after the excess air has been
removed from them in vacuo. It should also be possible to
insert a needle in the gill arch and with pressure completely
irrigate the whole system of arteries and veins of a fish, re-
moving absolutely all the blood at one stroke without cutting
the fish.

CONCLUSIONS

The preservation of fish by means of salt is an excellent
method, even in the crude inexact manner in which the art has
hitherto been practiced. The comparatively small amount of
scientific research that has been done on the problems and
principles involved has not only justified itself in practice, but
furnishes abundant grounds for the expectation that a great
deal more of valuable results would follow further work.

150 American Fisheries Society

It is not mere guessing to say that when advantage is taken
of all that is known of improved salting methods, a fish equal
in edible qualities to fresh fish for nearly all palates is ob-
tained, for fish so prepared have been cooked and eaten in
this laboratory.

There is every reason to expect a good future for the salt
fish industry, but progress must be made. Preservation by
this method is eminently practicable, simple and reliable for
holding and transporting our sea fishes to the inland popu-
lation.

Scientific research should be encouraged more than ever;
it does not do itself, but must be done. Governmental insti-
tutions can do something, but unless the industry concerned
really uses its influence to see that adequate attention is paid
to the problems of the fisheries like this, we may be certain
that no one else will do so.

SUMMARY

1. <A discussion of the principles involved in the preser-
vation of fish by salt has been presented.

2. Salt possesses no inherently peculiar preserving quali-
ties, but preserves foods by extracting water.

3. The principle by which salt (and other soluble sub-
stances) in concentrated solution extracts water is called os-
mosis. Osmosis is the passage or interchange of liquids and
solutions through membranes more or less permeable. The
permeability of cell-membranes in fishes is affected by high
and low temperatures; the presence in or absence from the
salt of certain impurities, notably calcium and magnesium
compounds; by the treatment of the fish; and by the staleness
of the fish.

4. Calcium and magnesium, in addition to retarding pen-
etration, cause a whitening and hardening of the fish.

5. The flavor of fish is often altered by the salting pro-
cess. Calcium salts retained in the tissue increase the salty

Taylor.—Preservation of Fish by Salt VS

taste and make necessary a prolonged soaking out. Undesir-
able flavors of fishes from muddy waters may be removed by
salting them.

6. Salt applied dry penetrates the fish more rapidly and
effects a quicker cure, with less danger of spoilage in warm
weather.

7. There is a very material loss of protein material from
fish during the salting process. This material is probably
decomposition products ordinarily unable to pass out of the
cells, but which are digested by autolysis, an internal destruc-
tive process.

8. Autolysis is increased by crushing, bruising, rough
handling, pewing, elevated temperatures, low temperatures fol-
lowed by a rise, and, in general by factors that increase cell
permeability. It is retarded or arrested by continued low
temperatures, sufficiently high temperatures, and salt.

9. The damage done by autolysis appears to be in large
part preventable.

10. Fish containing blood, or otherwise not well cleaned,
spoil at a lower temperature than those thoroughly cleaned and
freed from blood. Thoroughly cleaned fish may be salted at
from 90° to 100° F. if pure salt is used.

11. A method of curing fish embodying the improve-
ments cited was tried in Florida on a small commercial scale
with gratifying success. Plans are being made to pack fish
next year on a large scale by this method.

12. Scotch cured herring develop a peculiar flavor which
is derived from the fermented or otherwise altered blood.
This method has for its aim an alteration to suit particular
tastes, while other methods of salting discussed aim at the
preservation of the fresh qualities of fish.

13. Fats undergo certain changes after the fish is salted,
resulting in a condition known as “rusting.” Rusting con-
sists of oxidation of fat after the latter has been split into
free fatty acids. This splitting is caused by tissue enzymes in

rSz American Fisheries Society

the presence of warmth and moisture. Oxidation is brought
about through the agency of light in the presence of water.
While rusting causes large losses of fish, the means of pre-
venting it, such as tight barrels, air tight covering, and cool
dark storage, are not very satisfactory. The problem de-
mands further investigation.

14. Fishes whose flesh is not fat, and therefore not prone
to rust, are subject to damage by reddening. Reddening is
caused by two organisms, a spirochete and a bacillus. They
may be destroyed by fresh water or live steam. They origi-
nate probably in solar sea salt, and are apparently not found
in mined salt, or other purified American salt.

15. Work has been done toward the development of a
process for recovery of salt and other valuable materials from
brine. There are a number of promising possibilities which
should make this an attractive field for chemists and engineers.

16. Certain substances are sometimes used as adjuncts in
salting fish. Saltpeter preserves a pink color and neutralizes
hydrogen sulphide. Boric acid is used for preserving cod
against reddening. Sodium hypochlorite has been proposed as
advantageous in conjunction with salt. It may be produced
electrolytically from sea water.

17. The size and shape of the fish influences the rate of
penetration of salt into it. Certain mechanical methods of
forcing brine into large fish may be advantageous.

ADEQUATE FISH INSPECTION: A MEANS TO
BETTER FISH FOR THE CONSUMER AND
TO INCREASED FISH FOOD CONSUMPTION

By ArTHUR L. MILLETT
State Inspector of Fish, Boston, Mass.

It is elemental that good food preserves and protects
the health of a nation.

It is fundamental that the better the condition of a
food staple the more of that staple will be consumed.

It is a lamentable fact that the consumption of fish in
the United States and Canada is pitiably low as compared
with England and several other European nations, and
this in spite of the fact that the fishing resources of the
first two named countries are unrivaled in the world.

Several reasons have been presented for this state
of affairs. Inadequate and slow transportation and poor
handling of catch are two most frequently brought for-
ward, but the main reason has been generally overlooked
—the supplying of only good fish to the consumer.

If the same care were taken with the marketing of
fish food as with beef and canned products, the yield of
our farms of the sea, lake and river would now be vying
for supremacy with land food commodities. Beef and
canned vegetable products are subjected to stringent in-
spection, and the results from the standpoints of health
and increased and increasing consumption are apparent
to all. If inspection has done this for beef and canned
goods, why cannot a proportionate measure of good
results be thus obtained for fresh and salt fish foods? It
is the contention of this paper that it can.

CANNOT WORK MIRACLES

Fish cannot come out of cold storage in any better con-
dition than it is put in. The sudden cold blast and freez-

154 American Fisheries Society

ing of fish can work no miracle. Fish in the retail store
cannot be expected to be strictly fresh if it is second or
third grade when shipped by the wholesaler. Salted fish
which was in poor condition when split, salted and boxed
will not be “Prime Georges” or ‘Selected Bank” when it
reaches the table for the Friday fish dinner, even though
plentifully treated with boracic acid and every bone
pulled.
FISH INSPECTION—THE SOLUTION

Inspection which will trace the fish from the time of
landing on the wharf until it is wrapped up by the market
man is the solution of these “poor fish’ troubles. Fish
inspection that actually inspects, as is the case with beef
and canned goods, will mean that the public will have
the opportunity of buying only good fish. With this ac-
complished, then, and only then, may we look for the
per capita consumption of fish here and in Canada to
increase and not before. Not until the consumer can
secure better fish will fish food consumption increase.

WHAT MASSACHUSETTS IS DOING

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the largest fresh
and salt-fish producing state in the country, after an in-
vestigation of her fisheries business, decided that some-
thing must be done if the fresh and frozen-fish industries
were to endure; and in 1919 passed a Fish Inspection Law
designed to secure better fish to the public and thus in-
crease fish consumption, and to deal severely with those
who refuse to live up to the “good fish” requirements of
the law.

This new law, which combines health, economic, and
anti-profiteering features, has to do basically with fur-
nishing the public with the opportunity of buying only
good fish and with knowing exactly what they are buy-
ing, and on this is based the assumption that, with this

Millett.—Adequate Fish Inspection 155

achieved, public confidence in the use of fish as a food
staple will be greatly increased, thereby bringing about
an increased demand for, and consumption of, Massachu-
setts-caught fish, to the end that the time-honored one-
fish-day-a-week will be relegated to the discard, and that
two and even three Fridays may become the rule and not
the exception in the food week program of every family.

WILL BRING CONFIDENCE TO FISH-BUYING PUBLIC

If the public can be educated to the fact that in buying
its fish dinner it is buying only good fresh or frozen fish
and that the dealer is, under the law, not allowed to ex-
pose for sale fish unfit for food (as has too often been
the case); also that the dealer is obliged by law to indi-
cate to the purchaser just what grade and what species
of fish he is buying, all in truthful terms, either by printed
signs or word of mouth, it is contended, and it would
seem reasonably so, that a state of confidence will be
set up in the minds of the buying public with the inevit-
able result that this same public will buy more fish, and
will eat more fish, that the average home will have more
fish days, and that fish as a food staple will come into
its Own.

This is the groundwork of the act to regulate the sale
and cold storage of fresh food fish, passed by the Legis-
lature of 1919.

The immediate cause back of this new law was the
investigation of the fish industry which was conducted by
a special committee of the Legislature. That committee
in its report to the Legislature made many recommenda-
tions and the outcome of these recommendations is the
present act, under which the state inspector of fish operates.

PROTECTS PUBLIC AND HONEST DEALER

It should be emphasized that this new law imposes
no hardship. It does, however, protect the public and

156 American Fisheries Society

the honest dealer. Since it will lead to increased con-
sumption of fish, it will be a direct financial benefit to the
dealer; and by reason of some of the provisions it cannot
fail, it would seem, to make several lines of fish cheaper
to the consumer than at the present.

Briefly, the law, which affects both wholesale and
retail dealers in fresh and frozen fish and also, in a less
degree, dealers in salt fish, provides the following salient
points:

All fresh food fish must be divided into three grades
before being offered for sale or placed in cold storage.
Naturally the first is to be known as “new fish,” while
the term “offshore fish” will designate the second grade
fish. Under the law “fish of the third grade shall in-
clude all fish which are suitable for splitting or salting,
but are not suitable for sale as fresh fish;” and also, fish
of the third grade cannot be sold at retail for food.

Under the law only fish of the first two grades may be
placed in cold storage, or offered or exposed for sale at
retail for food.

MUST SELL UNDER TRUTHFUL NAMES

The law provides for the designations of fish of the
various grades, and also, that only truthful terms shall
be used in the designation of the fish offered to the con-
sumer. For the purpose of enforcing the law, regula-
tions have been decided upon whereby with the assistance
of a system of invoices and receipts the exact grade and
quality of the fish can be truthfully represented and traced
way down the list from wholesaler and commission men
through the retailer to the buying public. This is one
of the prominent features of the regulations under which
the act will be enforced.

The dealer has the choice of marking his fish by signs
or by truthfully describing it by word of mouth. He
must do either one or both of these things. The sections

Millett—Adequate Fish Inspection 157

referring to the cold storage of fish are quite stringent,
but seem to meet with little or no objection from the
cold storage operators. Every concern carrying cold
storage fish must have a sign to that effect, and fish which
have been in cold storage may not, under the law, in any
manner be represented or sold or advertised as fresh
fish. The seller must also inform the purchaser, either
by sign or word of mouth, whether the fish purchased is
fresh or has been frozen. There are other regulations
limiting the time cold storage fish may be held by the
retailers, and a similar system of checks and invoices is
arranged for, as in the case of fresh fish dealers. The
regulations, it may be said, are mostly the translation
into plain, everyday English of the more technical phrases
of the law and also naturally provide ways and means for
the enforcement of the law. This, in brief, covers the act
and regulations.

During the past four months in a tour of various parts of
the state, observing many fish markets and methods of sale,
the need of such a law as has been briefly explained here has
been strongly evidenced.

HOW FISH ARE MASQUERADED

Considerable quantities of fish which appeared to be
below standard have been observed with little or no at-
tempt to distinguish between the grades both as to price
and quality. This is more noticeable in markets of the
cheaper class than in others. In many types of markets,
however, has been seen what at least can be termed eva-
sion of truthful terms; for instance, lowly pollock mas-
queraded as “Boston Bay Blues,’ and, in some cases,
was baldly and boldly labelled “Bluefish.”

Catfish, because of its close affinity to the name of
despised dogfish, and its own none too pleasant personal
appearance, appears, nicely skinned and steaked, on clean
white platters, temptingly marked “Whitefish.” Natur-

158 American Fisheries Society

ally the buyers think it is the whitefish of the Great Lakes.
It can be truthfully stated, however, that the catfish is
one of the most delicious of all our salt water groundfish.

In some markets Pacific halibut masqueraded as east-
ern halibut, and Pacific salmon as eastern salmon. There
is no question here, in these two cases, as to the quality
or fitness for food, but the economic value of the new
law is emphasized in that the unlawful substitution means
from 5 to 10 cents a pound to the purchaser, the Pacific
fish costing the dealer less in both instances.

These few cases are cited merely to show what this
law, properly enforced, can do away with, to the benefit,
financial and otherwise, of the consumer, and this also
without detriment in any way to the honest dealer.

PROGRESS ALREADY MADE

It can be asserted here with assurance that already the
new law is proving its worth. A campaign of education
throughout the state, acquainting dealers and public with
the scope and intent of the new law, has aroused much
interest and has been strongly taken up by the press.
Many of the leading dealers, particularly among the
wholesalers, have shown a splendid readiness to co-
operate.

Masquerade titles for fish are being eliminated from
the weekly price lists of many large concerns. A smaller
amount of number three grade fish is being handled by
the splitters and also as a result of this law the great salt
fish concerns are already planning to handle little or no
third grade fish next season. The importance of this is
far reaching.

Pollock, properly labelled, are appearing in the mar-
kets and a few days ago there was observed in the show
window of a large retail market, where generally the
platter of “Whitefish” was wont to appear, a large cat-

Millett—Adequate Fish Inspection 159

fish, head, skin, tail and all, calmly reposing on a cake
of ice and actually tagged “Catfish.”

It is not claimed that a fish millenium has been
reached through this new law, but a good start has been
made and conditions are certainly improving. Every
state that enacts a similar law is bringing the “better _
fish—more fish” era nearer to hand.

THE ANSWER TO AN UNSOLVED PROBLEM

This paper does not attempt to discuss whether in-
spection by national or state agents is preferable or
likely to be more effective. An effort has simply been
made to show that thorough fish inspection, from the
moment of landing down through the various trade and
cold storage channels, until the fish reach the hands of
the consumer, will accomplish the desired results—a bet-
ter quality of fish food for the public and increased con-
sumption.

How to supply the consumer with a better grade of
fish has been for years and is today one of the greatest
unsolved problems of the commercial fisheries world. It
has been demonstrated that an overplus can be produced
under present conditions, but the goal most necessary to
gain is to determine how fish in better eating condition can be
offered to the public.

Adequate fish inspection is the solution. With this
achieved, will come increased confidence on the part
of the buying public and an increased catch will thus not
only be taken care of but will be necessary to meet the
demand.

Discussion

PRESIDENT Avery: Is there any discussion on this very important
paper?

Mr. Mittetr: This paper was not prepared with any idea of par-
ticular merit in itself, but simply to bring to your attention the fact that
in the State of Massachusetts, the greatest fresh and salt-fish producing

160 American Fisheries Society

state of our country, steps are being taken in the direction of having
all the food fish that goes to the consumer so prepared that it shall
be fit for food. On many occasions in the past the consumer has found
fish absolutely unfit for food, and that has been the cause of many people
not liking fish and not eating fish.

Mr. MarsHatt McLean, New York, N. Y.: May I ask Mr. Millett
if any provision is made for the utilization of third-grade fish? Fish
is a commodity which spoils rapidly. Could third-grade fish be manu-
factured into fertilizers or anything of that kind?

Mr. Mittetr: Concerns like the Russia Cement Company would
take all the third-grade fish they could get for glue and fertilizer. I
mention this company because it operates in the vicinity of our city.

Mr. McLean: Is that permissible under the law?

Mr. Mitietr: Yes, as long as the fish do not get into the markets.

PRESIDENT Avery: Are third-grade fish unfit for consumption?

Mr. Mittetr: No, they are not; that is the point. The law is very
misleading. Third-grade fish are fit for food, but not, of course, as good
as the first two grades. I may explain that during the summer, vessels
carrying twenty tons of ice, when they should carry sixty, go to the
Banks, fill up with fish, and bring them home. These fish are not all fit
for the Boston market, though they may be all right if salted, because
salt is a preservative. The firms in Gloucester are now making efforts
to bring about an arrangement under which they will not accept even
third-grade fish for their salting. In other words, they are going to use
for their salting the same grades of fish, No. 1 and No. 2, that you buy in
the market to eat fresh.

Mr. Geo, D, Pratt, Albany, N. Y.: What is to become of your third-
grade fish?

Mr. Mittetrt: When a boat is out three weeks or more, the first two
weeks’ catch can be salted on the vessel; then the last weeks’ catch can be
brought home in fresh condition. This would revolutionize the methods
of fishing during the hot summer months.

Mr. W. E. Barper, La Crosse, Wis.: Are your fish houses licensed
in Massachusetts ?

Mr. Mittett: No, except to the extent that they were licensed under
the Food Administration.

Mr. Barser: The licensing of these institutions is important. It
seems to us in Wisconsin that a law licensing these fish-packing intitu-
tions would be most effective in bringing about observance of the law.
If they know they will lose their license if they violate the law, they
simply will not violate it.

Mr. Geo. A. Lawyer, Washington, D. C.: What classes of fish are
denominated “third-grade”?

Mr. Mittetr: Third-grade fish are simply those that are a little too
old to appear on the table. I do not know exactly how to explain it,
but they are fish that are not suitable for sale in retail markets. When
we catch fish for the markets our vessels go very heavily iced and the

Millett—Adequate Fish Inspection 161

fish should arrive in splendid condition. They are really in the pink
of condition.

Mr. Lawyer: What percentage of the catch is third-grade?

Mr. Mitietr: I should say about one-fourth.

Mr. Lawyer: This law will tend to eliminate third-grade fish?

Mr. Mittetr: Yes, for the table.

Mr. Lawyer: And is that going to help increase the supply of fish?

Mr. Mittetr: Surely; it is going to make the fisherman take better
care of his fish and make shorter trips. More salted fish will also be
brought in.

Mr. Lawyer: What I was coming at was this: you will not con-
tinue to have third-grade fish. It is going to be made into fertilizers
and its value, whatever that may be, as a food product destroyed.

Mr. Mittetr: When the fishing operation is properly carried on you
would not find more than a few thousand pounds of third-grade fish
in a 150,000 pound trip. These would naturally go to the fertilizer
people.

PROFESSOR PriINcE: I would like to say one word from the Cana-
dian standpoint. I consider this one of the most practical and valuable
papers that we have. We have had much extremely valuable material
presented, but when it comes down to bed rock it is really, after all,
the consuming public that is the ultimate goal in the exploitation of
commercial fisheries. A prominent Canadian fish merchant said to
me: “I like fish, but if I get a poor fish I do not want to see fish on
my table again for another week.” Now it is possible to put fish in
our markets in the very best condition. I think Mr. Millett’s paper
really implies that. Of course, you cannot make good fish out of bad;
if the fish are not cared for in the first instance they cannot be im-
proved afterwards. Salting may save them but it does not make them
better. In many cases the inferiority of fish is due to the fact that when
salted they were not in good condition. There is no reason why we
in the United States and Canada should not have the very best quality
of fish, whether smoked or fresh. Mr. Millett puts everything in a
nutshell, and what he has given us will be of great value. In Canada
we are taking steps towards improvement in these matters, through our
Canned Fish Act, Preserved Fish Act, and so on, and we are trying
to bring about more efficient inspection. But of course it will be diffi-
cult to achieve the results desired until the fishermen realize the part
they must play. In that rests the secret of this whole business.

Mr. Mittett: We in Massachusetts feel that we are making a start
in this matter. We hope that other states and countries will go ahead
and help us out.

Mr. Lawyer: Is it profitable for the fisherman to catch fish for
fertilizer?

Mr. Mittett: No, we do not catch fish for fertilizer; that is
furthest from the mind of any person who is engaged in the fishing
business. We catch third-grade fish for splitting and salting.

162 American Fisheries Society

Mr. Barser: I was amused at the statement in the paper that when
catfish were sold as whitefish they had a ready sale. The catfish may be
just as edible and just as palatable as whitefish, yet to most people its
name is repulsive. Would it not be possible for this Society to change
the names of some of our fish? For instance, in our state what is
known as the “sheepshead” finds a ready market when sold under the
name of “gray bass,” whereas if offered for sale under the name of
catfish, it could not be sold at all. We have also what we call “dog-
fish,” a name which has somewhat the same implication as catfish.

Mr. Mittert: One of the few occasions on which I differed with my
friend Dr. Smith was when he took steps, in connection with his work
in the Bureau of Fisheries, to masquerade “dogfish” under the name
of “grayfish.” I never liked the idea of it.

Mr. Barzer: It should not be “dogfish.”

Mr. Mittert: In the Missouri River, in the Upper Platte and around
there, the catch of catfish is something like 27,000,000 pounds a year.
What is the need of changing the name from catfish, when 27,000,000
pounds a year are sold under that name?

Mr. Barser: Because it tastes better.

ProFESSOR PRINCE: There is in progress at this very time a con-
ference in Ottawa dealing with the trade names of fishes, and a list is
in course of preparation, which may be the subject of consideration by
this Society at some future meeting. Many fish which at present bear
a grotesque name will appear under some different name. I have in
my hand a pamphlet which deals with a fish to be known as “mutton
fish.” It is the rock-eel, or marine eel-pout and though many people
object to it, it is the best fish for table use that I know of. Along our
Canadian shores it occurs in quantities, but here and along the shores
of the United States it is not yet much used for food. “Mutton fish”
is a good name.

FIFTY YEARS OF FISHERY ADMINISTRATION
IN CANADA

By Pror. EDWARD E. PRINCE

Dominion Commissioner of Fisheries, Secretary-Treasurer
of the Biological Board of Canada
Ottawa, Canada

The Dominion fisheries have been for over fifty years ad-
ministered by a department, or bureau, of the federal service
under a minister, who is an elected Member of Parliament,
a member of the cabinet, and holds the portfolio of marine and
fisheries.

Federal administration was established by virtue of an
act passed by the Imperial Parliament in London, and dated
March 29, 1867, and naming “Sea-Coast and Inland Fisher-
ies,’ as among the subjects within the exclusive legislative
authority of the Parliament of Canada, along with twenty-
eight other matters coming under that authority. The four
Provinces, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec,
had been separate colonies before coming into confederation,
and had their separate jurisdictions. As other Provinces,
like Prince Edward Island, and British Columbia, came in
(until there were at least eleven divisions, nine Provinces and
two Territories included in the Dominion) it is easy to under-
stand that rights of property, and of jurisdiction, which had
not been fully defined, readily became subjects of legal dispute.
From time to time test cases have been tried, and the highest
Imperial Court, the Privy Council Judicial Committee in Lon-
don, has been appealed to and has given many important de-
cisions.

FISHERIES DEPARTMENT CREATED.—The first Minister of
Marine and Fisheries was the Hon. Peter Mitchell, a native of
New Brunswick, and long a prominent figure in Canadian poli-
tics. In his first report, addressed to His Excellency the Right
Hon. Sir John Young, Baronet, Governor General of Canada,

164 American Fisheries Society

he says: “No such department had previously existed in any
of the Provinces which now form the Dominion, but when
the extensive and varied interests, connected with these
branches of the public service, were duly considered, it was
deemed advisable to create a separate department for their ad-
ministration, with a member of the Government at its head;
but the Canadian act, specifying its organization and scope,
passed during the first session of the new Federal Parliament,
did not receive His Excellency’s assent until May 22nd, and
the department did not begin its legal existence until July
1, 1868.”

Successive HEAps OF THE DEPARTMENT.—During the
period, over fifty years, which has elapsed since that date no
less than a dozen distinguished Canadian statesmen have held
the fisheries portfolio. Including the present minister, these
are and have been: Hon. Peter Mitchell, Hon. Sir Albert
Smith, Hon. A. W. MacLelan, Hon. J. C. Pope, Right Hon.
Sir George E. Foster, Hon. Sir Charles Hibbert Tupper, Hon.
John Costigan, Hon. Sir Louis H. Davies, Hon. J. Suther-
land, Hon. Raymond Prefontaine, Hon. L. P. Brodeur, Hon.
Rodolphe Lemieux, Hon. J. D. Hazen and Hon. C. C. Ballan-
tyne, the last-named being the present head of the department.
Five of these received from the hands of the Sovereign the
high honor of knighthood, and in every case it was in recogni-
tion of services rendered in connection with the Canadian fish-
eries. The fisheries have been recognized by the King, as
the fathers of confederation recognized them, to be of su-
preme importance and involving interests of the greatest na-
tional and international moment.

EARLY CONSERVATION EFrorts IN Nova SCOTIA AND
New Brunswick.—Prior to confederation in 1867 the su-
pervision of the fisheries, in the respective areas named, had
been in the hands of the United Provinces of Upper and Lower
Canada, and administered by the Crown Lands Department,
but in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, a fisheries committee

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 165

existed which relied much upon advice from outside bodies
such as the Provincial Association for the Protection of Inland
Fisheries and Game in Nova Scotia (founded in Halifax in
1853), and largely owing its efficiency to officers in the Im-
perial Forces (army and navy) stationed in Canada, among
whom Captain William Chearnley was most prominent and-
for some years acted as supervisor of fisheries. He had a
number of wardens under him, who received 25 pounds per
annum under authority of chapter 17 of the Nova Scotia act
of 1853. The scheme to frame a complete set of regulations,
based on Captain Chearnley’s report after an inspection tour
in 1853, fell through. The Nova Scotia fisheries act, passed
in 1853, providing close seasons, rigorous penalties for viola-
tions, appointment of wardens in every county, etc., had proved
a failure, and the fisheries committee in 1855 decided to vote
no more grants from the public treasury for fishery protection.
New Brunswick, as early as 1845, authorized stringent salmon
laws in Restigouche County by an act of assembly (8 Victoria,
cap. 65), but Dr. M. H. Perley, in a report on the New Bruns-
wick Fisheries (1852), remarked that “these very stringent
and salutary provisions * * * are not enforced. In prac-
tice the act seems almost a dead letter,’’ he said “and a close
time, prohibition of taking and sale of grilse and immature
salmon, prevention of the use of the fish spear, and the en-
forcement of uniform laws in the Province generally are
necessary.” It is interesting to note that, while salmon and
trout claimed first attention, the protection of oysters was also
included in early fishery legislation in Prince Edward Island
and New Brunswick.

It was realized in New Brunswick that, unless backed up
by public opinion, the enforcement of fish and game laws is
almost impossible, and in 1851 a series of local fishery socie-
ties was started with the aid of a vote of five hundred pounds
($2,500) from the Legislature in Fredericton. Three of these
proved most successful in Charlotte County, opposite the coast
of Maine, and an annual fishery fair held on Campobello

166 American Fisheries Society

Island—one of which I attended a few years ago—is the sur-
vival of the old fishery society of southern New Brunswick,
founded seventy years ago.

EARLY FISHERY PROTECTION IN QUEBEC PRovINCE.—In
the Province of Quebec, or Lower Canada as it was called, a
bill for protecting salmon fisheries was introduced by the Hon.
David Price, member for Chicoutimi, and passed by the lower
house in Quebec, in 1855 or 1856, but after being approved by
the upper house it never proceeded further. Probably the
clauses requiring owners of dams to provide fish-passes proved
fatal, lumbering being the leading industry in Canada at that
time.

Fine salmon waters were very ruthlessly treated by the
lumberers, and Mr. Richard Nettle, a venerable and strenuous
advocate of fishery protection, whom I remember in the Do-
minion service twenty years ago in his old age, recorded in 1857
that Mr. Boswell, of Quebec, bought the Seigniory of Jacques
Cartier, with the old French rights in order to restore the
Jacques Cartier River by salmon culture; but as no protection
could be guaranteed by the Government he abandoned the
project.

RicHarp NETTLE First HatcHEs SALMON.—It was the
first scheme to hatch salmon artificially in Canada, but Mr.
Nettle did not drop the idea of fish culture, and later he pro-
cured eggs and hatched salmon in a small hatchery devised by
him in Quebec City, after his appointment as Superintendent
of Fisheries for Lower Canada, under the Crown Lands De-
partment. Mr. Nettle, who was thus the first man to hatch
fish in Canada, had a staff of ten overseers, stationed on the
Saguenay, the Godbout, and some Gaspe rivers, and many
reports were published by him, the last in 1859, which are
still of very great interest. His little work on the salmon
fisheries of the St. Lawrence and its tributaries, published in
Montreal in 1857, is an interesting but pathetic record, for it
shows the barbarous treatment of salmon and trout waters
generally, in early days.

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 167

Almost every river and stream from Niagara to Labrador
abounded with salmon in 1825, he tells us, and while he criti-
cises the Hudson Bay Company for not appreciating the sal-
mon resources, he candidly admits that a “prohibition by the
company affords the only present safeguard for the existence
of the salmon; * * * were that protection withdrawn,’
he says, “for one season, without effective means substituted,
salmon would be exterminated from our country.” Mr. Nettle
was himself an energetic and fearless officer, and inflicted
fines, under the act of 1855, for violations detected by him
during his lengthy tours.

First FIsHERY CRUISER IN CANADA.—A vessel was found
to be necessary for proper patrol, and as early as the period
with which I am dealing a fishery protection schooner, La
Canadienne, in command of Dr. Pierre Fortin, made inspec-
tion trips down the St. Lawrence shores, and even visited
the Magdalen Islands, and the waters from the Bay of Chaleurs
to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Dr. Fortin’s reports,
and his description of the condition of the salmon, cod, her-
ring, mackerel, seal, and whale fisheries are extremely inter-
esting. In his 1859 reports he tells of ten whaling vessels
fitted out at Gaspe, and operating with 200 local whaling men
for black whale, i. e., the great Arctic right whale, which
has long been extinct, excepting in remote polar waters. He
speaks of humpback, sulphur-bottom, and finner whales as
plentiful. He was succeeded by Inspector Theophile Tetu in
September, 1867.

In the old and rather rare printed reports, issued at this
time, the name of Mr. W. F. Whitcher appears as an officer
of the Quebec Crown Lands Department, who early paid at-
tention to the fisheries, and was afterwards appointed the
first Commissioner of Fisheries at Ottawa. Mr. Whitcher
did great service for the fisheries, and was regarded as an
able authority and a courageous administrator.

OnTaRIO LAWS AND ADMINISTRATION 60 YEARS AGO.—
The Ontario waters or Great Lakes fisheries were also the ob-

168 American Fisheries Society

ject of attention in these early times, 70 years ago. The first
Superintendent of Fisheries in Upper Canada was Mr. John
McCuaig, and he seemed to have only one officer under him,
Mr. William Gibbard, of Collingwood, who looked after the
more westerly waters, Lakes Huron and Superior; they found
great difficulty in enforcing what is called in the printed re-
ports the ‘‘New fisheries act of 1859.”

A system of leases for fishing locations along the Great
Lakes was introduced, but in carrying it out much trouble was
experienced. Some fishermen occupied the locations without
making the required payments, in the hope, the officer reported,
that after twenty-one years’ possession they would have a title
even against the Crown; but many claimed that they had
already paid rents to alleged owners, who were supposed to be
lessees of the Crown Lands Department, Toronto. Ten fam-
ilies, for example, at Point Pelee, Lake Erie, paid rent for
seven years (from 1852) to James Paxton, Amherstburg,
who himself rented land at $50 per annum, with the alleged
fishing rights. The officer reported that Paxton had not
paid the rent and owed the Crown Lands Department $350,
or seven years’ dues. The officer favored fishery leases to
responsible men, because it would have the effect, he thought,
“of ridding certain localities of a reckless and lawless class of
men who are doing their best to depopulate our waters.” Reck-
less overfishing seemed to have already begun, even when the
country was still sparsely settled and virgin forests extended
everywhere. We see how lacking in uniformity, and how
incomplete was the fishery administration in eastern Canada,
now formed of the five Provinces from Ontario to the Atlan-
tic coast.

FEDERAL Fisnerties Act, 1868.—A new era commenced at
confederation, and on the same day upon which the act re-
ceived the Vice-Regal signature (May 22, 1868) whereby the
Department of Marine and Fisheries was created, the fisheries
act also received the necessary assent of the Governor Gen-

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 169

eral. The Federal act is entitled “An Act for the Regulation
of Fishing and the Protection of Fisheries.”’ Section 24, the
last section of chapter 60 in the 31st year of the reign of Her
Majesty Queen Victoria, declared that it should be known and
cited as the fisheries act. With it was associated chapter 61,
31 Victoria, “An Act respecting Fishing by Foreign Vessels.”’

FEpERAL Act Incorporatep Existinc Laws.—The vari-
ous Provinces had anticipated that federal fishery legislation
would probably be based upon much of the existing legislation
in Upper and Lower Canada, and in New Brunswick and Nova
Scotia. One Nova Scotia authority, Mr. T. F. Knight, in a
report on the fisheries approved by the provincial govern-
ment, said that ‘““Under the act of confederation, the Canadas,
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, the fisheries are consigned
to a special bureau, and * * * the assimilation of the
laws relating to them will be one of the most delicate tasks
the Government will undertake.” As a matter of fact, the
first federal fisheries act was largely such an assimilation of
existing laws, and whole clauses were bodily transferred, and
remained there unchanged for nearly twenty years. Many
of these local provisions, no doubt suitable enough in early
days of colonial settlement, seemed too petty and detailed to
stand in a federal act; but most of them still remained in the
well-known act of 1886, known as chapter 95, though modified
in part by Orders in Council, passed from time to time down
to 1906, when chapter 45, revised statutes, supplanted chapter
95 (1886). The statutes of 1910, 1911 and 1912, referring
to fisheries need not be dwelt upon, but further changes were
embodied in chapter 8, 4-5 King George V (act of 1914), and
amending acts of 1917 (chapter 16) and 1918 (chapter 22).

SoME FEATURES IN First Act.—The twenty-two clauses
of the first fishery act contained much that was unwieldy, of
an unnecessarily detailed character, and, as already stated,
mainly transferred from the early provincial acts. But some
parts of the act are so important that a brief reference seems
necessary to certain of them: (1) A staff of federal fishery

170 American Fisheries Society

officers, invested with magistrate’s powers for the purposes
of the fishery act; (2) Federal fishery licenses and leases;
(3) close seasons for salmon, whitefish, lake trout, and other
important species; (4) provisions for requiring fish-passes,
and clear passage for any fish named in the act; (5) prohi-
bition of the capture of the young of any fish named in the
act; (6) free passage of fish on Sundays, and prohibition of
Sunday fishing; (7) prohibition of pollutions in waters fre-
quented by fish; (8) provision of fish-sanctuaries or fish-
reserves; (9) oyster and shellfish fisheries embraced in the
act; and (10) Orders in Council amending the act to have the
same force as the act itself.

There were some anomalies, such as the provisions which
repealed ten existing provincial acts, viz., 29 Victoria cap.
11 (1866), which amended chap. 62 (1859) of Upper and
Lower Canada acts; 23 Victoria, cap. 52 (1860), and 26 Vic-
toria, cap. 6 (1863); and Victoria 30 cap. 14 (1867), of the
Province of New Brunswick acts, while other provincial acts
were to continue in force, viz., 16 Victoria cap. 69 (1853)
New Brunswick, and chapters 94 and 95 of the Nova Scotia
acts, 26. Vict. cap. 35 (1865), 29 Vict. cap. 35, aad capped
(1866), and it was also provided that commissioners or
overseers of river fisheries in Nova Scotia, under chapter 103
of the provincial statutes, should continue to exercise author-
ity. One curious clause in the first federal fishery act is rather
a conundrum, viz., sub-sec. 3 of Sec. 14 which forbids any
one between June 1 and September 30 making a fire in or
near any forest or bush, or on any uncultivated land, on the
north shore of the St. Lawrence or Gulf from the Saguenay
River to Red Island, within the said gulf, whereby the fire
spreads to a distance of one arpent. The fine should not
exceed $50, and included the responsibility for all damages
occasioned by such fire, but licensees or proprietors might
burn or cut wood, if not doing any injury to their neighbors.
Such a forestry enactment seems out of place in a fishery act.
But if incongruous clauses and superfluous and cumbersome
sections appear, there are also notable omissions.

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada L/t

LogsTER INDUSTRY AND OTHER Omissions.—No mention
of the lobster is made at all, no prohibition of the use of
edible fish for fertilizer purposes, and only a bare reference
to whale fishing, in which industry explosives were forbidden ;
and there is no reference to the great salmon and lobster can-
ning enterprises, which have formed the subject of much nec-
essary later regulation. After I became Commissioner of
Fisheries in 1893, the necessity of establishing licenses for
lobster fishing and salmon canning seemed to me urgent in
order to protect and regulate them; but I found that most of
the older departmental officers opposed my suggestions, be-
cause canning was not a fishing operation, and lobstering was
not “a fishery in law.” My reply was: “Make lobstering a
fishery in law, demand a lobster fishing permit or license, and
bring salmon canning under the act.” Many years later, it
is hardly necessary for me to say, both these early proposals
of mine were embodied in the Canadian fishery laws. Dur-
ing the last twenty-five or thirty years the oyster, lobster, Pa-
cific salmon, and other fisheries, have been the subject of in-
numerable regulations, chiefly in the form of Orders in
Council.

ADVANTAGE AND DANGER OF ORDERS IN CouNCIL.—An
Order in Council is a law passed by the Canadian cabinet
without recourse to Parliament, and having the force of an
act of Parliament as already pointed out. It is a ready and
speedy method of accomplishing legislation, and the fishery
act provides that Orders in Council amending parts of the
act shall have the force of the statute or act itself. There
is a danger perhaps in this procedure, for hasty legislation
is not always good legislation, and a statute of Parliament
has greater weight and importance in popular estimation, but
legislation sanctioned by “The Governor General in Council,”
to use the correct phrase, saves the time of Parliament and
on the whole is a great advantage to the country.

LossteR REGULATION STARTED 1873.—Lobster legisla-
tion has been prominent during the last 40 years, the first

W772 American Fisheries Society

lobster regulations being enacted by Order in Council in 1873,
when three provisions were authorized: viz., (1) Prohibition
of spawn lobsters; (2) lobsters under 1% Ibs. weight for-
bidden; and (3) soft-shell lobsters illegal. The following
year (1874) a close time, July and August, was specified, and
a nine-inch size limit introduced.

SPECIAL DOMINION REGULATIONS FOR PROVINCES.—Sub-
sequently special codes of fishery regulations for the several
Provinces were framed modifying the general provisions of
the act to meet local and special conditions, and these have
been found more handy and convenient in each Province in
the work of enforcing fishery regulations. The first clause
(with the exception of the Nova Scotia regulations) always
required that a license shall be obtained by any person desiring
to fish in such Province.

Too Many RecuLations.—It must be admitted that this
accumulation of legislative enactments, fishery acts, provin-
cial codes of laws, authorized by Dominion special Orders in
Council, to meet conditions arising from time to time, forms
a rather confusing body of legal provisions; but on the whole
these Canadian laws have worked beneficially, and accom-
plished great things for the fishery resources of the Dominion.

DIsPUTED FISHERY RIGHTS, FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL.—
After confederation was accomplished, and especially after
British Columbia in 1871, and Prince Edward Island in 1873,
and Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905, were admitted to
confederation*, it was felt that the exact limits of fishery
rights and prerogatives remained in many respects ill-defined.
Some friction was caused, and important cases, such as that
of “The Queen versus Robertson” on the famous salmon
river Miramichi demonstrated the desirability of some au-
thoritative decision on these disputed rights.; In 1892 the

* Manitoba was a Territory incorporated in 1870 in the Dominion.

yj According to this decision of the Supreme Court of Canada (in 1882) the Do-
minion can legislate in regard to all fisheries, but has no power to interfere with or
control or grant exclusive fishery leases in any non-navigable river whether the bed
or soil be vested in the Crown in right of a Province, or in a private owner hold-
ing a title from the Crown.

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 173

Quebec Government questioned Dominion rights in respect
to inland fisheries, and denied the validity of an eel-fishing
lease on the Richelieu River which had been issued from Ot-
tawa. The Dominion Government invited the Quebec Gov-
ernment to agree to a reference to the highest legal tribunal
in the British Empire, the Privy Council in London, and to
allow the Dominion to issue leases and licenses pending a
final decision; but Quebec refused. Various other cases arose,
and in 1894 Ontario passed a code of fishery regulations, fol-
lowed by similar action in British Columbia in 1897, so that
the authority of the Dominion was being directly impugned.
A reference was made to the Imperial Privy Council in the
form of an appeal against the judgment of the Supreme Court
of Canada on seventeen points in controversy, which judg-
ment was not acceptable either to the several Provinces, or
to the Federal Government, and was not indeed a unanimous
decision of the Bench.

IMpoRTANT FisHERIES Decision, 1898.—Setting aside a
number of minor points the Imperial Fisheries Judgment,
dated July 18, 1898, decided these four important questions:

1. That fisheries jurisdiction, the making of fishery laws
in Canada, is vested in the federal government.

2. That property rights in fisheries, and in consequence
the issue of leases and licenses, is vested in the several Prov-
inces.

3. That the federal government can impose a tax for
revenue purposes on every license fishery issued by the Prov-
inces. (This power might be so exercised as to make provin-
cial licensing a practical impossibility. )

4. That all public harbors, and the fisheries therein, are
vested in the Dominion.

DoMINION RETAINS GREAT PROPERTY RiGHTs.—It was
admitted, before the Imperial Tribunal, that in such a Prov-
ince as Nova Scotia all the existing harbors are public har-
bors,* and as all the mouths of salmon rivers, and probably

*Hon. Mr. Longley declared “Every harbor in Nova Scotia is a public harbor.”
p. 227; Official Report of Imperial Privy Council Appeal, London, 1899.

174 American Fisheries Society

every important oyster bed, is in a public harbor, the Domin-
ion possesses vast property rights in the fisheries, and the day
may come when wise counsels will prevail, and the present
state of uncertainty be removed by the entire fisheries juris-
diction and property rights being finally vested in one author-
ity, viz., the Federal Government. This will do away with all
conflict and uncertainty, and be a benefit to the fisheries in
every way. The single aim of protection, conservation, and
wise regulation (in the interest not of Provinces, or sections
of the country, but of the whole Dominion) could then be
carried out. The Provinces held the opinion that they could
get considerable revenue out of their fisheries, but this is an
error, though in British Columbia the license fees did amount
to a large sum annually, and as the valuable salmon fisheries
were mainly carried on within the limits of rivers rather
than in the open sea, the situation was somewhat complicated.
A modus vivendi was for a time adopted, until a further legal
decision was obtained.

FuLt DomMInIon CONTROL DESIRABLE IN FISHERIES.—
Whatever uncertainty may exist as to Provincial and Domin-
ion rights, the most desirable consummation is the Federal
assumption of all such rights. All friction, and injurious con-
flict and misunderstanding would disappear, and the sole ef-
fort of the Dominion would be to exert every effort to make
the fisheries everywhere productive and prosperous. No fair-
minded critic, looking dispassionately at the history of
fisheries administration in Canada, will deny that the Federal
Government did great things for the fisheries for a long period
of years. What would have been the fate of the resources
of our waters in Canada had no protective efforts been made,
is unquestionable. Their extent and value today are due to
the federal measures, but they are capable of vast extension,
and even decaying fisheries like the oyster industry can be
restored if a proper Dominion conservation policy be adopted.

THE SERVICES OF PROMINENT OFFICIALS REFERRED TO.
—Who are the men to whom the preservation of Canada’s

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 175

fisheries are mainly due? I have mentioned the names of the
cabinet ministers at the head of the department in successive
Governments, most of them deeply interested in the welfare
of the fisheries; but the deputy ministers must not be for-
gotten, though in most instances they were chiefly concerned
with marine and shipping matters. William Smith, the first
Deputy Minister, was a sturdy and assiduous Scotsman, born
in Leith, Scotland, and an imperial customs officer at St. John,
N. B., but for nearly thirty years known as “Fishery Smith,”’
or more irreverently as “Fishery Bill,’ during which long
period he was the official head of the Department. Honest
John Hardie, who was connected by marriage with the first
appointed Minister, Hon. Peter Mitchell, acted for a time on
Mr. Smith’s retirement. Col. F. F. Gourdeau, Mr. Alexander
Johnston, and Mr. G. J. Desbarats, also performed the duties
of deputy or executive head, but I must not omit Col. John
Tilton, who was Deputy Minister of Fisheries from 1884 to
1892, when the marine branch had its own deputy, and fisher-
ies had a separate deputy, a condition changed when the title
of Commissioner of Fisheries was revived, and when I was
given the position in October, 1892. Deputy Minister Smith
on resuming the title of Deputy Minister of Marine and Fish-
eries, shared with me much of the administrative work in the
Department.

Tue First COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES: W. F.
WHITCHER.—It is simply mere justice to refer to the great
services rendered by such men as Mr. W. F. Whitcher, who
held high office for nine years (from 1869 to 1877), and who
signed the annual fisheries reports, which also bore the sig-
nature of the Minister himself. Mr. Whitcher did an enor-
mous amount of work, and was most untiring in the task
of inspecting the fisheries, so that his published reports are of
great interest; but his conspectus of the fishery articles in
fishery treaties between Britain and the United States con-
cerning Canadian fisheries, printed in 1870, is one of the best
summaries available, and is a masterly synopsis of the points

176 American Fisheries Society

in international law involved, and the bearings thereof, and it
only covers thirty-one pages. For several years the annual
fisheries report was called the “Report of the Commissioner of
Fisheries,” and signed by him, but there has always appeared
an ineradicable tendency for the marine branch to assume pre-
cedence over the fisheries in departmental routine, not always
to the advantage of the fisheries of the country.

SAMUEL WiILMoT—HATCHERY PIONEER.—One _ promi-
nent Canadian fishery officer merits in this connection very
special reference, viz., Mr. Samuel Wilmot, a pioneer fish cul-
turist and fish conservator. He was full of courage and en-
thusiasm, and even when he was wrong would still fight for
his opinions. He had no technical training, but had erected
a fish hatchery on his farm near Newcastle, Ontario, and in a
report dated December 31, 1878, he speaks of his first hatching
efforts as begun in 1865. In 1866 he was appointed an Upper
Canada fishery officer, and in 1868, the year after confedera-
tion, became an official of the Federal Government. For his
earyl serviecs to fis hcutlure he wa sapid $2,000. I n1876,
eight years after his first federal appointment, he became the
first superintendent of fish breeding in Ottawa, but numerous
other fishery duties were given him, and he attended to de-
partmental correspondence, inspected fisheries in various parts
of Canada, drafted fishery laws, and was chairman of several
fishery commissions, the principal ones being the British Colum-
bia Commission (1892), and the Great Lakes Commission
(1893), each of which embodied its evidence and conclusions in
bulky blue books, prepared and edited by Mr. Wilmot himself.
He represented Canada on important public occasions, such as
the Great Fisheries Exhibition in London, 1883, and the Chi-
cago World’s Fair in 1893. Many of Mr. Wilmot’s reports
are of very great interest, such as his Lake Winnipeg and
Fraser River (British \Columbia) ‘reports, made after his
visits of inspection in 1890. The original Lake, Ontario
hatchery, which was transferred from Mr. Wilmot to the
Dominion Government, was followed by others, so that there

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 177

were in 1875, a series of five equipped and in operation, viz.,
the Restigouche, Miramichi (in New Brunswick), and the
Tadousac (on the Saguenay), and the York (Gaspe) hatch-
eries in Quebec Province. These had increased, thirty years
later to twenty-eight, with eleven subsidiary establishments,
which were turning out 1,000,000,000 fry (in 1905), more
than half being whitefish and yellow pickerel or wall-eyed pike.

W. H. Venninc—An ABLE PIONEER INsSPECTOR.—Of
equal importance among these early fishery officials was Mr.
W. H. Venning, acting at first as inspector for all the mari-
time provinces, but later limited to New Brunswick. It is
impossible to overestimate the services of Mr. Venning, whose
official reports, the first dated October 10, 1867, are full of
wise recommendations and reliable information. His son,
R. N. Venning was long chief clerk, and later Superintendent
of Fisheries, a position he held when he retired some years
ago. His services in the Bering Sea negotiations were notable,
and he did a variety of work during his forty years in the
Government employment.

J. C. Kirxkwoop anp S. P. Bauset.—When the officials
of the Crown Lands Department, Quebec and Toronto, moved
to Ottawa at confederation, there were included two men who
deserve honorable mention, one Mr. J. C. Kirkwood, and the
other Mr. Samuel Pierre Bauset. The former was trans-
ferred back to Toronto on accepting a provincial government
post, but Mr. Bauset remained for a long period as chief
clerk of fisheries in Ottawa. He was a perfect encyclopedia
of information on fisheries administration and regulation in
Canada, was infallible on official precedent and procedure, and
possessed of the characteristic vigor and zeal of the typical
French Canadian.

Dr. WILLIAM WAKEHAM.—It is impossible to mention
many who deserve to be recalled in any review of fisheries
administration in Canada, but Dr. William Wakeham, the
successor of Pierre Fortin and Napoleon Lavoie, ranks among
the most efficient and well-informed officers in the service.

178 American Fisheries Society

and he may be said to have given its deserved repute to the
old outside fisheries service. He entered on his official work
in 1879, and for 35 years had charge of the most difficult in-
spector’s district in the Dominion, namely, the Gulf of St.
Lawrence and Labrador area. He combined patrol duty with
a Government physician’s work, and the remote fishing com-
munities of Laborador, north Gaspe, and the Magdalen Is-
lands, looked upon the gulf inspector as a benefactor, as much
as an arm of the law. He was one of the ablest and most
esteemed officers the Canadian Government Service ever pos-
sessed. [With Dr. Richard Rathbun, of Washington, Dr.
Wakeham made a complete survey of the fisheries of the
boundary waters from the Bay of Fundy to Puget Sound
during the years 1893-1896, under the International Fisheries
Convention, and the results were a code of joint regulations.
and an exseedingly valuable detailed report. I had the honor
of acting as expert adviser with Dr. Wakeham on this inter-
national survey, and Dr. Hugh M. Smith, U. S. Commissioner
of Fisheries, also joined the Commissioners for a time as
expert adviser for the United States. It is worthy of men-
tion that Dr. Wakeham had command of the Diana on the
well-known Hudson Bay cruise in 1897, and presented a most
valuable report on the fisheries, etc., in peri-Arctic waters.
RECENT OFFICIAL WoRK—CopES OF REGULATIONS.
Of my own twenty-eight years’ work, as Commissioner of
Fisheries for Canada, and of the work of more recently ap-
pointed officers I cannot speak, but it fell to me to frame
the early drafts of the fishery regulations for British Co-
lumbia, to draw up a more complete set of lobster fishery
regulations, as well as oyster regulations, and new codes of
Manitoba, and Northwest Territory laws, all of which were,
in the main, embodied in regulations passed by the Govern-
ment at Ottawa, and most of which were carried out for a
long period, until amended in recent years by new codes. The
lobster regulations framed by me remained in force with little
activities, and I have omitted all reference to a most important

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 179

Ministers of the Department to revise the fisheries act, and as
International Fisheries Commissioner, appointed under the
Fishery Treaty of April 11, 1908, I framed conjointly with
my United States colleague, Dr. David Starr Jordan, a sys-
tem of international regulations, sixty-two in number, which
received the sanction of the Parliament of Canada, pending
similar action by the United States Congress as called for by
the Treaty. The regulations were never conjointly promul-
gated, and a new international commission has been author-
ized, which it may be hoped will succeed in securing concurrent
action in the fisheries administration of contiguous waters
along the international boundary between the United States
and Canada.

THE WorkK OF OUTSIDE INSPECTORS AND OTHERS.—IN-
SPECTORS CHAPMAN, Hockin, Gi~tcHrist, McNas, ETC.—
If the inside fisheries staff are responsible largely for the con-
servation and development of the fishing industries by a wise
central administration system, it remained with the outside
service, the inspectors, fishery overseers, and others, as their
essential duty, to enforce the laws and encourage expansion
and conservation. Mention should be made of men like In-
spector R. A. Chapman, of Moncton, N. B., for over twenty
years a zealous and conscientious officer in New Bruns-
wick; also Inspector Robert Hockin, of Pictou, N. S., an
officer of rare knowledge and courage, with a combined sci-
entific instinct and legal acumen which made him a valuable aid
to the service for nearly thirty years. He invented the Hockin
Fish-Pass which twenty-five years ago was approved by the
Government, and many have been constructed on various
rivers. Inspector F. C. Gilchrist, Qu’Appelle, had the gi-
gantic task of supervising the vast western area between Man-
itoba and the Rocky Mountains, and did it marvelously well.
In my possession I have a mass of letters and communications
of much scientific merit, for he not only enforced the observ-
ance by Indians and white men alike, but during his tours made
scientific observations and tests in remote lakes and rivers of

180 American Fisheries Society

the west that are of incalculable value. He sacrificed his life
when making tests with a new form of net, suitable he thought
for the requirements of the Indians, and less wasteful than the
devices they used. Exposure in inclement weather, during
this work, brought about his death, but from 1885 to 1896 he
did splendid service. I should like to mention Inspector Ber-
tram, the able officer who had charge of the Cape Breton fish-
eries from 1884 until his death in 1909; and I cannot omit In-
spector John McNab, New Westminister, British Columbia,
under whom in the early “nineties” the vast fisheries of the
Pacific Province progressed from small beginnings. He was
the only officer who knew the northern waters. I had the
privilege of visiting with him in 1894 the Nass River and its
tributaries, Work Canal, Prince Rupert, then called Tux Inlet,
Metlakahtla, Rivers Inlet, and some of the upper Fraser waters,
where I saw vast schools of salmon spawning. John McNab
was the only fisheries official (excepting Officer William Rox-
burgh, a native of Glasgow, Scotland, who knew the Skeena
and interior waters), to whom the whole coast, and most of
the headwaters, were familiar. McNab was born in Nova
Scotia, and was one of the “Forty-Niners’ who prospected
for gold in the wild northern regions, where his knowledge
proved of inestimable value later to the fisheries service. It
is impossible to estimate too highly the great work such offi-
cers did in the early days of fishery development.

CAPTAIN J. T. WALBRAN.—In much of this valuable work
Capt. J. T. Walbran, of the cruiser Quadra, gave his skilled
aid for many years. Never was there an abler, more scholarly,
and enthusiastic departmental official than Walbran. I made
several cruises with him along little-visited parts of the Pacific
coast, making plankton and bottom catches with naturalist’s
nets and accumulating much valuable biological and fishery
material, and in all my work Captain Walbran was assiduous
in his help and advice. He had a distinguished brother, Canon
Walbran, of Ripon Cathedral, England. Both brothers had
antiquarian and historical tastes of uncommon character,

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 181

for one wrote on the antiquities of the ancient city of Ripon,
and Captain Walbran himself wrote the very best work on
Pacific place-names in existence. Dr. G. M. Dawson had done
some B, C. plankton work before mine, and that famous
scientist generously placed his collection in my hands to de-
scribe with my own large collection, but all perished in a fire _
which devastated the west parliamentary building in 1897.

INspectorR LaToucHE Tupprer.—lInspector R. LaTouche
Tupper deserves mention for his splendid work as inspector
on Lake Winnipeg and Manitoba waters. In his hospitable
home on the Red River, at Selkirk, he had a fine library of
works on fish and fisheries, and had remarkable scientific and
literary tastes. Captain Dunn, who for many years cruised
the Great Lakes, also did courageous and effective work in fish-
eries conservation. All the officers I have just referred to are
now dead; but the Department has on its staff some men of
special ability, one of whom I must mention, viz., Mr. John
J. Cowie, recognized by all who have any knowledge of Ca-
nadian fisheries, as an eminent expert with unrivalled experi-
ence and knowledge of fish-curing methods and products. The
oyster fisheries owe much to the skill and labor, for nearly
thirty years, of Mr. Ernest Kemp, a member of a family prom-
inent in English oyster culture on the famed Whitstable beds
for two hundred years. No government service ever pos-
sessed abler and more indefatigable men than the officers I
have referred to. The fisheries owe more than can be esti-
mated to the valuable work they did in the special lines to
which they devoted their lives.

GENERAL SUMMARY OF FEDERAL FISHERY ADMINISTRA-
TIoN.—Of various branches of activity, such as publicity
work, improvement of cured and pickled fish, better gov-
ernment-assisted fish transportation and other efforts, many
now in progress, I cannot speak. It must suffice to quote a
summarized statement of such activities from a lengthy ar-
ticle of mine, recently published by the London Times, in the
“Times Book of Canada,” which is an expansion of the article

182 American Fisheries Society

Messrs. Appleton, of New York, asked me to prepare a few
years ago for the Encyclopedia Americana. This summary
gives a slight idea of the varied work, administrative and
otherwise, performed by the Fisheries Department, now part
of the Marine and Fisheries Department, Ottawa, of which
Mr. W. A. Found is Assistant Fisheries Deputy. The more
salient features are:

1. The maintenance of a system of leases and licenses,
which until the fisheries decision of 1898 the federal govern-
ment claimed to have the sole right to issue. Certain Prov-
inces now issue licenses, and much doubt exists as to the
limits of Dominion and Provincial rights regarding certain
licensing and leasing powers, which the judgments of 1898 did
not remove.

2. Enforcement of conditions concerning fishing, amount,
mesh, etc., of nets and gear, close seasons, dams and other
obstructions, pollutions, etc.

3. Fish culture by means of hatcheries, and propagation
of fish of commercial importance chiefly, though salmon and
game fish are not excluded.

4. Fisheries intelligence bureau, established in 1889, and
reporting movements of fish schools off the coast, supplies of
bait, etc.

5. Bounties to fishermen derived from an annual Par-
liamentary vote of $160,000, representing the interest on
$4,500,000 paid to Canada by the United States, under the
Halifax Award of November 23, 1877.

6. Publicity operations, really a development of the old
system of issuing special reports, which afforded information
upon leading fishery topics, and the spreading of information
among the fishermen and public by lectures and addresses.
I have myself in twenty-five years delivered over three hun-
dred addresses and illustrated lectures to Canadian clubs, Em-
pire clubs, boards of trade, fishery conventions, and other
public gatherings, in every part of the Dominion from Halifax
to Vancouver, and have published numberless articles in vari-

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 183

ous journals, including the Canadian Fisherman, New York
Fishing Gazette, Pacific Fisherman, Montreal Star, Toronto
Globe, American Fisheries Society Transactions, etc. Further
development of this propaganda is in progress, and must
bring important results. A special publicity branch is now
at work.

7. Technical fishery education scheme. This has em- -
braced lectures to fishermen, and practical instruction, the first
step being taken at Little River, N. S., in 1913, and the last
being courses in 1919-20 under Professor A. P. Knight on
“Lobster Life and Conservation,” and by Professor A. G.
Huntsman and myself in the Maritime Provinces in the spring
and fall of 1920 on “Habits and Life-History of Fishes.”’

8. Fishery exhibits at expositions in Canada and abroad,
including Government fish-dinners, as at the Toronto annual
exhibition, the issue of fish cook books, circulation of Bio-
logical Board fish bulletins on new food fish and other topics
of great public interest.

9. Fish-curing and packing instruction by qualified offi-
cers, including improvement of methods, barrels, and pack-
ages, and general standardization of the packed products.*

10. Commissions of fishery inquiry which, during the
last quarter of a century, have numbered more than twenty.
The commissioners, usually men prominent in the industry,
or well-informed locally, visited the fishing centres, took evi-
dence, and published reports and recommendations for the
guidance of the Government. A fishery committee of the
House of Commons, and an advisory fishery council, have
from time to time aided in a similar way. The published
reports of commissions and various committees are a mine
of valuable information on the fishing industries.

11. Bait freezers have been established under Govern-
ment auspices, and fish refrigerators have been subsidized,
while a fish-drying house was for a time operated, as an ob-

*Legal authorization of standards, and official inspection, etc., are provided
under the recent fish inspection act (1914) and canneries act.

184 American Fisheries Society

ject lesson, at Souris, Prince Edward Island, and it was dem-
onstrated that curers might be made independent of foggy and
damp weather in the dried fish industry.

12. Fish offal and dogfish reduction works have also been
operated, but the cost of collecting material over wide areas
proved serious, though the grinding and preparation of fertil-
izers, and the extraction of oil yielded satisfactory products.
Loss however resulted each season and the scheme was
abandoned.

13. Oyster culture, the restoration of destroyed beds,
and the planting of barren areas, have been carried on under
an expert, while scientific experiments by the Biological Board
have been continued for some years under such recognized
authorities as Prof. R. Ramsey Wright, Dr. J. Stafford, Prof.
E. W. MacBride, and Prof. A. D. Robertson, London, Ontario.
Lobster culture has also been vigorously pursued by Professor
Knight with a view of rearing young lobsters on natural
resorts, or recently discovered nurseries, rather than by arti-
ficial methods in hatcheries.

14. A service of fishery cruisers and patrol boats, enforc-
ing the fishery regulations, has always formed an important
part of the work of administration in Canada.

15. A system of state-aided transportation services was
inaugurated in 1907. From Canso and Halifax, N. S., a fish
car ran to Montreal and Toronto, the earnings for the ship-
pers being guaranteed up to 2,000 lbs., and also the cost of
icing. Three cars also were run weekly on which the Gov-
ernment paid one-third express charges for fish. A corre-
sponding service has also been tried from the Pacific coast
to the prairies.

16. Last but not least the Federal Government has en-
couraged scientific fishery research in various ways, notably
by establishing, in 1898, the Biological Board of Canada,
which has charge of laboratories or research stations, one
being at St. Andrews, on the Bay of Fundy, and another, the
Pacific station at Departure Bay near Nanaimo, British Co-
lumbia. A station on the Great Lakes ceased operations after

Prince.—Fishery Administration in Canada 185

some years of useful work. The Board, of which for twenty-
one years I have acted in the capacity of chairman, consists of
representatives from the principal universities of the Domin-
ion, with some departmental nominees of the Minister, and
it has fortunately such independence and freedom that tech-
nical researches can be conducted, unhampered by the red-tape
of officialdom which is fatal to all enthusiastic and fruitful
scientific work.

ArcTIC AND BrioLocicAL ExpepitTions.—Other scientific
investigations have from time to time been authorized, from
the date of the celebrated researches in the Gulf of St. Law-
rence by the late Dr. J. F. Whiteaves, within four or five
years after confederation. During the years 1914-15 a re-
markable series of fishery investigations was carried out under
the direction of Dr. Johan Hjort, formerly Director of Fish-
eries for Norway. With the aid of two fishery cruisers,
Princess and Acadia, and some subsidiary vessels, and with
the help of a fine staff of scientists, Dr. Hjort was able to
present a volume of reports at the close of his two years’ work
on the fish-life, plankton, hydrographic, physical, and dynam-
ical features of the Gulf of St. Lawrence waters, of the high-
est scientific value. There have been various expeditions to
Hudson Bay, the first under Capt. A. R. Gordon, R. N., in
1884, and later expeditions such as Commander Low’s in
the Neptune in 1884 and 1886, and Dr. Wakeham’s expedi-
tion and Captain Bernier’s in 1906 and 1908-09; all have
had most interesting results to report. A Canadian Arctic
expedition 1913-18, planned by Mr. Vilhjalmur Stefansson,
an Icelandic Canadian born in Manitoba, has been very suc-
cessful and between sixty and seventy reports on the biology,
hydrography, geology, ethnology, etc., of the regions north
of the Mackenzie River and Coronation Gulf are in course
of publication at the present time.

Conc.Lusion.—Looking over this elaborate program of
activities, and I have omitted all reference to a most important
branch, viz., statistics of the fisheries, because this work, car-

186 American Fisheries Society

ried on for fifty-two years by the department, has been re-
cently transferred to the Census Bureau of the Dominion,
it is impossible to question the incalculable benefit to the Cana-
dian fisheries which this far-reaching system of protection and
conservation has accomplished during more than half a cen-
tury. Professor G. Brown Goode did simple justice to the
wonderful organization inaugurated by the fathers of con-
federation, when he said at the Great Fisheries Exhibition in
London, in 1883, of the Fisheries Department in Ottawa, that
“there was nothing elsewhere to be compared to it.”

Discussion

PRESIDENT AVERY: We are certainly very much indebted to Professor
Prince for this very valuable historical paper. I feel that we do not
realize the importance of the fisheries of Canada in their relation to the
United States. We obtain a great portion of our fish supply from
Canada; we are, therefore, directly interested in the development of
Canada’s fish resources.

ProFEssoR Prince: Mr. President and gentlemen, I cannot rise on
this occasion without expressing extreme gratification—and I am sure
that in this sentiment I am joined by all other Canadians present—at the
fact that the American Fisheries Society at last meets in Ottawa. The
occasion is all the more interesting because this is the jubilee meeting of
the Society, which is now celebrating in the Canadian capital fifty years
of valuable and useful existence. I think that this is a unique
historic event and one which calls for special reference, par-
ticularly on the part of Canadians. I thought that it might interest you
to hear something of the succession of events which has led up to the
federal system of fisheries administration in Canada,—a system much
in contrast with that obtaining in the United States.

WHAT ARE RAINBOW TROUT AND STEELHEAD
TROUT?

By Dr. WILLIAM CONVERSE KENDALL
Scientific Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries
Washington, D. C.

Whenever the trouts of certain localities are studied, diffi-
culties are encountered in an effort to make the specimens
conform to the classification. Gilbert refers to the trout and
whitefish as “two forms which seem to be superior to any dis-
coverable law of distribution.” Gilbert and Evermann again
say (1894) that with every additional collection of black
spotted trout, it became increasingly difficult to recognize any
of the distinctions, specific or subspecific, which had been set
up; that their collections added not a little to the difficulty and
they were convinced that the greater number of the subspecies
of S. mykiss, which the common redthroat trout was then
called, had no sufficient foundation. On the other hand, in
1896, a comparison of many specimens of “Salmo mykiss
clarkiv” indicated to Evermann and Meek that it would be
necessary to recognize more species or varieties of Salmo in
the northwestern portion of the United States than have
hitherto been admitted.

The specific identity or distinctness of the rainbow and steel-
head trouts has been the subject of long discussion and of
varied and varying opinions. In 1919 Jordan wrote that on
this question he had at different times held different opinions.
His final judgment was that the coastwise trout of California
are the young of the species which in the sea and large rivers
is called steelhead, Salmo rivularis, and the original rainbow
was therefore the young of Salmo rivularis, or as it used to be
called, wrongly he believed, Salmo gairdneri. ’’As irideus
(misspelled iridia) is the oldest name,” he said, “it must stand.”

188 American Fisheries Society

According to Jordan, then, the technical name of the steelhead
trout should be Salmo irideus.

It is not my purpose, at the present time, to attempt to
straighten out the tangles of taxonomy, but I offer for con-
sideration a theory which appears to be supported by a number
of facts and which seems to me to indicate a consistent law
of distribution. Also, if usage is reversed and an effort made
to make taxonomy conform to the law, the present confusion
may be shaped into at least a semblance of orderly arrange-
ment. If the trout originated in fjords and mossy brooks on
the flanks of European glacial mountains, as Jordan once
wrote, what was the incentive for wandering to remote
seas? It seems to me that the present distribution into fresh
waters far inland must have been due to some cause other than
aimless wandering from one stream to another and that it
must have been in conformity to some natural law.

There is no known European or Asiatic trout closely related
to the small scaled forms of the Pacific coast of North
America. There are trout on the other side of the ocean from
Kamchatka to Formosa which are more nearly related to the
coarser scaled forms. Salmo mykiss, of Kamchatka, has 138
scales and the Salmo of Formosa 130, according to Jordan.
As Jordan now says, Salmo mykiss is more like the American
steelhead. It would therefore seem that the trouts of America
were native Americans.

Again Jordan writes (1919) “Most primitive of the Amer-
ican species, no doubt, is the one named for William Clark,
Salmo clarku. It was born in Alaska and has worked its way
southward as far as Eel River in California.” The idea is im-
plied, perhaps, but not expressed in the foregoing, that the
smaller scaled species was originally associated with cold water,
which idea the present distribution of small scaled forms sup-
ports. I do not quite understand what is meant by “primitive”
in this instance. It would apparently signify that all the other
forms originated in this alleged Alaskan native. I cannot

Kendall.—Rainbow and Steelhead Trout 189

reconcile this idea with a development of a small scaled form
from a coarse scaled form of Europe or Asia, which moved
successively southward and inland in very irregular and di-
verse routes, producing offshoots with both large and small
scales. To me, the Salmonidz afford a striking example of an
anciently established “zone system” which is now applicable to
the whole salmonid world. We know that on the Pacific
coast the genus Salmo occurs as a more or less marine fish
from the neighborhood of 57° to approximately 34°, north
latitude. The most southern inland trout occurs in Durango,
Mexico, probably in the headwaters of the Yaqui River or
some neighboring stream, the mouth of which is in about
27° north latitude, near Guaymas. In lower California, a
trout is found in the San Matir Mountains in about 33° north
latitude.

It would appear that authorities would have us to suppose
that the trout have reached the cold waters of these high
altitudes by slowly traveling from cold waters of Alaska into
warmer waters of Mexico, thence into cold waters again.
Surely there is no discoverable law for distribution of this
kind. Where streams contain trout in their upper waters and
sea-run forms do not occur, we must assume, it seems to me,
that the coastal region is beyond the limit of suitable condi-
tions. We therefore appear to have a marine zone or coastal
area of more or less favorable conditions comprised between
the degrees of latitude mentioned (57° and 34°, approx-
imately), and an inland and altitude zone comprising irregular
areas of distribution, extending to at least 30° north latitude,
and if the mouth of the river is considered, even to 27° north
latitude. Assuming that 75° north latitude now represents
conditions similar to those of latitude 57° north, which is
stated to be the southern limit of a general ice cap on the
Pacific coast in the last glacial period, and taking the latitude
of Arroyo Grande, or Santa Maria River, California, as the
present corresponding southern limit of marine trout, the

190 American Fisheries Society

southern limit of marine forms in the glacial period would
have pushed down to about 27° north latitude, or almost
exactly to the mouth of the Yaqui River in Mexico—a striking
coincidence.

It is a well-known fact that, as a rule, northern fishes are
characterized by smaller scales and more numerous vertebrz
than those of the south. At least, so far as the scales are
concerned this is true of the Salmonidz, comprising the sal-
mons and trouts, with perhaps some exceptions which, after
all is known, may prove the rule. In our hypothetical trout
marine zone, it is only in the north that small scaled forms are
found in the sea or near the coast. In inland waters small
scaled forms are found in high altitudes far to the southward.
But, coastwise, in intermediate localities, trout with inter-
mediate sizes of scales occur, and in the sea and accessible
fresh water, large scaled forms occur far north. These facts
suggest that the routes which have been scheduled by Jordan
were not strictly correct.

It does not seem possible that a large scaled fish entering the
Colorado, could ever become the small scaled species of the
Kern, or a small scaled form from any source could ever
directly change into a large scaled fish of another locality;
and Jordan’s statement that “It is not the preservation of the
most useful features but of those which actually existed in the
ancestral individuals, which distinguished such species,” is
an argument against the derivation of Durango trout from the
Missouri or Snake Rivers. Our zone theory hangs upon one
essential point, namely, that the conditions at present necessary
to the existence of the trouts indicate that the trouts were
evolved in and synchronously with the changes of environ-
mental conditions culminating in those of the present time.
In this zone of marine trout, having an extent of some 30
degrees, we may suppose were intermediate zones, occupied by
forms intermediate between those with a tendency to small
scales, associated with the northern limit, and those with a ten-

Kendall.—Rainbow. and Steelhead Trout 191

dency to large scales, associated with the southern limit. Prob-
ably owing to lack of uniformity in the intermediate condi-
tions, the intergradation from those with a tendency to small
scales to those of large may not have been perfect.

Partial segregations may occur within large aggregations,
caused by local thinning out of interbreeding individuals.
Such partial interruptions to complete interbreeding may be
due to indirect barriers. An indirect barrier may be some
condition or influence tending to concentrate the individuals
of any section in a certain locality, while there is no actual
obstruction to their passage from one section to another.

It goes without saying that it could not have been until the
final recession of glacial conditions that marine trout were
able to enter and permanently occupy fresh waters in the
regions of glaciation. While perhaps some rivers of the most
southern limit of this zone were accessible, they later became
unfavorable to the existence of the trout. In some of the
more southern and therefore earlier accessible waters where
conditions remained more favorable, the fish have survived. In
such instances we should expect the larger scaled fish. As suc-
cessively more northern waters became accessible, they were
occupied by trout. Some at first accessible became later in-
accessible, thus entrapping the first trout to enter them.

As the habitat zone with, of course, its subordinate zones
moved northward with the recession of the glacial conditions,
the occupants of the respective zones would enter the acces-
sible fresh water encountered. They might be few or many.
But inasmuch as all regions were not provided with accessible
fresh waters, the present faunas would represent only those
which were derived from the respective zone reaching it at
the time of accessibility. Some which were cut off from the
sea by impassable barriers to the ascent of fish would contain
first arrivals, while the lower part of the water course would
be frequented by later arrivals. And so on, until theoreti-
cally there should be some sort of an intergradation of the

192 American Fisheries Society

marine forms from their southern to their northern limit.
Owing, doubtless, to modifications of the environmental condi-
tions of the coastal forms other than those directly pertaining
to the glacial retreat, such as warm oceanic currents for
instance, the marine trout would be able to move farther
north than they otherwise would. :

So while there is demonstrable evidence of the zone system
in the interior, it is not so plainly evident along the coast.
Consequently among them there appears to be a medley of
forms in some localities, which may be due to predominantly
fresh water forms sometimes mingling with predominantly
marine forms. Or it may possibly be partly attributable to
hasty examination, to attention being directed to the wrong
structures or characters. The usual characters emphasized in
descriptions are often those which are never diagnostic, or they
may be structures or dimensions which vary with the size, age,
sex, and breeding condition.

As concerns the steelhead-rainbow question, it is probably
true that the marine forms from one end of the habitat zone
to the other, taxonomically at least, must be regarded as the
same species. Many of the trout occurring in waters acces-
sible to this species are regarded locally, at least, as rainbow
trout and the anadromous forms as steelhead. Occasionally
some other species may make its way into salt water and when
reascending the stream, perhaps with the common steelhead,
it is called steelhead.

Now the fact appears to be that the form bearing the name
Salmo irideus is an anadromous form. But the form from the
McCloud River which has been propagated artificially under the
name of “rainbow trout (Salmo irideus)” is a distinct species
which Jordan has named Salmo shasta. Some time ago Jordan
stated that the name rivularis, formerly regarded as a synonym
of irideus, should be used as the designation of the steelhead,
on the ground that Richardson had applied the name to a
young blueback salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). The blueback

Kendall.—Rainbow and Steelhead Trout 193

salmon seldom attains a length of over 30 inches. Richard-
son’s Salmo gairdnerii was stated by him to be 31 inches long,
and there are other differences from the blueback mentioned
in the description.

From about 1880 to about 1895 the only rainbow trout
propagated and distributed in the east were raised from eggs
of trout from the McCloud River, which is one of the head-
water tributaries of the Sacramento River. They possessed
much smaller scales and were otherwise different from the
coastwise so-called rainbow trout. They were inhabitants of
cold water which fact indicates that they originated in a more
northern section of our previously mentioned zone system
than did the coastwise so-called rainbow and steelhead. With
the disappearance of the congenial cold coast waters they
were left behind, isolated in upper Sacramento waters, and
their differential characters became fixed, so to speak.

By the scale count and by coloration, to say nothing of
certain other characters, there was and is absolutely no diffi-
culty in distinguishing a pure bred McCloud River type of
rainbow from marine steelhead forms wherever found,
whether in San Francisco Bay, Klamath, Rogue, Columbia
River and Alaska, or the Great Lakes or anywhere in eastern
waters.

All of the steelheads which have been introduced into
eastern waters, so far as records indicate, came from Wash-
ington and Oregon. Their introduction into certain northern
waters of the east has been fairly successful as far as acclima-
tization is concerned. Attention should be called here to the
fact that practically all steelhead trout introduced into eastern
waters were derived from eggs obtained from wild fish, and
practically all rainbow eggs and young fish distributed for
many years, with few exceptions, have been derived from
domesticated fish in comparatively limited brood-stocks at
hatcheries.

For a number of years the propagation of the rainbow met

194 American Fisheries Society

with varying success according to the conditions obtaining
where its propagation was carried on. It was found that they
did better at some hatcheries than at others. But finally,
difficulties and puzzling conditions arose at even the previously
most successful hatcheries. The average yield of eggs de-
creased; a large percentage of eggs could not be fertilized;
there were so-called glassy eggs, and other defective eggs, also
masses of collapsed egg-shells, etc. By some, these condi-
tions were attributed to inbreeding. So, after a while an
effort was made to improve the brood stocks by securing eggs
from wild trout.

At first these wild trout eggs came from California, and
as the records show, not from the McCloud River, but from
the Klamath River basin where at one time Gilbert, and later
Snyder, found all sorts of trout excepting Salmo shasta forms.
The Klamath River trout, from which these eggs were ob-
tained, possess larger scales and are otherwise different from
the McCloud trout. Later, wild rainbow trout eggs were taken
in Nevada and Colorado. , In both places the rainbow trout
were originally introduced, and consisted partly of McCloud
trout and partly of Klamath trout. So the rainbow trout of
the eastern hatcheries finally became the product of McCloud
trout with a considerable admixture of other varieties or
species. I have examined trout from several of the stations
of the Bureau of Fisheries, and there appear to be some
typical McCloud fish, some which seem to be a pure breed
of another form, or other forms, and others which appear to
be crosses.

It is not my purpose to discuss the fish-cultural effects of
this adulteration. As an illustration of the effect of the
confused ideas resulting from the long discussion of names
regarding fish, an esteemed member and former officer of
this Society and a state commissioner, in a meeting of the
Society, said that he regarded the rainbow trout and steelhead
trout as identical and handled them accordingly. The eggs of

Kendall.—Rainbow and Steelhead Trout 195

both had been derived directly or indirectly from McCloud
River rainbow trout and Oregon steelheads, and it cannot be
known how many hybrids of these two forms he produced
and planted in the waters of his state.

If there was inbreeding of the brood of original McCloud
stocks at different stations, it seems to me that the exchange
of eggs of these several stations to be reared as breeders would
have relieved the situation. The new California material
should have been kept separate and alleged inbreeding pre-
vented in the same way. However, we didn’t know. In fact
it is quite possible that all of the troubles, if any, were not
attributable to inbreeding. Indeed, the majority of difficulties
not due to other causes, elsewhere referred to, were probably
produced by the remedy applied, i. e., admixture of a new
stock of wild trout of other species.

I have recently received specimens of supposed rainbow
trout from the Madison River, Montana. Two of four speci-
mens are unmistakably straight steelhead trout. Two are of
some other form but not typical McCloud River trout; prob-
ably they are Klamath “rainbows,” whatever they are taxo-
nomically considered to be. To repeat, as far as now known
the oldest name for the fine scaled trout of the McCloud and
upper Sacramento type is Salmo shasta Jordan. The streams
of Mount Whitney, Kern River, and other waters in that
region are inhabited by trout of this character. In fact, it is
hard to distinguish, even by color, Salmo gilberti of the Kern
River from Salmo shasta.

The steelhead, as previously stated, must continue to bear
the name Salmo gairdnerti, with which Salmo irideus and
Salmo rivularis become synonymous. Although it will not
aid in distinguishing Salmo shasta from Salmo gairdnerii by
external observation, it should be mentioned that the rainbow
has 63 vertebrz and the steelhead 60, invariably in the speci-
mens which I have so far examined, counting all segments.

196 American Fisheries Society

Discussion

Mr. J. W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: What is the effect of inbreed-
ing these different forms?

Dr. KenpALL: A difficulty attributed to inbreeding is a gradual
reduction in the egg yield of brood fish. Now, whether that is attri-
butable to this mixture or not, we do not know; that is one of the
problems we shall try to solve. But it is quite possible that the
descendants of these hybrids would have a reduced egg yield, and that
complete sterility of the fish might finally result.

Mr. Titcomp: We have some stock in New York where we have
mixed the two kinds of trout; in fact, we are planting them regardless
of whether they are rainbow or steelhead.

Dr. KenpatL: So far as classification is concerned, the books are
wrong. The steelhead trout is the one that has the coarser scales. I
have counted the scales of various steelheads from the different rivers,
including types from the coast; the scales run about 130, a few more or
less according to the locality. The McCloud River rainbow was intro-
duced early into Europe and elsewhere. It has scales numbering about
160 in the lateral line.

Mr. Titrcomp: Am I correct in understanding that the so-called
rainbow trout was introduced into New Zealand where some of these
fish have been known to weigh 25 pounds? I understand that after they
had been called rainbow trout for a great many years there, it was
decided that they should be called steelhead.

Dr. KENDALL: I remember the time when it was decided that the
New Zealand rainbows were steelheads. Two mounted specimens were
sent to the Bureau of Fisheries, at Washington, and for a long time they
hung on a wall in the laboratory. One day Dr. Evermann looked at
them and said that they were not rainbows, that they were steelheads;
and henceforth the New Zealand rainbows were steelheads. Possibly it
may be significant that this decision was made at a time when the steel-
head was supposed to have the finer scales, and the conclusion may have
been based upon that character. If so, the fish were probably rainbows.
But to determine the matter definitely it would be necessary either to
count the scales or to know the locality from which the fish were originally
obtained. A leopard cannot change its spots; the rainbow trout of 160
scales cannot change its scales to 130 or 120.

Mr. Titcoms: When you cross the rainbow and steelhead, are you
going to produce a hybrid that will not breed?

Dr. KenpALL: Some hybrids do breed. It has been determined that
they will breed, with a reduced egg yield and inferior fry. I have had
no experience in that line, but other fish culturists have, in Europe,
England and other places. Francis Day relates a number of instances of
crossing trout of different species, but in no instance did he get per-
fectly satisfactory progeny that were continuously fertile.

Mr. Titcomsp: You do not know anything then, about the results
of mixing the steelhead and rainbow trout?

Kendall.—Rainbow and Steelhead Trout 197

Dr. Kenpatt: No, I do not know that they have been mixed
except in cases of which I have read.

Mr. Titrcoms: I have mixed them a number of times; in fact, I
have entertained the idea, from what I have read, that the steelhead and
the rainbow were merely variations of the same fish.

Dr. KENDALL: That has been a common impression right along.

Mr. Tircoms: Something like 30 years ago I was talking with
United States Commissioner McDonald, and I asked him what results
he had obtained with rainbow trout in the east. I remember he stated
that they had sent great numbers of them into the waters of New York
state, and that they had all disappeared. I have not had much exper-
ience personally with New York waters, but it is particularly interesting
to me to study the results of planting rainbow or steelhead trout. We
do not know absolutely what waters are suitable for rainbow trout. It
is a curious thing, but we have streams in New York and a few in
Vermont where the planting of rainbow trout has been followed with
very good results, and where they have reproduced and maintained
themselves afterwards. But in the majority of these streams in New
York state where the rainbows have been planted, the fish have abso-
lutely disappeared; and yet there are streams which we annually plant
with fish and which afford good fishing for the rainbow trout so-called.
It is corroborated by anglers that these are good rainbow trout streams.
Now we choose for the rainbow, as we do for the brown trout, the
lower waters of the streams where the tendency is for the water to
become considerably warmer and is not congenial for the native brook
trout. We do not consider the rainbow so destructive to the brook trout
as the brown trout. The rainbow trout, if planted in the headwaters,
naturally works down into the larger, deeper pools of the lower part of
the stream, where the temperature is higher. They are certainly a fine
fish to catch on the fly, too.

Mr. W. H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.: I have fish at my place that
I have raised that came from the Wytheville, Va., hatchery. They are
called rainbows and they spawn in November or December. I have fish
that came from the Pacific coast, called rainbows or steelheads, that spawn
in April. Can you explain why this should be?

Dr. KenpatLt: The spawning of Salmonide, as well as of other
migratory fishes—and most of them them are more or less migratory—
is in conformity with a certain temperature range. They must have a
certain temperature in which to spawn, and that spawning period is
determined by the temperature prevailing in the rivers at a partic-
ular time. For instance, the migratory fish start from the sea; they
ascend the rivers and reach the spawning waters at a certain time, but
if the temperature is not right they wait for it to get right before they
spawn. So we have temperature and other river conditions to which

198 American Fisheries Society

these fish are adapted and which they cannot transcend. It has been a
matter of considerable wonder for a number of years that we have fish
from the Pacific coast which appear to have changed their habits when
they have been sent east, and that fish raised from eggs from the McCloud
River in California, instead of spawning in January, February, March,
and April, or even May, as they do in the McCloud, have approached the
spawning time of the common brook trout, namely, the latter part of
October, November, December, January, and so on. But the truth is, as
it seems to me, that they have not changed their habits; they are
simply trying to conform to the temperature that prevails at the new
location. The fish mentioned by Mr. Rowe were probably adapted to a
certain temperature that prevailed at that time of spawning.

Of course, there are many other factors that may affect the time of
spawning, but temperature is one of them and a very important one.
As a matter of fact, steelhead trout derived from northern fish on the
Pacific coast spawn in the spring in northern waters in the east, and
they do pretty well. But we have more or less difficulty with the
rainbow trout. In the McCloud River the temperature of the water is
more uniform throughout the year. The fish there spawn not on a rising
temperature but on a falling temperature of the water, because the
spring water is colder than the water in winter and the rainbow and
steelhead trout spawn at the season, wherever they happen to be, on
a falling temperature. It was stated in an old report of the Bozeman,
Mont., hatchery that the temperature was very uniform throughout
the winter, and that in the spring it was one or two degrees or more
colder, because of the melting snows. So the water in the spring is
probably colder than it is when there is no melting snow or ice. It was
at this time the rainbows were said to spawn at Bozeman.

Mr. Rowe: I was wondering whether that would prove that one
was rainbow and the other steelhead.

Mr. Titcoms: It was at the Wytheville hatchery that the rainbow
trout was originally domesticated in the east to any extent, so far as I
know. As I understand it, the fish originally spawned rather late in the
spring. The water is all spring water, and there is very little variation
throughout the season. As the fish became domesticated and accustomed
to that even temperature, they gradually began to spawn earlier and
earlier. When I was in charge of fish-cultural work at Washington
I recall that we looked upon it as unusual when eggs were obtained by
the first of December. Since that time, the fish have been spawning even
earlier than that. It seems to me that the change may be due to the
unnatural conditions of water temperature there, and the lack of any
unusual changes which we get in the wild streams. The steelheads in
the wild waters, so far as we know, all spawn late in the spring, because
we have cold winters there, and the fish do not spawn until the water

Kendall.—Rainbow and Steelhead Trout 199

gets warm enough for them in the spring. It is unfortunate that our
tainbow trout spawn just after the open season begins. The anglers go
out and often find a lot of steelheads or rainbows congregated in the
headwaters for the purpose of spawning, and it is a great temptation
to them to hook these fish.

Mr. Lewis RapcuirFe, Washington, D. C.: If there is any tendency
to sterility in these trout, it seems to me that it would be well for the
fish culturist to go back to the native waters, get pure trout stock, and
try it in comparison with the others. ;

SOME FISH-CULTURAL NOTES
By Joun W. Titcoms
Fish Culturist, Conservation Commission, Albany, N. Y.

It is the purpose of the present offering to simply treat of
certain different fish-cultural subjects with the idea of promot-
ing or stimulating further inquiry or investigation.

WATER TEMPERATURE AT WHICH FISH SPAWN

I was rather surprised to find that after the long period of
work in fish culture we have no records stating definitely the
water temperatures at which the various species spawn. Now,
we know the temperature at which many of the species spawn,
but it may be said of a great many fish artificially propagated
that the range of temperature at which they spawn is not
known. We all recognize that the fish are guided as to the time
of spawning by water temperature. Some spawn on a falling
temperature, in autumn; others spawn on a rising temperature
in the spring of the year. I merely call attention to this in the
hope that those engaged in fish culture who read these notes will
pay more attention to this phase of the subject, so that we can
together get data for a table which will be available to all in-
terested persons.

A VARIATION IN TABLE MANNERS AMONG CANNIBALS

This spring I discovered for the first time a fish which eats
one of its mates by taking it tail first. I think you will agree
with me that ordinarily when a fish takes another fish it seizes
it across the body, sometimes by the tail, but that in any case it
turns it around and swallows it head first. In one of our hatch-
eries where pike perch are propagated, some of the little fry
were kept for twelve days, at which time it was found that they
were swallowing each other tail first. I have a number of speci-
mens of these little fry about half an inch long with the head
of one sticking out of the mouth of the next one. In one in-

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes 201

stance there are three specimens where one had swallowed his
mate tail first up to the head, when a third one came along and
swallowed the second one by the tail; so we have three heads
and three pairs of shining golden eyes in a line, and one tail.

VARIATION IN GROWTH OF TROUT UNDER DIFFERENT
QUALITIES AND TEMPERATURES OF WATER

Years ago the American Fisheries Society adopted the plan of
describing the fingerlings as No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, etc., according
to size of the fish, a one-inch fish being called “No. 1 fingerling,”
a two-inch fish “No. 2 fingerling,’’ and so on. That method of
nomenclature gives opportunity for considerable range, but it
does not tell the story as accurately as can ocular demonstra-
tion. In connection with the bottle specimens of trout which
are exhibited, I may say that each foreman who distributed
trout was requested to preserve specimens periodically in con-
nection with shipments. Special labels were furnished calling
for data to be filled out with pencil and placed inside of each
bottle before mailing it; upon receipt, the labels are affixed on
the outside of the bottles. The labels call for the weight per
thousand fish, date, number of fish carried to a ten-gallon can,
and the number of months the fish have been fed.

A table has been prepared based upon the information ob-
tained from available bottled specimens. Had the specimens
been secured for the purposes of compiling the table, an effort
would have been made to have the dates of collection corres-
pond at all hatcheries, a practice which will hereafter be
adopted. The four different conditions of water supply are
as follows:

A. Supply derived partly from driven wells at a uniform tempera-
ture of 52° F., supplemented from surface springs more or less exposed
to the air and therefore varying slightly in temperature. No complete
record of temperatures has been kept at the hatchery, but the foreman

reports that it will average about 51° F., which has been entered in the
tables to enable comparison with other entries.

B. Supply is from a spring covering about one-eighth of an acre
in area, with the resultant variation in temperature from that of the source,

202 American Fisheries Society

which latter is uniformly 48° F. During the winter months the temperature
is somewhat lower than during the summer.

C. Supply of spring brook water, temperature ranging from 38°
to 46° F.

D. Supply from a trout stream of which the temperature ranges
from 34° to 42° in the winter months, and from 38° to 58° in April
and May.

DEVELOPMENT OF TROUT UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS OF WATER SUPPLY

Weight per Tempera-
Date. Length. thousand.* ture. Days fed. Fish to can.
Inches. Ounces °F; Number. Number.
Water Suppry A.
Brook trout:

April x... . 2% to 2-7/16 53 51 126 500
May, tyne) fe sole aitos, 80 51 156 400
August 31 . . 3%4t03-% 333 SI 212 100
September 30 . 5% 1,250 sr 242 100
October 31 . . 6%T 2,750 51 273 50
Brown trout:
April 1... . 2%to2% 48 51 126 500
August 31. . . 2% to3% 250 51 217 150
September 30 . 3%to3% 375 51 247 100
October 31 . . 5% T5255 51 278 100
Rainbow trout:
April it icureiiel «i221 t0res4 42 51 74 500
tly, 20 je to Nels) 25a5t0. 3 80 51 150 200
September 30 . 4 to4% 500 SI 216 150
October 31 . . 4%to4% 625 51 246 100
Brook trout: Water Suppty B.
April 13. . « 1-3/16 to 1-5/16 TOW) a7 tose 55 1,000
May 5... . 1-9/16to1% 15 48to 51 73 500
WER OTe BAR 4 to 2% 48 49to 53 100 400
June 30 . . © 2-5/16 to 2-9/16 64 48to54 130 300
August 2... 3% 04% 488 48to53 162 125
September 17 . 4% 900 49 to 52 210 80
October 27 . . 5 1,120 48to51 250 50
Brook trout: Water Suppty C.
April ¥x2) ef es ika/ TO tose 5 40to 46 21 2,000
ADTIN 2S ecw ment to 1% 8 45to50 37 1,000
Brook trout: Water Suppry D.
Aprilr2. « « 15/16\to x 5 54 to 58 31 1,000
July 19 . . « 1% to 1-13/16 15 54 to 60 80 500
August 24 . . 2% to 2-7/16 36 54to 60 116 500

* Determined from weight of a few average size specimens.
7One trout; much fatter and heavier than a wild trout of same length.

Reference to section A of the foregoing table shows that on
April 1st there were fingerling trout of three species ranging in
length from 2% to 314 inches, in contrast with the fish at

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes 203

another hatchery shown in section B which on April 13th, nearly
two weeks later, range from 1 3-16 to 1 5-16 inches in length.
The smaller fish cost more than the larger ones, the eggs at both
hatcheries having been laid down about the same date. A com-
parison of the sizes of fish on different dates in section A with
sections C and D, shows that the same situation exists. i

In some water supplies there is a rapid growth late in the
summer, which compensates for slow growth earlier in the
season, this, of course, being possible only in instances where
the fish are not distributed until late in the season. The weight
of fish of a given length differs under varying conditions. This
may be due to feeding methods or to the kind of food used.
The specimens and data herein referred to may suggest further
inquiry on this subject with a view to determining whether the
difference is due to water supply, or to feeding methods which
can be remedied.

It is recognized that most fish culturists must accept condi-
tions as they find them, and that each hatchery has its individual
problems as to water supply and other matters, but it is strongly
recommended to those who have charge of a number of hatch-
eries that they collect specimens and compile data along the line
shown in the foregoing table. This will enable the study of
certain economic problems from a new point of view.

If called upon to locate a new hatchery, the specimens and re-
sultant data may serve to forcefully show, merely by compar-
ison of water temperatures, the suitability or unsuitability of
some site under consideration. Although generally recognized
by fish culturists, it seems desirable to add here that no con-
siderable investment should be made in hatchery construction
until the water has been thoroughly tested with eggs and fish
and until a year’s record of water temperature is available.

POND CULTURE IN ABANDONED SECTIONS OF CANALS

Some of you have heard about the efforts of the New York
State Conservation Commission to utilize abandoned portions

204 American Fisheries Society

of the Erie and Champlain Canals, state property otherwise un-
productive and having little or no promise of future value.

When we attempted to drain these sections we were surprised
to find that what apparently had been nothing but an accumula-
tion of slime had many depressions below the normal canal
bottom, and that complete drainage was difficult. The canal
contained innumerable fish, carp, suckers, sunfish, rock bass and
several species of minnows. This work was undertaken just at
the beginning of the war, but aside from some parts has not
been completed on account of labor conditions and the high cost
of material. In some places we have been obliged to construct
side outlets in order to effect complete drainage. In the mean-
time we have been breeding large and small mouth black bass
and bullheads in the sections worked. We have seined out as
much of the foreign materials as possible, and the results have
been favorable, though not as good as we expect when it has all
been cleaned up.

I have been rather surprised to find that bass held as brood
fish do not find nearly enough to eat; in other words, they do
not catch and feed upon the numerous minnows. The suckers
breed there. The young bass come on all right but the parent
bass are thin and it appears necessary to resort to feeding, just
as we do in the artificial breeding ponds at the hatcheries. The
same is true of the parent bullheads. We have stocked a canal
section with bullheads from Chautauqua Lake ranging from one
to three pounds in weight. They reproduce and the young de-
velop into fine, healthy fish; but the adults are very emaciated
and it is evident that they must be fed. Strange to say, some
bullheads native to the canal are able to thrive and develop into
nice plump adult fish. They are not as large as the Chautauqua
bullheads; this suggests that we may have to acclimatize these
fish of larger growth imported from other places, before we can
get satisfactory results without artificial feeding. The canal
sections range from a mile to a mile and a half in length, so
that everything looks favorable for the fish to thrive there, just
as in natural ponds.

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes 205

One main section of the canal ponds was drained and cleared
of all natural enemies, and then stocked with 50,000 small
mouth bass fry. Owing to the fact that construction and drain-
age features were not completed until a short time before it was
necessary to ship the fry, the pond was not filled until two or
three days before the fry were introduced. Observations of
the fry after the first week indicated that there might have been
a lack of the normal amount of food; but after two weeks they
recovered from their rather emaciated condition and grew
rapidly. The total result of the harvest from those 50,000 fry
was 14,100 fingerlings ranging in length from 2 to 334 inches,
a yield of approximately 28 per cent. The fish were harvested
when from six to eight weeks old. This gives rather interest-
ing data upon the planting of small mouth bass fry in a pond a
mile in length with an average width of between 60 and 70 feet ;
but it is hoped, another season, with the pond flooded several
weeks in advance of planting time, that a larger percentage of
fingerlings may be produced. A pond of this character offers
many opportunities for experiments of an economic character.
For example, the determination of how many fry can be planted
in such a place to procure the best results in fingerlings; the
question as to whether it is possible that 30,000 fry will yield as
many fingerlings as 50,000; whether we are moving the fry
from the nests too soon while they are very delicate; and
whether better results will be realized if they are held a week
longer in the water where hatched. These are economic ques-
tions having a bearing upon all bass fry distributions to public
waters.

THE COMMON BULLHEAD (Ameiurus nebulosus)

The bullhead has not had a very high social standing among
fishes, and not much protection, but it seems to be coming into
itsown. There is a great demand for bullheads in the State of
New York, and I find that in other states the bullhead is being
propagated more largely. There is not much literature on their
habits, so I am submitting a few notes as to observations made
during the past summer.

206 American Fisheries Society

Spawning at Chautauqua Lake is at water temperatures of
from 68 to 72 degrees F., and the period of incubation is from
10 to 14 days. The nests are constructed in from one to three
feet of water and vary in size and depth, the average nest being
from 8 to 12 inches across and from 6 to 10 inches deep. The
construction of those at Chautauqua Lake varies according to
the soil; some of the nests are without much depression, but
such are usually in a root or log or bog. Three bullheads were
seen in one hole at the same time, but the sex was not
ascertained.

There is a great variation in the spawning season of bull-
heads; as late as July 17th we found a nest of eggs from a pair
of bullheads native to that particular section of the canal. We

secured a sample of 2,188 eggs from a female estimated to
weigh one pound.

Dr. Emmeline Moore, whom some of you heard at the meet-
ing of this Society last year at Louisville, Ky., on the Foods
Which Feed the Little Bass, has made some notes on the bull-
head as follows:

Bullhead nests were under observation in ponds ‘Nos. 1, 2, and 3,
from June 9th to June 23d. The typical nests were neatly rounded holes
dug into the mud near the edge of the pond with about 8 to 14 inches
of water covering them. The diameter of the holes was about 11
inches. The shape of the holes was that of a hollow cone extending
into the mud at an angle of about 30 degrees, and at a depth of 14
inches to 2 feet. There were variations from the type nest. One pair
of bullheads used a deserted muskrat hole. Another nest had a curious
outlet extending upward vertically from the middle of a cone shaped
nest. This outlet presented the appearance of a crayfish hole in diameter
and workmanship and its function may have been that of a runway for
enemy crayfish to steal fry from the nest.

The two parent fish were occupied on the nest during the incubation
period, one relieving the other or both remaining on the nest together
for a short space of time. Their chief activities were concerned with
the protection of the nest from intruders and in keeping the water in
circulation, a process accomplished by a movement of the fins while
with head forward they hovered over the nest.

The parent fish were not observed bringing off their brood, but
judging from the size of the fry seen thereafter, the incubation period

must be from 10 to 14 days, and that soon after hatching the fry are
led forth to suitable forage grounds.

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes 207

A large school was seen feeding in the shallow water over a mud
bank in pond No. 1 on July 8th. The fry were probably ten days old
at this time. They were moving together in a compact mass under the
rigid discipline of the two parents who encircled the school and closed
in if there was a tendency to stray away. Straying away seemed to be
accidental, for with remarkable instinct they kept together. Occasionally
one of the parents moved into the midst of the school allowing the fry
to swim over and around her. The movements of the school when _
foraging were very slow, spreading over the mud like a gigantic black
amceba. Their food at this stage consisted of water-fleas, small crus-
tacea, caddice worms, mayflies, etc. This school was shipped a day or
two thereafter and observations confined to scattered individuals taken
from the seine in other ponds.

At Chautauqua Lake it was observed by the foreman that
after the young bullheads leave the nest one of the parents takes
the school to very shallow waters, about four inches in depth,
where they hover under the protection of the parent until the
yolk sac is absorbed. It is not definitely known whether it is
the male or female which guards the young. Headds the rather
interesting statement that when disturbed, the parent fish will
scatter the young, at the same time swirling the water and
roiling it for protection.

Discussion

Mr. JoHN M. Crampton, New Haven, Conn.: I understand Mr.
Titcomb to say that he developed a two and a half inch trout from the
Ist of January to the Ist of April. What was the ittemperature of
the water—cold?

Mr. Tircoms: Spring water.

Mr. E. T. D. CHAMBERS, Quebec, Canada: Were these fish fed
anything besides liver?

Mr. Tircoms: Yes, we feed them beef livers and beef melts and
pork livers and pork melts, principally. I do not compel the foreman to
take the cheapest kind of food, because if he has any trouble with his
fish he will put the responsibility on me. But I think it is a fact that
in some waters we can use melts entirely in the raising of fish, while on
the other hand there are some waters which will not admit of the use
of melts. The Chautauqua hatchery trout are raised on beef liver;
the foreman there has had trouble when he has attempted to use melts;
he also objects to pork liver. After the fish are two inches in length h2
also uses carp.

Mr. S. B. Hawks, Bennington, Vt.: Mr. Titcomb referred to the
placing of 250 fish in a can. What is the size of the can?

Mr. Titcoms: It is a regulation ten-gallon can; in other words a

208 American Fisheries Society

milk can of the standard type. Of the larger fish we are shipping about
75 to the can.

Mr. JAMes Nevin, Madison, Wis.: We are shipping now from 100
to 125; they are about the same size as yours.

Mr. Titcoms: We are shipping some of ours 125 to the can, but
the largest size runs 75 to the can. We would not be able to supply
our applicants with fish if we shipped them all when they attain the two
inch size. We make our allotments to applicants by cans instead of by
the number of fish, We give one or two cans to a mile of stream,
regardless of the time when the fish are distributed. We begin to
distribute when they are small fingerlings, and thus avoid congestion in
the hatcheries. The applicant can have the largest fingerlings if he
makes request for them, in which case his application is held over until
the fish run about 75 to a can. Another applicant may get 1,000 in a
can of these small fingerlings, or even more. By alloting by cans in-
stead of by number of fish I do not have apprehensions at the end of
the season about failing to fill all applications. We usually have several
carloads of these larger fish to sweeten up people with and make en-
cores to clubs, and so on. If you send them some of these fish that
run 75 to the can, they would rather have them than 5,000 fry.

Mr. Lewis RapcLirre, Washington, D. C.: Mr. Titcomb is to be
congratulated on his efforts to get more specific information as to the
time when certain of these fishes spawn, and the temperature of the
water at that time, and also to get more definite data as to the produc-
tivity of these various ponds. The fishermen in some localities recognize
in a general way when to expect the fish; they say, for example, that
when the dogwood is in blossom, shad may be expected. I believe that
in many cases they do not realize that the conditions which bring the
dogwood into blossom also bring the shad into their waters.

Mr. W. C. ApAms, Boston, Mass.: It seems to me that this is the
proper place, in the course of a discussion of trout culture, to describe
the plan which Massachusetts put into operation last winter. It consists
in planting eyed trout eggs that will hatch in anywhere from five to ten
days after they are planted in the spring holes picked out for them.
Our scheme has been to take a certain number of these eggs and the
ordinary wire that we use in the hatching troughs, turn the wire up at
the side so as to make a tray of it, about two feet long, the width being
that of the wire ordinarily used for the purpose. We anchor this tray
in a spring hole which is tributary to one of our trout brooks, in such
a way as to have it, say, a couple of inches off the bottom of the spring
hole or section of brook, in order that there will be plenty of ventilation
all around the eggs. Then, having anchored the tray, we put the eggs
on it, limited in number to avoid any possibility of overcrowding. This
done, we thatch over the top of the tray with very heavy brush, and put
finer stuff on top of that to conceal it from predatory animals and birds.
Our observation has been that after these eggs hatch the young fish
drop into the silt in the bottom of the spring hole or brook and stay

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes 209

there until the egg sac is consumed; then they start on their natural
life course. Last year, if my memory serves me correctly, we planted
500,000 of these eyed eggs, principally in the eastern part of Massachu-
setts, although we put a liberal stock in the west branch of the Swift
River, for example, which is up in the more rugged part of our state.

One of the great problems in fish culture, as I conceive it, is the
utilization of all those things which you may describe as by-products,—
that is to say, any fish hatchery can produce more eggs ordinarily than
it can hatch; certainly it can hatch more fry than it has the facilities
for rearing to reasonably sized fingerlings. Now, in our state we are
going to try to utilize our hatcheries to their maximum development,
and that means that we are going to eye more eggs than it would be
of value to us to hatch, for the reason that we would not be able to
rear the fry. We are going to put our wardens on snowshoes and send
them, with these eggs, into inaccessible parts of our state—inaccessible
at that time of year in any other way than on snowshoes, on account
of the presence of anywhere from two to five feet of snow on the level
in certain sections. These spring holes and many of the brooks are open
the whole year round, and we believe that if we can plant fry in the
small tributary streams, we shall be utilizing a product which otherwise
we could not take care of to advantage; and we shall be doing exactly
what nature herself would do if given full opportunity, that is to say,
filling every spring hole and every small stream tributary to a good
trout brook, full of fry.

Mr. Espen W. Cops, St. Paul, Minn.: Our experience has taught
us that the temperature at which fish spawn varies in different geo-
graphic locations. We have also learned tthat we can bring eggs from
certain sections to our hatcheries with very little loss, whereas, when we
bring them from other sections the loss is much greater. At our Bemidji
hatchery, which I believe is somewhat farther north than Ottawa, pike
perch have spawned in water at a temperature of 46 degrees. If the
water turns cold after they begin to spawn we still gather some spawn
but the take is much decreased, and if a snowstorm comes hard enough
to turn them back the run of fish is of very little benefit to us. If eggs
are shipped out from Bemidji to the southern part of the state, the
utmost care being exercised in transferring them, the loss will be 25
per cent greater than with eggs that have been hatched up there where
the conditions are the same as those to which the fish have become
acclimated. The question of the temperature of the water is a very large
one. It would take a great deal of time to get anywhere with it, be-
cause you run into all kinds of unlooked for conditions. Fish seem to
be acclimated to their own particular section, and each section has its
own problem. The results obtained in one section cannot safely be
depended upon elsewhere without careful investigation.

Mr. Titcoms: What is the temperature of the water at the Bemidji
hatchery?

Mr. Esen W. Cops: The fish spawn there at 46°. We cannot

210 American Fisheries Society

transport from Bemidji to the St. Paul hatchery where the spring water
supply runs at 50°, and get the good results obtained in transporting from
Whitefish Lake, which is farther south and where the temperature variation
is not great as compared with St. Paul.

Mr. Titcoms: This matter of temperature is a very interesting
subject. We gathered a lot of yellow perch eggs in one of our northern
lakes, and took them to a hatchery on, Lake Erie which is furnished
with water from the municipal supply, obtained from the deep waters
of the lake. The water is all right for herring and whitefish but in the
spring of the year it is very cold, and our attempt to hatch yellow perch
in it was a failure. An attempt to hatch pike perch would be a failure
too, because the water does not warm up to the temperature that the
eggs require. ’

It seems to be easier to carry eggs from a given temperature to a
slightly higher temperature than to carry them to a temperature in a
hatchery which is lower than the normal spawning temperature. For
example, I think it would be very difficult to take white perch eggs from
the Susquehanna River and hatch them in a New England hatchery, even
if it was supplied with water corresponding to the same conditions.
My impression is that the Bureau of Fisheries has transported quan-
tities of white perch fry from the Susquehanna River to northern waters
for the purpose of stocking northern ponds. But the waters of the
Susquehanna River being warmer than the northern waters at that season
of the year, the fry when planted in the colder northern waters could
not survive the sudden change in temperature.

Mr. C. O. Hayrorp, Hackettstown, N. J.: During the past three
years, Professor Foster, of Lafayette College, has directed a biological
survey of about 2,000 miles of spring runs and trout streams, and it has
been found that there is an enormous difference between the fish in
these streams both in quantity and in size. You may have two streams
coming down a mountain under almost exactly the same conditions not
over a mile apart and one will be teeming with food while the other
has practically none. Some streams contain the most minute organisms;
others contain organisms of the larger types. After three years’ ex-
perience we find best results are obtained by planting fish according to
size and quantity of insect food, starting with No. 1 in spring runs and
headwaters, and using No. 2 and No. 3 as the streams grow larger.
The most interesting thing to us was the vast difference in size and
quantity of the various kinds of insects. We are trying, with Dr.
Embody’s assistance, to work out a system of stocking according to the
amount of food per mile, for the different sizes of fish.

Mr. Titcoms: That is what I would call, in common phraseology,
“great stuff.” The work which Mr. Hayford has outlined as being done
in New Jersey is certainly ahead of that done in any other state. I
want to get to the point where all planting of fish will be done under
the supervision of somebody who knows something about it. If we
can get a survey of the waters similar to that which is made in New

Titcomb.—Some Fish-Cultural Notes Zit

Jersey, we can do very much more intelligent work and save a great
many fish now wasted. People are spawning and raising fish many of
which are thrown away when distributed.

PresipENT Avery: Mr. Hayford is certainly taking advanced ground
in this matter. The information which he gives us is very welcome.

Mr. Hayrorp: I wish to state further that a great deal of the
credit for this work is due to Dr. Embody and Professor Foster.

Mr. Dwicut LypEtt, Comstock Park, Mich.: Reference has been
made to the bullhead. I may say that we have been propagating bull-
heads for a couple of seasons and it is our observation that they spawn
in practically the same temperature of water stated by Mr. Titcomb.
Their nests are about the same as those mentioned, and the bottom is
very rough. They spawn under the stumps, of which there are a
number.

FIFTY YEARS’ EXPERIENCE IN FISH CULTURE
By JAMES NEVIN

Conservation Commission, Madison, Wis.

Upon the basis of my experience of the past fifty years
of fish-cultural work, in Canada as well as in the United
States, I desire to present some views that may be of
general interest. On the Ist of September, 1869, I began
the work under Samuel Wilmot, of New Castle, Ontario,
who was the father of fish culture in Canada. I served
thirteen years under Mr. Wilmot with the fisheries de-
partment of Canada before taking up my work in Wis-
consin on September 1, 1882. I remember well when
the first meeting of the American Fisheries Society was
held. It was in New York City, and I secured copies of
the newspaper accounts brought home by Mr. Wilmot,
who was in attendance.

The memory of my boyhood days while I was engaged
in the business in Canada is still as fresh as though the
events happened but yesterday. The methods in vogue
at that time were very crude by comparison with those of
today, and it is with great pleasure that I note the progress
made in fish culture during the past half century. Fifty
years ago there was only one hatchery in Canada, that at
New Castle, Ontario. Today there are upwards of fifty
or more hatcheries, producing hundreds of millions of
fish for the public waters of Canada, and cooperating
with us across the border in keeping international waters
stocked.

The success in fish-cultural work and the stocking of
waters with suitable fish has been worth millions of dol-
lars more than the cost. It has become a great asset
to the people of the North American continent. Note
should be made, however, that many fish have in the past
been deposited in waters not adapted to them. Thus

Nevin.—Fifty Years’ Experience in Fish Culture 213

there has been at times great waste of good seed sown
in barren waters adapted only to other forms of fish life.
Fortunately this is practically a thing of the past, as most
of our states before planting occurs are now having, or
have had, their public waters examined to ascertain which
kinds of fish are best suited to their needs.

We have had considerable loss in transferring finger-
ling and yearling brook trout from one hatchery to an-
other. We have endeavored at all times to get them ac-
customed to the water before placing them in ponds, but
often after twenty-four hours the fish would act as though
they were going into spasms, and turn up and die. When
fish begin to act in this manner they need a strong solu-
tion of salt in the water. It is the best remedy we have
for fish at this time and has saved many that would other-
wise have died. I have often wondered whether fish
when first liberated in public lakes and streams die in the
proportion they sometimes do at our hatcheries, where
we have made every effort to prevent such loss.

On several occasions in the past I have sent out men
to observe fingerling trout that had been planted. In
two instances quite a loss was noted, although it is gen-
erally difficult to learn the exact loss when fish planted
in streams are carried away by the current and disappear
from view. Judging by the numbers of fish that are taken
from some of the waters which have been stocked, one
would think that they must all have lived and thrived.
Again, from other waters that have been stocked at the
same time, very few fish, if any, have been taken to tell
of their existence there. We are reassured, however,
upon finding some of these fish in nets when we are
fishing for carp and other rough fish.

I have always been a firm believer in the planting of
brook trout fry before the sac is absorbed and before they
begin to take food. We have the largest losses of fry

214 American Fisheries Society

at our hatcheries before they begin to feed; this is when
we attempt to hold them in the troughs until after the
cold weather and spring freshets have passed. Brook
trout did not exist in two-thirds of the streams in Wis-
consin until stocked with fry during the winter months.
Our instructions to applicants are to be sure to plant the
little fellows in the headwaters of the streams, and I feel
sure that no state or country has had any better results
in the stocking of streams than we have.

On the other hand we do not like to send out fish in
the winter season on account of weather conditions and
the difficulty in getting them to the streams. Many of
the waters are frozen over, and often we have deep snow
with which to contend. The people are beginning to ask
more for fingerlings, but heretofore we have not had the
quality of water at our hatcheries to grow large numbers
of fry to the fingerling size. We now think we have the
water at our new hatchery at St. Croix Falls, in the north-
western part of the state, in which with care we can grow
fish with very small loss. We intend to raise more
brook trout fry to the fingerling size, and not plant
until all danger of spring freshets has passed. Whether
we shall get any better results is a question in my mind.
One thing we do know, however, is that we shall be pleas-
ing a great many more people; also that we shall be able
to make annual allotments to all the streams we think
adapted to brook trout, though, of course, not giving each
stream as large numbers as if we sent out fry.

For many years I have been studying the quality of
waters we use for the raising of brook trout, and have
learned which are suitable, simply by comparing the num-
ber of fish planted in various streams with the number
taken from them in after years. Streams that we for-
merly thought were excellent for trout often did not show

Nevin.—Fifty Years’ Experience in Fish Culture 215

the results we had expected. This applies also to certain
varieties of fish planted in the lakes.

The spring water at our new St. Croix Falls hatchery
is a regular cure-all and sanitarium for fish. Trout that
are hatched from weak eggs seem to receive such in-
vigoration that we have practically no losses. The water
. is much superior to any I have ever had to do with for
the raising of trout fry. We have given it a thorough
test during the past two hatching seasons, so we feel at
this time that we can go ahead and spend money in mak-
ing this hatchery one of the best and most useful of any.
There may be many more fish-cultural stations in this
country that possess water as invigorating to brook trout
fry, but I know of only one, namely, that privately owned
by Mr. G. Hansen, at Osceola, Wis., about five miles south
of St. Croix Falls. It is a commercial trout hatchery
where Mr. Hansen has raised and sold many tons of
brook trout annually for the past thirty years. His fish
have been clean and free from disease during all that time.
I claim that this is due to the quality of the water.

The inbreeding of fish is something that has never
been brought to the attention of this Society, to my knowl-
edge, and it is a matter which I think is very important.
I would be pleased to hear regarding it from those en-
gaged in the propagation of brook trout. For the past
twenty-five years we have been exchanging and buying
eggs from different places, each year endeavoring to get
new blood into our stock, but have never had the success
desired with the fry hatched from the purchased eggs.
In fact, we did not have as good results as we did from our
own stock.

For the past few years we have been getting more
soft eggs at spawning and more weak fry with blue sacs
at hatching than formerly. We have attributed this to
the inbreeding of fish. At every possible opportunity we

216 American Fisheries Society

now secure eggs from wild trout. Last season we got
one hundred wild male fish and impregnated 125,000 eggs
at our Bayfield hatchery, and the result has been mar-
vellous in the production of strong, healthy fry, there being
no weak fish or fry with blue sacs among them. Every
fish culturist knows that fry with blue sacs are doomed
to die. We have kept separate the one hundred male
fish obtained last year, and will watch the results this
season. We are in hopes of getting a much larger num-
ber of wild male trout for use at spawning time this fall.
Should anyone in the business having a number of soft
eggs when taken, let them remain in the milt in the vessel
in which taken, and set it in cold running spring water for an
hour or more, or until the eggs get hard before putting
them on the trays, results will be very beneficial.

At one of our hatcheries it is difficult to carry a large
percentage of brook trout fry until they begin to feed, con-
sequently for a number of years we have been sending
the eggs to other stations to hatch and distribute. The
resulting fry were always stronger and there were fewer
losses than among those of the home product. After the
fry from the eggs thus transferred began to feed when
about six weeks old, some were returned to the parent
hatchery without serious loss thereafter. This shows
that there is something in the water that affects the fry
from the time they are hatched until the sac is absorbed
and feeding begins. If the eggs had remained at their
home station we would not have raised twenty per cent
of the fry to the age of two months.

As to rainbow trout, I think we keep a larger stock
of breeders and take more eggs than any of the middle
or eastern states. We do not have the trouble in raising
them that we do with brook trout in the same waters
where we hatch and distribute millions of fry. These fish
have been bred from the same stock for the past forty

Nevin.—Fifty Years’ Experience in Fish Culture 217

years, and the eggs and fry from our stock of breeders
last season were as strong and vigorous as any we had
ever taken. One might naturally think that if there is
anything to the inbreeding of fish, results would be the
same with rainbow as with brook trout.

We intend to increase our capacity and keep a much
larger stock of brown trout in the future than we have in
the past, as the fry planted in our streams have done ex-
ceptionally well. I do not find from observation that the
brown trout are any more destructive in the way of can-
nibalism, of which they are accused, than any other va-
riety of game fish. Their food qualities are almost equal
to those of brook trout and their ability to fight will
always give the angler a thrill. If the fish is of any size,
the fisherman will have a tale to tell of a hard-fought battle
and the time it took to land the catch safely.

Diseases of fish are many, and an ounce of prevention
is worth a pound of cure. Salt has been the cure-all for
most of our trouble with fish in the past. We have found
another remedy, however, which we think is an improve-
ment over salt, if properly used, for the removal of fungus
or the killing of copepods on the gills of the fish, or in
fact any germs that attack fish. If taken in time the use
of potassium permanganate, one-half grain to a gallon of
water, varying slightly according to the age of the fish,
will bring results. A bath of a couple of minutes at a
time in this solution about twice a day for several days
if necessary, will kill most of the germs and keep the fish
free from disease. Hereafter in the spring and fall we
shall give all of our brook trout a bath at sorting time,
hoping to thus keep them free from all germs.

To be successful in brook trout work, one must be
alert and wideawake at all times in watching over the stock
on hand. Close attention must be given to the feeding
and care of the fish, or trouble is bound to result. A care-

218 American Fisheries Society

less man has no business with the raising of fish in any
manner.

Fish culture today is recognized by some as a big
business proposition, although but few people truly realize
the importance of it. Millions of pounds of food products
are taken annually from our waters in a commercial way.
This goes on from year to year. In addition, there is
the recreation and sport for the angler as well as food he
thus obtains from our waters each season. The many
varieties and great numbers of game fish are worth un-
told millions to our country each year.

The only way that this vast wealth can be kept with
us, so that future generations shall be able to realize
the importance and reap the benefits of the industry is
by the propagation and planting in our waters each year
of more millions of fish. This together with regulations
governing the size, daily catch and the season when they
may be taken, will make it possible to maintain the fish
supply for all time to come.

If it had not been for the propagation of whitefish on
the Great Lakes, there would be practically none in those
waters today. More whitefish have been taken from the
waters of Wisconsin, Lake Michigan and Green Bay dur-
ing the past two seasons than were taken in the previous
decade. The fishermen say there are more lake trout in
the waters of Lake Michigan now than there were forty
years ago. This speaks well for the many plantings of
fry which have been made.

It is remarkable to consider the large numbers of fish
taken from year to year from our Great Lakes system,
and then remember that the numbers caught annually have
not diminished. When we recall the great waste result-
ing from the capture of immature and practically value-
less No. 2 whitefish and trout, we are prompted to call
attention to what they would have been worth to the fish-

Nevin.—Fifty Years’ Experience in Fish Culture 219

ermen at present prices if left for another two years to
have reached a satisfactory size and weight. The result-
ing big addition to the food product would not have cost
anyone a cent.

Something more should be done by the several states
immediately concerned and by Canada to replenish Lake
Superior with whitefish. It is almost fished out as far as
this species is concerned, and some united action should
be taken at once. The international waters should be gov-
erned by uniform legislation by the two countries, so that
it will be possible to prevent waste of small trout and
whitefish. The taking of these valuable fish before they
have reached proper size should be strictly prohibited by
both countries.

Discussion

Mr. E. T. D. CHAMBERS, Quebec, Canada: May I be allowed to ask
if the author of the paper can give us the date at which the gentleman
whom he styles the “Father of Fish Culture” in Canada began his
operations?

Mr. Nevin: He began about 1866.

Mr. CHAMBERS: As a matter of historical accuracy, if the state-
ment made in this paper is correct, I wish to correct a statement I made
in the “History of the Canadian Fisheries,” published about eight or ten
years ago, in which I stated that the father of fish culture in Canada
was Richard Nettle, who commenced operations in the city of Quebec—
only in an experimental way, of course, at his own place of residence
in the city. He succeeded in hatching in the late fifties, and the result
of his operations has been published in his book entitled “Salmon Fish-
ing in Canada,” published by Lovell, of Montreal, in the year 1859 or
1860. The facts which I mention in the work to which I refer are also
recorded by Mr. Rodd, of this city, in a paper which he read before the
(Canadian Fisheries Association—I do not remember the date—at its
meeting last year at a point on Lake Erie. The facts can be very easily
ascertained because Mr. Nettle’s book is in print; and there is also in
existence a report made to Sir Edmund Head, who was then Governor
General of Canada. I am enabled to fix the date approximately because
of the fact that Sir Edmund Head’s only son was drowned while bath-
ing in the St. Maurice River at the Falls of Shawinigan, and Sir Ed-
mund was so heartbroken that he returned to England. That was before
1860 and Sir Edmund Head was a great patronizer of Richard Nettle
in connection with his first hatchery and the operations which he carried

220 American Fisheries Society

on at his residence in the city of Quebec. His work may not have been
upon a large scale but he certainly started the idea and in quite a prac-
tical manner. He took salmon eggs from the St. Charles river and
hatched them at his place in Quebec; he also hatched trout eggs taken
from waters in the province of Quebec. [Mr. Chambers later said that
he had ascertained the exact year in which Nettle hatched trout at
Quebec and planted them in Lake Beauport, and that it was in 1857.]

Mr. Wm. C. ApAmMs, Boston, Mass.: Mr. Nevin spoke about the
question of transporting fry.

Mr. Nevin: Those were fingerlings from six months to one year old,
from three to five inches in length.

Mr. ApAMS: We have had difficulty in transporting small finger-
ling fish from a hatchery over a distance of about eighty miles to a
rearing plant. When in forty gallon cans we lost our shipments, but
when in ten gallon cans we had no trouble.

Mr. Nevin: This last fall we transferred a carload of about 10,000
fingerlings to the Wild Rose hatchery. These fish were placed in troughs
in the hatchery building. I watched them for two hours and there was no
sign of any fish dying; they were in perfect condition, and I went to
supper. I had not been gone fifteen minutes when the foreman of the
hatchery came rushing up to the hotel, telling me the fish were acting badly,
a lot of them turning on their sides as if they had spasms, and beginning
to die. I went to the hatchery with him, ordered several pails of salt placed
in the troughs, and left the fish in this solution for some five minutes
and they all revived. In fact, we lost only about 75 fish out of the
10,000 transferred. In my opinion, if I had not been on hand and used the
salt as we did, we would have lost from one-half to two-thirds of the
fish, judging by their looks when I reached the hatching house.

Mr. ApamMs: Would that be practical treatment for fingerlings as
small as an inch and a half in length?

Mr. Nevin: Yes. That has been happening to us for years. In
transporting fish we have better results in November than in any other
month.

PROGRESS IN PRACTICAL FISH CULTURE
By Dwicut LyDELL

Michigan Fish Commission, Comstock Park, Mich.

Perhaps the animal kingdom affords no more striking
example of waste and loss than occurs in the reproduction
of young fish in a wild or natural state. When a parent
fish must be provided with reproductive germs in such
lavish numbers—often a thousand or more in order to
produce a single adult—or, in other words, when nature
must gamble at odds of a thousand to one in order to
insure a posterity, it is timely to inquire into the extent
to which this remarkable waste may be conserved and
utilized. It is therefore the mission of the practical fish
culturist to rescue from peril, to salvage natural waste
and so shape its destiny as to add enormously to our food
resources. It is obvious that he will succeed only to the
extent that he is able to determine what are the real con-
structive forces of nature, then provide ways and means
of utilizing, in proper balance, such of these forces as are
in harmony with the special work at hand; and at the
same time to constantly safeguard against all adverse
conditions and natural forces that blight and destroy.

It is my purpose merely to refer briefly to improved prac-
tical methods that have stabilized and increased produc-
tion to an extent that many additional millions of young
fish have been added to our output in recent years.

Advancement in practical fish-cultural work depends
to a great extent upon the fish culturist himself. He
must thoroughly investigate natural conditions in his lo-
cality, and must devise means to control or modify any
features inimical to satisfactory results. Certain kinds
of pond fish will, with ideal weather conditions, reproduce
themselves to some extent, but the fish culturist, if he
is observing, may develop such other conditions as to in-

222 American Fisheries Society

sure a good output every season. Of course, the locality,
kind and temperature of water, quantity of flowage and
many other essential matters must be taken into consid-
eration. The output of different kinds of pond-hatched
and reared fish also depends a great deal upon the man-
ner in which the pond is prepared for this particular work.

PREPARATION OF PONDS

The first requisite is that the ponds be in proper con-
dition. If in a locality where freshets prevail and the
bottom is covered with silt, the ponds should be drawn
down the previous fall, cleaned, and allowed to remain dry
until they become thoroughly frozen. This is to destroy
undesirable forms of plant and animal life. To permit
thorough cleaning, each pond should be provided with a
concrete runway or gutter around the inlet, through the
bottom, and connecting with the outlet. When the pond
is being drawn down the mud is gradually forced with
scrapers toward this gutter; when the pond is finally
down, the mud is practically all in the center. Then a
heavy flow of water is turned on and the mud is grad-
ually washed out through the gutter. In the spring the
ponds are again drawn down, and if they are to be used
for the propagation of bass, the beds are placed where
the fish culturist deems fit and according to the number
of breeders he wishes to put in each pond.

If the ponds are located where but little richness
comes from the flood water, they are fertilized, especially
around the shallow margins, with some good kind of
pond fertilizer. If too much vegetation has been grow-
ing in any pond, crayfish and adult goldfish are intro-
duced to keep it down where it will not interfere with the
subsequent collection of young fish. If not enough vege-
tation grows, it should be planted. Chara, which is very
desirable in pond culture, can be transplanted in the fall.
late in September or early in October, by drawing a pond

Lydell_—Progress in Practical Fish Culture 223

that has an abundance, letting it dry, and then scattering
a goodly supply over the bottom of the ponds that lack
vegetation. The reason for the introduction of goldfish
and crayfish is that they do not prey to any extent upon
the insect life that furnishes food for other kinds of young
fish. As the goldfish breed about a month later than the.
other varieties of pond fish, their young furnish an abun-
dance of food later on. A pond with plenty of shallow
margin will yield a greater number of fingerling fish;
this is because more food is produced in the shoal mar-
gin areas.

INTRODUCTION OF BREEDING FISH

The breeding fish are carefully sorted, both with re-
spect to their size and condition, and none but strong,
healthy specimens of about the same size are placed in
each breeding pond. The number put in each depends a
great deal on its water area and the amount of natural
food available for their young. Before the fish are trans-
ferred from the storage to the breeding ponds, the tem-
perature is taken, and it is determined with absolute
certainty that the temperature of the water meets the
requirements of natural spawning conditions. If the
hatchery water supply is from a spring brook, it is shut
off from the breeding ponds, and the temperature of the
latter allowed to rise to a point where breeding will take
place quickly after the brood fish have been introduced.
The breeding stock is held in one or two of the deeper
ponds with an abundant supply of running water, and thus
spawning may be retarded several days. The fish are con-
stantly kept under close observation to see that breeding
does not proceed too far before they are transferred to
the warmer breeding ponds. It is far better to lose a
few eggs in the retaining ponds than to lose them all
in the breeding ponds, which latter will occur if the fish
are sorted too early. After the fish have been sorted and

224 American Fisheries Society

transferred, close watch is kept of weather conditions and
temperatures every moment until the hatching season is
over. Only enough water is introduced into the breed-
ing ponds to keep them at normal level, as this is better
than having too large a flow. If the temperature starts
downward, the water is shut off immediately.

If the fish culturist has studied different varieties of
fish during the breeding season, he will probably recall
that some streams in his vicinity failed to produce any fry
during certain seasons. If he will study this matter
closely he will find that proper conditions did not prevail.
There may have been a few warm days and the fish came
on the spawning ground and actually laid their eggs.
Later on there was a cold spell, one or two cold nights
when the temperature of the water dropped, thus caus-
ing the fish to desert their nests and practically the whole
season’s output was a total loss. The farther north the
fish culturist is located, the more trouble he has with
temperature conditions; but there is nothing to hinder
him, if he keeps in close touch with the situation, in bringing
about almost whatever he desires in this respect.

REARING YOUNG BASS IN PONDS

When the young bass are about to rise from the nest,
they are screened, if for no other reason than to determine
how many should be left in a certain pond to be reared to
fingerlings. If there are too many, the surplus is trans-
ferred to other ponds or planted in public waters. Too
many fry in one pond will result in their destroying the
food supply, and then they would naturally all starve.
The practical fish culturist after looking over his ponds
carefully and estimating the amount of food therein,
should be able to determine about how many thousand
fry ought to be released. Scattering finely ground clam
meal around the borders of the ponds increases the nat-

Lydell_—Progress in Practical Fish Culture 225

ural food supply. This was tried in 1920 at the Mill
Creek Hatchery in Michigan, with results which con-
firmed our former experiments. No doubt fish scrap meal
or any other form of meat or fish meal would serve equally
well.

After several years of experimental work it has been
found that better results have been obtained in raising
bass in ponds with the adult fish than otherwise, provided
the adults are well fed every day. The reason is the im-
possibility of keeping out of the ponds during the breed-
ing and rearing season beetles, tadpoles and other forms
of aquatic life which naturally prey upon the food that the
fish culturist has provided for the young fry. Adult fish
in the pond eat these larger aquatic forms, and therefore
the minute crustacea are saved for the little fish. If it
happens that too many fry have been released in a pond,
close watch is kept of the young fish and food conditions,
and before the food supply has become exhausted a num-
ber of the fish are removed to insure the remainder a food
supply sufficient to last until they reach the fingerling
stage. This is done from time to time, in fact, it is often
necessary to resort to this thinning-down operation four
or five times before the final cleanup of number one, two
and three fingerlings.

REARING YOUNG BLUEGILLS IN PONDS

The propagation of bluegills is as yet in its infancy,
especially in Michigan. Other states may have pro-
gressed further, but we find that the adult bluegills do
not live any too well in small or medium ponds, and for
some reason about two-thirds of the breeding stock is
lost each season. Good results have been obtained, al-
though it has been necessary to provide new stock each
year, which in a way is a drawback. We have been very
successful in the last two seasons in securing fingerling
stock of this variety without any breeders. We _ simply

226 American Fisheries Society -

went in the breeding season to some of our inland waters
where bluegills were quite plentiful and obtained an abun-
dance of fry. We noted that a large percentage of the
fry were destroyed if left in the lake. Close observation
disclosed that the young bluegills, when old enough, would
rise from the nest and then toward evening settle back again.
This happens four or five times before the fry are strong
enough to swim away. During the operation many thou-
sands are destroyed every time they attempt to rise. It
was found that by taking a glass tube three or four feet
long, and putting it down in the nest with the thumb over
the upper end, thousands of the young fish could be ob-
tained at one operation. They were then placed in cans
and taken to the hatchery. The young fish, just before
they rise from the nest, have something of a golden ap-
pearance.

When approaching the bluegill nesting ground the
operator can select the more desirable nests occupied by
the large fish. Two men in a boat will have no trouble
in securing several hundred thousand young bluegills in
a couple of hours if taken at the right time. As the
breeding season of this species covers quite an extended
period, we have no trouble in getting the number de-
sired. Upon arrival at the hatchery the fish are put into
ponds that have been recently prepared.

At first results were not absolutely satisfactory, as the
fry settled to the bottom of the pond in the mud and silt
and many of them were smothered before they were strong
enough to rise. This trouble has been overcome by mak-
ing small screen-like devices of cheese cloth stretched
over a frame of any convenient size and submerged
around the shallow margin of the pond. The sides of the
screen frames should be about three inches high, so the
fry cannot wriggle off into the muddy bottom of the pond.

Less care is necessary in estimating the number of

Lydell.—Progress in Practical Fish Culture 227

bluegills placed in a pond, provided there is food enough
to get them started, as they can be readily fed upon pre-
pared food. We have been successful in feeding fresh
liver or clam meal, very finely ground. In one pond,
three hundred feet long and two hundred feet wide, we
have about sixty thousand fingerling fish. You will find
that this experiment merits your consideration and trial,
provided you are in a locality where bluegill fry can be
obtained from outlying waters.

COLLECTING AND HATCHING PERCH

The best results so far in rearing perch have been ob-
tained by preparing the ponds as above described, turn-
ing on the water about the second week in April, in our
locality, and then introducing several pairs of goldfish,
according to the area of the pond. The young perch fry
are introduced immediately after hatching. Nothing fur-
ther is done until the perch show up around the shores,
at which time they are about three-quarters of an inch in
length. Then feeding is begun and continued until the
latter part of August, when the fish are about three
inches long. Several perch upon being examined have
been found to contain small goldfish, The pond devoted
to this work in 1920 yielded about 18,000 three-inch perch
and several thousand young goldfish, the latter being re-
moved during seining operations for perch. After ex-
hausting or taking what they wanted of the natural food
supply, the perch began to feed upon the young goldfish,
and in addition took prepared food introduced three times
a day.

In former years it was customary to collect the adult
perch for breeding purposes, and results were considered
very successful. But it was found by holding them over
and feeding until the next season, we did not get as many
eggs or as high a percentage of good eggs as we got from

228 American Fisheries Society

the wild stock brought to the hatchery. In order to im-
prove this situation, we set about to find a way whereby
the spawn might be obtained from wild waters. At first
we studied spawning conditions in our inland lakes. We
found that invariably the perch spawn during the night,
coming to the shallower parts of the lake and hanging
their ribbons of eggs on brush or rushes or any fairly
suitable place. Wealso found that nearly all of this spawn
was destroyed by turtles and other enemies in the lake.
Even the perch themselves fed upon it the next day.

Early one morning we made a tour of a lake known
to contain many adult perch and found that quantities of
the spawn could be collected and shipped to the hatch-
eries. We also found that nearly one hundred per cent
of the spawn was fertile and in some instances far better
than that obtained from the station ponds. But this only
supplied us with a limited quantity; therefore, observa-
tions were made on waters of the Great Lakes. At Wild-
fowl Bay, in the Saginaw district, where adult perch were
quite abundant we found that during the spawning sea-
son hundreds of millions of perch eggs were destroyed by
being washed ashore in great windrows along the beach.
It is safe to say that two hundred million were lost in
this one locality. Collecting operations have since been
carried on there two seasons and the supply has been
unlimited. There seems to be no reason why nearly all
of these eggs could not be rescued and sent to our hatch-
eries, provided equipment for handling them were avail-
able. As most of them are in the eyed stage when they
are washed ashore and are a total loss to the waters from
which they come, I see no reason why other states should
not profit by securing some of these eggs.

Experiments heretofore in hatching the eyed spawn have
always been carried on with the old Chase hatching jar,
but this season we found that about ten million of the
eggs placed in a fry tank twelve feet long, four feet wide

Lydell_—Progress in Practical Fish Culture 229

and two feet deep, hatched out very nicely and yielded
good results. This tank was supplied with water through
a pipe running the length of one side above the surface and
pierced with a small hole every two inches which pro-
duced a nice spray and caused good aeration.

The eggs are in semi-buoyant ribbons and are very
easily moved; the least circulation will tend to stir them
up from the bottom. When left alone they will settle
to the bottom of the tank, and if left three or four hours
the young fry will smother wherever they come in contact
with any object. This can be obviated by taking a hand-
net about ten inches square of fine wire cloth stretched
tightly over a frame, and moving it through the water
until the resulting currents cause the whole mass of eggs
to move up from the bottom. This should be done at
least once an hour until the fry are hatched, which, if the
eggs are eyed when secured, will be only a few days.

Discussion

Mr. J. W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: I would like to ask Mr. Lydell
what temperature he finds most favorable to the hatching of fresh water
mussels; also the nature of the fertilizer used.

Mr. LypeLtt: The temperature is about sixty. For fertilizer we
are using nothing but clam meal; we can get tons of it in our locality.

Mr. W. C. Apams, Boston, Mass.: I would like to ask Mr. Lydell
whether an excess of tadpoles is injurious to the pond for small-mouth
black bass culture?

Mr. Lypett: We have found them very injurious during the spawn-
ing season. We have boys patrolling our ponds in the evening and
picking up these toads. We pay them so much a toad and we get
barrels of them. We find that one young tadpole will eat more natural
food than seven or eight young bass.

Mr. ApAMs: Even if the adult bass were to feed on the tadpole
when the tadpole was two years old, it would still be disadvantageous
to have these tadpoles in a bass pond, in your opinion?

Mr. Lypett: When a tadpole is two years old it would be a frog.
We have very few of them; they are collected and put into our lakes.

Mr. ApAms: Would the tadpole from the frog be any different
from the tadpole from the toad?

Mr. Lypett: I do not think so.

230 American Fisheries Society

Mr. ApAms: So far as the principle is concerned the two would
be similar?

Mr. Lypett: Yes. I would clean them out of any pond in which
I wanted to rear young bass.

Mr. Titcoms: Do you ever use the tadpole for feeding bass?

Mr. LypELLt: Often in the fall; we are feeding some now, collected
from outside waters.

Dr. R. C. Osspurn, Columbus, Ohio: The principle, of course, is
that the tadpole is a vegetable feeder and will clean up the alge upon
which these small crustacea and insect larve feed; therefore you will
reduce the natural food of the bass by having the tadpoles in the pond
at a time when the bass are too small to feed on the tadpoles. On the
other hand, at a later stage the tadpoles will be gone before the bass
are big enough to handle them. If, therefore, you want to grow tad-
poles for bass culture, the thing to do is to have an entirely separate
pond for them and put them into your bass pond at the proper time.

Mr. Lypett: We have one pond more exclusively for bullheads,
and into that pond we put all the large tadpoles. When we began to
feed our young bullheads the clam meal, I noticed that it took more to
feed the tadpoles than the bullheads. Wherever the bullheads congre-
gated to take food, there you would see the tadpoles also; in fact, they
were growing just as fast, as the bullheads. But we were perfectly satis-
fied to feed them, because we are using them now to feed our bass.

Mr. Avams: Do you attempt to keep a stock of the adult bass
throughout the year, or do you collect your breeders each spring?

Mr. Lypett: We keep a stock the year round. We have possibly
six hundred now, but if our stock gets low we introduce some each sea-
son from different localities. We prefer to collect stock fish in the late
fall.

Mr. Apams: What do you feed your adult bass throughout the
year? i ‘

Mr. Lypett: Clam meal, minnows and crayfish. We start feeding
the clam meal right after the spawning season and continue until the
fish are put into the wintering ponds. From then on we feed them
minnows and crayfish.

Mr. ApAms: Do you see any objection to having a regular pond
for minnows to breed your own supply?

Mr. Lypett: I think it would be an advantage to have a pond of
that kind. We have a great many crayfish in our ponds and they are
fed alive. Every pond is prepared for bass in the spring, and the large
crayfish are put in.

Mr. Titcoms: Do the crayfish ever catch the young bass?

Mr. Lypett: Hardly ever. Occasionally, when seining them up we
get too many crayfish in the net; then they will catch the bass.

Mr. ApAms: Adult fish of what size are generally collected for
breeding stock?

Mr. Lypett: About three pounds. We have a great many of the

Lydell.—Progress in Practical Fish Culture gal

large size. If you put a lot of the small size in with them, you do not
get very good results. True, we like to use as large fish as we can,
because a large pair of bass does not take up any more room than a
small pair, and they produce about four times as many fry.

Mr. Tircomg: How many years do you keep your breeding stock
of bass?

Mr. LypeLtLt: Until they die of old age; some may be ten years old.
In the spring of the year, when we are sorting, if the fish look thin
and not in the pink of condition, we throw them into the creek. 2

Mr. ApAms: Would you say that a pond fifty or sixty feet in
diameter, a round pond, is too small for bass culture?

Mr. Lypett: No. When we started our work we had some ponds
of that size, holding only about six or seven pairs of breeders. We had
one pond that was only twenty feet across. We had one pair of bass
in there and got just as good results from that one pair as if they had
been in a larger pond; but we could not raise in that one pond the fry
that came from the pair. I may say that our ponds, this year, are
about 350 feet long by 130 to 140 feet wide. There is a kettle about
5% feet deep in all of our ponds.

Mr. Apams: Do you have any trouble getting the fingerlings out
of these kettles in the fall?

Mr. Lypett: No. We find, however, that in the summer the large
bass will collect in the kettle as long as they are well fed. If you see
them going to the shore very much you can depend upon it that they
are looking for something to eat. The small bass usually stay in the
shallow part of the ponds, whereas the larger fish hardly ever go there.

CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES CAN RE-
STORE THE GREAT FRASER RIVER FISHERY

By JoHN PEASE BaBcocK

Provincial Fisheries Department
Victoria, British Columbia

Notwithstanding that the salmon fisheries of the Fraser
River system have elsewhere been ably and adequately dealt
with by the fishery authorities of Canada and the United
States, it is so desirable that the transactions of the American
Fisheries Society should contain a digest of the facts in this
great international case that this paper is submitted.

The sockeye salmon fishery of the Fraser River system
was formerly the world’s greatest salmon fishery. The run
of salmon in those waters was greater every fourth year than
in any other waters. This fishery is no longer great. A dis-
criminating study of the significant facts in the development
and decline of this fishery demonstrates the necessity of deal-
ing with them at once in an international way. These facts
have been fully established, are no longer questioned, and
should be more generally understood. The restoration of the
sockeye salmon fishery of the Fraser River system is the
greatest, and at the same time the least expensive, reclama-
tion project in which Canada and the United States can
jointly engage, and if adequate measures are adopted its suc-
cess is certain. )

The prominent facts in the history of the sockeye fishery
may be stated as follows:

The waters of the Fraser River system as defined in the
proposed treaty between Great Britain and the United States
include all the fishing waters in the Province of British Colum-
bia and in the State of Washington which are frequented by
sockeye salmon in their migration from the Pacific Ocean to
the spawning beds of the Fraser River basin. They include

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 233

Juan de Fuca, Rosario, and Haro Straits, and the other Ameri-
can estuary waters leading into the Gulf of Georgia, and the
waters of that gulf as well as the channels of the Fraser River
up to Mission Bridge, in British Columbia.

Fishing for sockeyes began commercially in the channels
of the Fraser in British Columbia in 1876. It was extended.
to the waters of the Gulf of Georgia immediately outside the
mouths of the river in 1890. Fishing for sockeyes began
in Washington waters in 1891 with the installation of traps
in the vicinity of Point Roberts. Traps became an important
factor in 1897. Purse-nets came into use in American waters
in 1901 and in recent years have greatly increased in number.
During the period from 1900 to 1918, when the industry
was at its height, the catch of sockeyes in Canadian waters
produced a pack of 5,030,730 cases. During the same period
the catch in American waters gave a pack of 7,382,343 cases.
This represents a combined total pack of 12,413,073 cases, of
which the Canadians produced 40 per cent and the Americans
60 per cent.

Dr. C. H. Gilbert, of Stanford University, in his ‘‘Con-
tributions to the Life-history of the Sockeye Salmon,’’* has
demonstrated by scale-reading that the sockeyes that run in the
Fraser River system are hatched in the watershed of that
river in British Columbia, live for the first year or more of
their lives in its lake waters, then migrate to the sea, where
they remain and grow until the summer of their fourth year,
and then seek to return to the Fraser River basin in order to
spawn, and after spawning die.}

The Fraser River basin formerly produced more sockeye
salmon every fourth year, known as the “big year,” than any
other known river-basin, and in the following years, known as
the “small years,” produced runs of commercial importance.

*See British Columbia Fisheries Reports, 1913 to 1918.
+ There are however, exceptional cases in which fish proceed to sea immediately

on hatching; and there are certain proportions which return in their third and fifth
years.

234 American Fisheries Society

The following statement gives the entire pack of sockeyes
in American and Canadian waters of the Fraser River system
for the years 1891 to 1919, inclusive:

SocKEYE SALMON PACK oF FRASER RIVER SysTEM, 1891 To 1919 INCLUSIVE

Year. Canadian waters. American waters. Total.
Cases. Cases. Cases.
1891 176,954 5,538 182,492
1892 79,715 2,054 82,669
1893 457,797 47,852 505,649
1894 363,967 41,791 405,758
1895 395,984 65,143 461,127
1896 356,984 72,979 429,963
1897 860,459 312,048 1,172,507
1898 256,101 252,000 508,101
1899 480,485 499,646 980,131
1900 229,800 228,704 458,504
1901 928,669 1,105,096 2,033,765
1902 293,477 339,556 633,033
1903 204,809 167,211 372,020
1904 72,688 123,419 196,107
.1905 837,489 847,122 1,684,611
1906 183,007 | 182,241 365,248
1907 62,617 96,974 159,591
1908 74,574 155,218 229,792
1909 585,435 1,005,120 1,590,555
1910 150,432 234,437 384,869
I9II 62,817 126,950 189,767
1912 123,879 183,896 307,775
1913 736,661 1,664,827 2,401,488
1914 198,183 336,251 534,434
1915 91,130 64,584 155,714
1916 27,394 78,476 105,870
1917 148,164 411,538 559,702
1918 19,697 50,723 70,420
1919 34,068 64,346 98,414
Totals 8,493,436 8,766,640 17,260,076

The foregoing table gives a complete record for six four-
year cycles and for the first two years of the present cycle.
The outstanding features therein shown are: (1) The great
packs made every fourth year; (2) the comparatively small
packs made in the three intervening years; (3) the gradual
but pronounced decline in the runs in the small years; and
(4) the startling decline in the pack in the last big year, 1917.

As far back as written records exist, a phenomenally big

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 235

run of sockeyes to the Fraser is shown every fourth year.
All the early explorers record it and quote the Indians as saying
it had always existed. It has been a characteristic peculiar to
the Fraser and unknown in any other river. Up to 1917 the
Fraser River district produced more sockeyes every fourth
year than the combined catches made in Alaskan waters dur-
ing all but one of those years, as the following statement
shows:

SocKEYE SALMON PACK oF THE FRASER RIVER SYSTEM AND IN ALASKA

Year Alaska. Fraser River System.
Cases. Cases.

MO React a)siara\e/ ale nidiataletaaisial Meieiatatete ateletelsta 1,319,335 2,033,765

TOO SW ac 'eleia.a.a, dale ainralaieres sieve eieietetesb fetela: aa 1,574,428 1,684,611

TIQODE clareieicls ininimises steiete aisle eialestete(aslotants 1,705,302 1,590,555

TIO -Git ole mien inl) araln ter oiate\aiaretevel dete aver el cha tele 1,965,237 2,401,488

7 fy AOC IDOI Clan cic IAPR AE 2,488,381 559,702

The sockeye salmon runs to the Fraser River system in the
big years have been alarmingly depleted, and the runs in the
small years are no longer of commercial importance. Both
are threatened with extinction.

Complete records exist of conditions on both the fishing
and the spawning grounds of the Fraser system since 1900.
The record of the pack shows the catch, because the entire
catch is marketed in cans. The number of fishermen em-
ployed and the amount of gear used are also recorded. There
are adequate data also for a comparison of conditions on the
spawning beds since 1900. Dr. Gilbert, in “The Sockeye Run
on the Fraser River,’’* says:

No other sockeye stream has received such close and discrim-
inating study. Annual inspection has been made of the spawning beds
of the entire water-shed, and predictions of the run four years hence
have been fearlessly made. It is a matter of record how consistently
these prophecies have been fulfilled.

The observations of conditions on the spawning beds have
been made by the same observer since 1900.

* British Columbia Fisheries Report, 1917.

236 American Fisheries Society

The records for the fishing grounds show that the runs
of sockeyes to the Fraser River system in the big years 1901,
1905, 1909, and 1913 produced an average pack of 1,927,602
cases, and that in 1917, the last year in the cycle of big years,
it produced a pack of but 559,732 cases, or 70 per cent less
than the average of the four preceding big years. The start-
ling decrease in 1917 is due to the fact that the great runs of
1913 did not reach the spawning beds of the upper section of
the Fraser basin, for the reason that the river’s channel at
Hell’s Gate was blocked by a great slide of rock following the
construction of the Canadian Northern Pacific Railway through
the canyon of the Fraser. A tunnel was driven through the
rock cliff that overhangs the narrow channel immediately
above Hell’s Gate. During the spring of 1913 the action of
frost caused a section of that cliff, including a portion of the
tunnel, to slide into the river’s channel, which formed an ob-
struction that the main portion of the run of fish could not get
over. After frantic and continued efforts to surmount the
obstruction the fish became exhausted and were swept down-
stream by the rapid current, where they died in the channels
below without having spawned.

The British Columbia Fisheries Report for 1913 states
that the number of sockeyes that escaped capture on the fishing
grounds, and that later reached Hell’s Gate that year, was
fully as great, if not greater, than in the four preceding big
years. The condition at the principal spawning beds of the
Fraser created by the obstruction is described in the following
excerpt from an article by the author, in the British Colum-
bia Fisheries Report for 1913:

I feel fully justified from my investigations in concluding that the
number of sockeyes which passed above the fishing limits was as great
this year as any preceding big year of which we have a record, and I
think even greater. The sockeyes made their appearance in the canyon
above Yale in June, and during the high waters of that month and July
large numbers passed through to Quesnel and Chilko lakes. The greater

proportion of the run of sockeyes in late July, and in August and
September, was blockaded in the canyon by rock obstructions placed in

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 237

the channel, incident to the construction of the Canadian Northern
Pacific Railroad, so that few were able to pass through during that
time. No humpbacks succeeded in passing through the canyon. The
blasting of temporary passage-ways enabled a large proportion of the
sockeye run of October and November to pass through the canyon. In
August, sockeyes were seen drifting down-stream between Hell’s Gate
and Yale; the movement was very pronounced in September, and con-
tinued until the middle of October. The streams which enter the.
Fraser between Hell’s Gate and Agassiz were filled with sockeyes from
the middle of August until the end of October, while they had not been
observed in those streams in previous years. Very few sockeyes spawned
in any of those streams and most of them died without spawning. Great
numbers of dead sockeyes which had died without spawning, were found
on the bars and banks of the Fraser between Yale and Agassiz in
September and October. The number which reached Quesnel Lake was
little more than an eighth of the number which entered that lake in
1909, The run to Chilko Lake was equally small. The sockeye run to
Seton Lake was 30,000, as against 1,000,000 in 1909. The August and
September run of sockeyes to Shuswap and Adams Lakes was much less
than in any former big year, and the October and November run was
also less. The sockeye eggs collected there this year totalled but 9,000,-
000, as against 27,500,000 four years ago, and 18,000,000 in 1905. The
run to Lillooet Lake was less than in any recent year. Finally the run
to Harrison Lake was slightly better than in 1909,

These facts, in my opinion, warrant the conclusion that the number
of sockeyes which spawned in the Fraser River watershed this year was
not sufficient to make the run four years hence (1917) even approx-
imate the runs of either 1905, 1909, or 1913.

The disastrous effect of the 1913 blockade was manifested
on both the fishing and spawning grounds in 1917, since the
run in the latter year was the product of the 1913 spawning.
The catch of 1917 produced a pack of but 559,732 cases as
against 2,401,488 cases, or 76 per cent less than in 1913, not-
withstanding the fact that more gear and more fishermen
were employed than in 1913 and the price paid for fish was
higher.

Small as was the catch of 1917, too great a proportion of
the run of that year was captured; that is, a sufficient number
of fish was not permitted to reach the spawning area. In place
of the millions of sockeyes that reached Hell’s Gate in 1913,
only hundreds of thousands reached there in 1917. The ob-
struction having been removed, the fish had no difficulty in

238 American Fisheries Society

passing through to the spawning beds above. The numbers
that passed through in 1917 were far less than in 1913, not-
withstanding the blockade of the latter year. In place of the
4,000,000 that entered Quesnel Lake in 1909 and the 552,000
that entered its waters in 1913, less than 27,000 passed into
that great spawning area in 1917, and the numbers that reached
all the other great lake sections were proportionally less than
in 1913*. The number of sockeyes that reached the Fraser
basin in 1917 was not, in most sections, greater than in some
recent small years. The result of the spawning in 1917 will
not produce in 1921 a run even approximately as great as that
of 1917. In other words, it may be expected to be very much
less. The great run of the big years was destroyed by the
1913 blockade. The remnant of that run cannot withstand
the drain made upon it in 1917. It is already so small that it
must hereafter be classed with the runs in the small years.
And like the runs in the small years it will be completely
wiped out if present conditions continue.

The runs of sockeyes to the Fraser system in the small
years are no longer of commercial importance. Dr. Gilbert,

in his article entitled ‘“The Sockeye Run on the Fraser River’’+
says:

The history of the Fraser River sockeye runs shows unmistakably
that the three small years of each four-year cycle were over-fished early
in the history of the industry. During the early years, when fishing was
confined to the region about the mouth of the river, and drift-nets alone
were employed, no evidence exists of overfishing. The last cycle in
which these conditions obtained was 1894-96. During each of the small
years of that cycle (1894, 1895, and 1896) there were packed approx-
imately 350,000 cases on the Fraser River and about 60,000 cases in
Puget Sound. During each of those years, therefore, about 5,000,000
sockeyes were taken from the spawning run and used for commercial
purposes. It should have been considered at that time an open question
whether enough salmon to keep the run going had been permitted to
escape to the spawning grounds. Apparently, however, a third of a
million cases a year could be safely spared, for the following cycle shows
no decrease. If from the beginning the pack had been limited to a third

* British Columbia Fisheries Report, 1917, p. 21.
tIbid., pp. 113-114.

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 239

of a million cases for each small year, apparently the runs would still
have continued in their primitive abundance.

During the following period of four years (1897, 1898, 1899, and
1900) the traps on Puget Sound became an important matter. While
the British Columbia pack shows little or no reduction, it was met by a
pack on Puget Sound which nearly equalled it. The total captures during
the three off-years of this cycle nearly doubled those of the preceding
years and exacted an average toll of about 10,000,000 fish from the
spawning run of those years. The total pack of the three small years
of this cycle was over 2,000,000 cases.

The result was quickly apparent. If 5,000,000 fish could be safely
spared, this figure nevertheless must have been near the upper limit of
safety, for when 10,000,000 fish were abstracted, the small years of the
following cycle showed such a marked decline as to indicate that we had
far overstepped the line of safety. It was then during the cycle of 1897-
1900 that the first serious damage was done to the sockeye run of the
Fraser River. By doubling the pack of the three small years, not only
was the surplus fully taken, but the necessary spawning reserve was
seriously encroached on, with the result that in the small years of the
following cycle (1902, 1903, and 1904), in spite of the increased amount
of gear employed, the pack was cut in half, while the spawning beds at
the same time were but sparsely seeded.

The inevitable and disastrous trend of events should have been
evident to the dullest. But the parties in interest refused to hold their
hands and proceeded with the slaughter of the spawning remnant. The
result was quickly apparent. In 1902, 1903, and 1904 the total sockeye
pack of the Fraser River system was cut to 1,200,000 cases, and in
succeeding years it has suffered still further reduction. The pack of the
three small years never again equalled 1,000,000 cases. In 1906-08 it
was 750,000 cases; 1910-12, 880,000 cases; in 1914-16, 796,000. And with
each year the amount of gear employed has increased by leaps and
bounds. The small years of the present cycle may be expected to
register a smaller total than any which have gone before.

The total catch of sockeyes in the Fraser River system in
the past two small years of the present cycle demonstrates the
correctness of Dr. Gilbert’s forecast. The catch of 1918
produced a pack of but 70,420 cases, as against 534,434 cases
in the preceding fourth year ; and the catch in 1919 gave a pack
of but 98,414 cases, as against 155,714 cases in 1915.

The evidence of the decline in the runs of sockeyes in the
Fraser River system is overwhelming. The runs in all years
have already become so depleted that it is evident that under

240 American Fisheries Society

>

167,211
1904 72,688 123419 — 196,107
1905 837,489 847,122 «1,684,611
1906 183,007 182,241 365,248
1907 62,617 96,974 159,591
1908 74,574 155,218 229,792
1909 585,435 1,005,120 1,590,555
1910 150,432, 234,437 384,869
1911 62,817 126,950 189,767
1912 123,879 «183,896 307,775
1913 736,661 1,664,827 2,401,489
1914 198,183 336,251 «534,434
1915 91,130 64,584 = 155,714
1916 27,394 78,476 105,870
411,538

1,900,000

f
L
ce on

- ACCUEIL
AEE ETO IT
SO TL |
HH EH CUAL AIT le
CUETO ATT Tt tte
CELT UAT TTA TUT TMi
CINTA TERT TS
TEE TTaEE
TT aR TITHTTE
LVN TENET TTL LAL LI
SURARETAY RAUL CUAVENMIAUN
Wee euben NiE\ZanNGansetin
MELLVTETTETTTAE NrT A T N ad

AEE EE Serial Lt | RAL

Oe aie fala ana

B98 2GR GRR ERR ERERE GE 2235 8 8
CATCH OF SOCKEYE SALMON.

Fraser River System, 1891 to 1919, inclusive.

1,200,000

4,190,000

1,600,000

900,000

800,000

700,000

600,000

00,00

200,000

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 241

existing conditions the sockeyes will be exterminated within
a short period.

The Fraser River basin has an area of 90,903 square
miles. It contains sixteen great lakes and many rivers that
have a total area of 2,351 square miles. No other river on
the Pacific Coast drains so extensive an area of lake water
adapted to the propagation and rearing of sockeyes. In the
past it has produced greater runs of sockeyes than any other
river because this great spawning area was abundantly seeded
every fourth year. It has been shown that sockeyes spawn
in streams tributary to lakes and on the shoals of lakes, and
that their young remain in the lake-waters for a year or more
after hatching and then migrate to the sea. Knowing that
the sockeyes were bred in the watershed of the Fraser, we
therefore know that the great runs of sockeyes in the big years
1901, 1905, 1909, and 1913 originated there. The runs of
those years produced an average pack of 1,927,602 cases and at
the same time afforded in the first three named years a suffi-
cient number to seed the entire spawning area. Therefore the
amount of the average pack of the big years 1901, 1905, 1909,
and 1913 may be safely taken from the run without an over-
draft, whenever the spawning beds are as abundantly seeded
as they were in 1901, 1905, and 1909. The spawning area of
the Fraser has not been lessened or injured. Its spawning
beds have not been damaged or interfered with by settlement,
factories, mining, or irrigation. Its gravel beds and shoals
are as exterisive and as suitable for spawning as they ever
were. Its lake-waters are as abundantly filled as ever with
the natural food for the development of young sockeyes. The
channels of the Fraser are open and free to the passage of fish.
All that is required to reproduce the great runs of the past is a
sufficient number of spawning fish to seed the beds as abun-
dantly as they were seeded in 1901, 1905, and 1909, and in
former big years. The fishery cannot be restored in any
other way.

The great sockeye salmon fishery of the Fraser River svs-

242 American Fisheries Society

tem has not been destroyed without efforts having been made
to prevent it. Canada throughout has stood for conservation.
She has put forth earnest and conscientious efforts to con-
serve the supply and to prevent depletion. Her record is clear
and unmistakable. She failed because she did not have juris-
diction over the entire system. She alone could not provide
adequate protection, but she did all that was possible under
the circumstances. Commercial fishing for sockeye salmon
began in Canadian waters in 1876, under the general fishery
regulations of the Dominion. In 1878 Canada passed an
Order in Council providing that “Drifting with salmon nets
shall be confined to tidal waters” and “that drift-nets for sal-
mon shall not obstruct more than one-third of the width of
any stream,” and further that “fishing for salmon shall be dis-
continued from 8 a. m. Saturdays to midnight Sundays.” All
fishing in her waters has been under license and none but bona
fide resident fishermen have been permitted to fish.

In 1889 the Dominion fishery regulations for British Co-
lumbia were amended to provide that “the Minister of Marine
and Fisheries shall from time to time determine the number
of boats, seines or nets or other fishing apparatus to be used
in any waters of British Columbia,” and all the provisions of
the regulations of 1878 were continued. In 1894 the order
was further amended to include the provision that “the meshes
of nets for catching salmon other than spring salmon, in tidal
waters shall not be less than 534 inches extension measure and
shall be used only between the first day of July and the twenty-
fifth day of August and between the twenty-fifth day of Sep-
tember and the thirty-first day of October.’’ Canada has main-
tained close seasons in her waters ever since. In recent years
the weekly close time has been extended and the fishing limits
further restricted.

During the period 1876 to 1890 sockeye fishing was con-
fined to Canadian waters alone, and it is a matter of record
that the catch did not in any one year produce a pack in excess
of 300,000 cases, representing a catch of less than four mil-

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 243

lion sockeyes, and that during that period Canada hatched
and planted in the Fraser twenty-five millions of sockeye fry.

Canada began the propagation of sockeyes in the Fraser
in 1885 with the establishment of a hatchery at Bon Accord.
Between 1900 and 1907 Canada built five hatcheries on the
Fraser having a capacity of one hundred and ten million sock-
eye eggs, and she has since built two auxiliary stations. The
hatcheries built in 1901 at Shuswap and in 1903 at Seton
Lake, have been closed since 1914, because a sufficient num-
ber of eggs to warrant operations could not be collected from
the tributaries of those lakes. With the exception of the years
of the big run, the hatcheries of the Fraser River have never
been filled beyond thirty per cent of their capacity since 1905,
because eggs to fill them were unobtainable.

Canada established a patrol force on the Fraser in 1878
and her waters have been effectively policed every year since.
Canada inaugurated a method for the inspection of the spawn-
ing area of the Fraser River basin in 1901, and has annu-
ally conducted such investigations every year since. No other
sockeye stream has received such close and discriminating
study.

The reports from the spawning beds since 1901 have been
the basis of Canada’s contentions. Following the disclosures
made in the reports from the spawning beds in 1902, 1903
and 1904, that there had been a great reduction in the numbers
of sockeyes that reached the beds in those years, and with the
knowledge that the catches in those years were also far less
than in the preceding four years, Canada laid the facts before
the Governor of the State of Washington, and obtained the
appointment of a joint commission to investigate conditions
affecting the salmon fishery of the Fraser River system.
That commission, consisting of five representatives from the
State of Washington and five from Canada, unanimously
reported that the runs of sockeyes to the system in the small
years had been seriously depleted by excessive fishing and were
in danger of being destroyed, and recommended that all fishing

244 American Fisheries Society

for sockeyes in both state and provincial waters be suspended
during the years of 1906 and 1908. It was believed by the Com-
missioners that by prohibiting fishing in those years, the runs
four years later would be restored to their former propor-
tions. Canada accepted the finding of that commission and at
once passed an Order in Council prohibiting sockeye fishing
in 1906 and 1908, provided the State of Washington passed
a similar act prohibiting fishing in her waters. A bill to that
effect was rejected by the Washington Legislature in 1906.
Consequently Canada recalled her order, and fishing was con-
ducted in both those years with renewed vigor and with dis-
astrous effect. The catches were smaller and the spawning
beds less seeded.

Following the failure of the State of Washington to adopt
the measure Canada turned for help to the Federal Government
at Washington, D. C., and secured the appointment in 1907
of an international commission to inquire into conditions in
the Fraser River system. After a year of investigation that
commission unanimously recommended, as necessary to pre-
vent further depletion, the adoption of joint and uniform reg-
ulations restricting fishing. A treaty embodying its recom-
miendations was drawn and signed at Washington in 1908, by
Great Britain for Canada, and by the President of the United
States. The United States Senate rejected it. Therefore
fishing was continued as before and, although the amount of
gear was greatly increased, the catches in the small years con-
tinued to decrease, and the reports from the spawning beds
grew even more alarming.

The progressive decline in the catch in the small years, and
the disastrous effect of the blockade in the Fraser channel at
Hell’s Gate in 1913, caused Canada to renew her overtures
to the United States Government for the adoption of remedial
measures. In 1917 Canada and the United States created a
joint international fishery commission to deal with the sub-
ject, consisting of the Honorable Sir J. D. Hazen, Chief Jus-
tice of New Brunswick, G. J. Desbarats, Deputy Minister of

Babcock.—The Great Fraser River Fishery 245

Naval Service, Ottawa, and William A. Found, Superintendent
of Fisheries for the Dominion of Canada, representing Great
Britain; and the Honorable Wm. C. Redfield, Secretary of
Commerce, Edwin F. Sweet, Assistant Secretary of Com-
merce, and Dr. Hugh M. Smith, United States Commissioner
of Fisheries, representing the United States. Following an
extended investigation, that commission, like the commissions
of 1906 and 1908, unanimously found that the situation was
critical and recommended joint action on the part of Canada
and the United States. Subsequently a treaty was signed at
Washington, D. C., in 1919. Canada at once approved the
treaty. That treaty now awaits the action of the Senate of
the United States.

Canada stands today, as she has stood since the beginning,
ready to adopt any measures which promise to restore the
runs of sockeyes to the Fraser River system. She can accom-
plish nothing without the cooperation of the United States.
Neither Canada nor the United States acting singly can pro-
vide measures that will ensure restoration of the salmon.

Deplorable as the conditions on the Fraser system are, the
runs of sockeyes can be restored by concurrent action on the
part of Canada and the United States. It has been shown
that in the big years 1901, 1905, 1909, and 1913, the Fraser
system produced an average of 1,927,602 cases of sockeyes,
and at the same time afforded an ample supply to seed all of
the spawning beds. The average catch of the four big years
named may again be taken whenever the beds are again as
abundantly seeded as they were in the brood years that pro-
duced those big runs. The spawning area of the Fraser basin
has not been lessened or damaged in any way. Its spawning
beds are as extensive and as suitable for salmon, propagation
as they ever were. Its lake waters are as abundantly filled as
ever with the natural food for the development of young
sockeyes, and the channels of the Fraser are open and free to
the passage of fish. All that is required to reproduce the great

246 American Fisheries Society

runs of former years is to seed the spawning beds as abun-
dantly as they were formerly seeded.

The spawning area of the Fraser requires no expenditure
of money to bring it into bearing. If permitted to reach the
beds in sufficient numbers, the fish will seed them, the young
will feed themselves, and furnish their own transportation to
and from their feeding grounds in the open sea. If permitted
to do so, the fish will do all the work necessary to produce a
catch worth thirty million dollars a year. All that is neces-
sary is for the Governments of Canada and the United States
to adopt measures which will afford a free passage through
their waters to a sufficient number of sockeyes to seed the
spawning beds. The runs of sockeyes to the Fraser River
system cannot be restored in any other way.

FISH RESCUE OPERATIONS
By C.\B: CULEER
Superintendent, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Homer, Minn.

Perhaps no branch of the fish-cultural work of the
Bureau of Fisheries has attained more rapid development
during the past few years than that addressed to the res-
cue of fishes from the overflowed lands bordering the
Mississippi River. The development and growth of the
work is manifested not only by the ever-increasing num-
bers of food and game fishes rescued each season, but it is
also marked by a decreasing unit cost of production.

Several times each year the Mississippi overflows its banks,
but it is the annual freshet known as the June rise that is of
greatest importance to the fisheries. As the river rises the
adjacent lowlands are submerged. The quiet backwaters thus
formed provide very attractive spawning areas for the food
and game fishes indigenous to the river. The eggs are laid
under conditions favorable to their development and the young
fish attain a rapid growth before the freshet begins to subside.
At this time the adult fish find their way to safety in the main
channel, but the young do not react promptly to the falling
waters, and enormous numbers are cut off and become per-
manently landlocked.

The pools and lakes left by the falling waters are of var-
ious sizes; some of them may become dry in a few days or
weeks, while others may persist into the winter months. In
either event, the fish remaining in them are doomed to cer-
tain destruction unless a rescue party comes to their aid and
returns them to the open waters of the river. If any of the
fish are able to survive the frightful conditions that exist in
these landlocked pools, and which as the summer advances
become more aggravated, the arrival of cold weather is sure
to end the story. The shallower pools freeze solidly, while
in the deeper ones the fish are so highly concentrated that

248 American Fisheries Society

death by smothering is inevitable even though the pool does
not freeze to the bottom.

The need of some sort of salvage work has long been rec-
ognized, and the first attempts to save a few of the stranded
fishes were made in the late nineties. It is only in very recent
years, however, that the work may be considered as approach-
ing a point commensurate with the need.

During the fiscal year 1920 the number of fish rescued by
the Bureau of Fisheries was 156,657,000. All of the im-
portant food fishes are represented in the collections, but the
staple fishes, which contribute largely to the food supply and
support the commercial fishery, largely predominate.

The territory covered by the rescue operations during 1919
extended from Minnesota and Wisconsin to Arkansas and Mis-
sissippi, though the so-called upper river districts, with head-
quarters at Homer, Minn., and substations at La Crosse, Wis.,
and North MacGregor and Bellevue, Iowa, were by far the
most prolific fields.

Of interest in connection with this work is the very moder-
ate cost of operations. A few years ago when the work was
first undertaken and when comparatively small numbers of
fish were secured, the cost per thousand was about $3.18.
During 1919 the average cost per thousand was less than 20
cents, while between 75 and 80 per cent of the total number
were rescued at a cost of only 13 cents per thousand fish.
To further show the moderate cost of rescue operations, it
may be interesting to compare the work with that of a sta-
tion devoted to the artificial propagation of the warm-water
species similar to those rescued. Such a station may produce
from 250,000 to 1,000,000 fingerling fish 2 to 3 inches long
in a season. The cost varies from $4.50 to $5.50 per thousand
fish. From these figures it appears that it would have re-
quired at least 345 established plants to produce the numbers
of fish rescued during 1919, and that the actual cost of pro-
duction would have been in excess of $800,000. These figures
do not include the cost of the regular station employees, nor

Culler.—Fish Rescue Operations 249

any consideration of the initial cost of construction. The ag-
gregate cost of the rescue operations for the fiscal year 1920
was $31,000. Following this line of thought, it is surely a
conservative estimate to assume that 25 per cent of the fishes
may be expected to survive and reach a legal marketable size,
with an average weight of not less than 1% pounds in two or
three years. If they are then placed on the market and sold
by the fishermen at the prices prevailing in December, 1919,
the salvaged fishes have a prospective value of $6,527,000.

A rescue crew consists usually of six men and a foreman.
A launch is employed in going to and from the field of opera-
tions, and the equipment consists of two seines 50 and 75
feet long, 6 feet deep of 14-inch mesh, six galvanized iron
tubs of 1% bushels capacity, small dipnets, two tin dippers,
and a small flat-bottomed boat, the latter being used in ponds
too deep for wading. After a haul has been made, the fish
are sorted in the tubs by species and size. The number of fish
per tub is ascertained by noting the displacement of the water
in the tub, one or more rings having been made on the inside
of each tub and the number established by actual count. The
count is verified several times during the season, as the fish
are in some instances subject to rapid growth.

Inasmuch as the fish when first taken from the warm wa-
ters will not safely stand a long railway journey, those in-
tended for distribution are taken to the nearest holding sta-
tion where they are hardened for several days in cool running
water. While the numbers of fish diverted for supplying ap-
plicants in other parts of the country may seem large in the
aggregate, they represent less than one per cent of the total
collections. Such diversions during the past year amounted
to 983,794 miscellaneous fishes. Included in this number are
more than 500,000 allotted to the fish commissions of the
states bordering the Mississippi River where the Bureau’s work
is conducted. It is more than probable that many of these fish
were replanted in waters connected with the Mississippi River
drainage system.

250 American Fisheries Society

The importance of this work is receiving each year more
recognition from members of state fish and game commis-
sions and from other public officials having the interest of the
fisheries and the conservation of the country’s resources at
heart. The Bureau of Fisheries receives numerous letters
from various sources urging the extension of this valuable
work to new fields; but until such time as Congress recog-
nizes its importance by providing adequate funds and a suit-
able personnel, new fields cannot be opened. ‘The possibilities
for the further extension of operations are very great. Even
in the districts where it is now being conducted, the field is
only partially covered, while there are many unbroken miles
of river, on which no rescue work has been undertaken, where
the floods are annually causing the destruction of large num-
bers of fish. The major tributaries also offer a field of un-
known possibilities.

Under present arrangements, Congress makes no special
appropriation for this particular work. It is financed by a
part of the general appropriation for the propagation of food
and game fishes, while the regular personnel and equipment
are drawn temporarily from other branches. What is needed
in order that operations may be conducted on the scale that
their importance justifies, is direct recognition by Congress
through the provision of special funds and personnel. Thus
the work would not be more or less contingent on the necessi-
ties of other duly established activities for which money from
the general fund must be allotted.

It should be made evident that the rescue work is of more
than local interest. The food fishes of the Mississippi River
receive a wide distribution in the trade, while the numbers di-
verted for the stocking of other waters is of importance. In
fact, the importance of this work as a means of maintaining
and increasing the food supply of the country, can hardly be
equalled in any other field, when cost, results, and quick returns
are considered.

TROUT FEEDING EXPERIMENTS

By Cuas. O. HayFrorp
Superintendent State Hatchery, Hackettstown, New Jersey

In the accompanying tables an attempt has been made to in-
dicate as clearly and concisely as possible, the results obtained
from some experiments in the feeding of fingerling brook
trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and brown trout (Salmo fario)
conducted at the hatchery operated by the State of New Jersey
at Hackettstown. The work was carried on under the imme-
diate supervision of Robert W. Hodgson, chemist, formerly
instructor in bacteriology and assistant to Prof. William F.
Foster in pathological and bacteriological work at the A. E. F.
University, France.

A large stock of trout is constantly maintained at the
Hackettstown hatchery, the fish varying in age from newly
hatched fry to adults two and three years old. To feed this
large stock, from 75 to 100 tons of meat products and fish are
required annually; and it was for the purpose of determining
the relative values of the different articles used as fish food, and
by a comparison of prices to effectuate a possible reduction in
the maintenance cost of the fish, that the experiments were un-
dertaken. Careful arrangements were made to hold all the fish
involved in the experiments under identically similar conditions,
in order that any possible variation in the results might be at-
tributed solely to the kind of food used. Nursery troughs of
the same size were used, each being supplied at uniform rate
with an independent flow of water from the same source. The
water used was derived from five springs with a minimum flow
of two and one half million gallons per day. A chemical and
gas analysis of the water gave the following results:

Parts per million

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252 American Fisheries Society

As the materials in most general use for the fish food at the
Hackettstown hatchery are pork melts, sheep plucks, beef liver,
and butterfish, these articles, either singly or in combination,
were the ones principally considered, though certain insects
and their larve were introduced. The average cost per pound
of the different articles used is as follows: Beef liver, 13 cents;
sheep plucks, 5 cents; pork melts, 314 cents; and butterfish, 4
cents. It is difficult to estimate the cost of maggots, but since
waste material was used in their production it is safe to say that
the cost was low.

As it appeared important that each lot of fish should be uni-
form in size and weight, they were carefully graded as to size
before being placed in the troughs selected. Several lots from
each trough were then weighed and the average weight from
each trough recorded. In weighing the fish, a uniform method
was followed throughout the course of the tests, and the aver-
age weight of each lot of fish was obtained and recorded every
ten days. Two waxed paper cups were filled with water and
balanced on a standard laboratory scale. The fish were taken
from the troughs with a small dip net and allowed to drain for
one minute. They were then transferred to one of the cups and
weighed. By exercising care, there was no loss of weight
through splashing or slopping of the water.

Feeding occurred twice each day, the daily ration of food
being approximately two per cent of the weight of the fish.
The food was prepared fresh each morning, weighed, and
placed in the troughs in the usual manner. The food chopper
was washed thoroughly after each lot of food was prepared
to prevent mixing of foods at the time of preparation. In all
other respects the fish were treated in a manner similar to all
hatchery fish. The dead fish were removed each day and the
losses properly recorded. Each morning unconsumed particles
of food and other refuse were removed from the troughs, and
every second morning the troughs were thoroughly cleaned in
the usual manner.

It should be noted that the brown trout used were culls,

Hayford.—Trout Feeding Experiments Za

and that the troughs in which they were confined were divided
by wire screens into three compartments, each compartment con-
taining 100 fish, or a total of 300 fish per trough. The object
of the screens was to provide a more equal distribution of the
food. The troughs containing the brook trout were not so di-
vided, and only 100 fish were allotted per trough. With this ex-
ception all of the fish were held in environment identical in all
respects; the only point of difference was the variety of food
supplied. The brown trout were considerably smaller than the
brook trout.

Among the more pronounced points developed from a study
of the tables are the wide variations in mortality and growth,
brought about, it seems fair to assume, by the different varieties
of food. Sheep plucks at 5 cents per pound seem to be entitled
to first consideration, while beef livers at 13 cents per pound,
and perhaps quite generally considered one of the best of fish
foods, is only a poor second. The fly larve or maggots also
produced very satisfactory results.

Water temperature throughout the course of the experiment
was unchanged at 51° F. or 28.3° C., and the percentage of
hemoglobin remained constant in all cases, regardless of the kind
of food used. The insect forms of food were: Corixe; black-
fly larvee ; and Mayfly and stonefly nymphs.

The difference in results obtained from feeding the various
foods to fish of different ages is surprising. When the fish are
two or three months old they seem to do well on certain foods,
and at five or six months they do better on other foods. This
goes to show that in order to obtain successful results, we ought
to administer a balanced ration. We blame many of our
troubles to the temperature of the water, and other things,
whereas it may be that the difficulty is caused by a lack of vita-
mines or something that we can furnish.

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256 American Fisheries Society

Discussion

Mr. Joun W. Titcoms, Albany, N. Y.: Would it not be possible.
to get these same comparisons between different species at the same age?

Mr. Hayrorp: It would be possible, but the difference is in the
weight.

Mr. Titcoms: In comparing the growth of these different species,
did you get a record of the weight of different kinds of food used?

Mr. Hayrorp: We gave each species one-fiftieth of its weight
daily, divided into two foods. It might be possible to use a cheaper food
and more of it. This is a matter that requires a good deal of considera-
tion because under different temperatures it works differently. What
might be good at 51 degrees might work differently at another
temperature.

Mr. Titcomsp: Do I understand you to say that in feeding you
used sheep plucks and livers ground together?

Mr. Hayrorp: Yes, all ground together. The best results were
obtained from the beef liver and maggots in the case of the brook
trout, and from the sheep plucks in the case of the brown trout.

Mr. Titcoms: I suggest that anyone who wants to carry this test
along with the maggots produced from fish will find that it is a very
much less offensive operation than producing maggots from meat. It
is a very simple matter to produce tons of maggots from cold storage
fish, and the odor does not extend very far beyond the building where
they are produced. In connection with our fish-cultural operations we
catch a great many carp and bill fish. They are placed in cold storage
and eventually taken to one of the game farms and changed into
maggots for feeding the pheasants. Every particle of the fish is used
except the skin and the bones. It is a very simple process.

THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE SO-CALLED BLUE
PIKE AND YELLOW PIKE OF LAKE
ERIE AND LAKE ONTARIO

By Dr. WILLIAM CONVERSE KENDALL
Scientific Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries
Washington, D. C.

The relationship of the pike perches, locally designated as
blue pike and yellow pike, has been more or less a moot ques-
tion, and the status of their idenity has, from time to time,
given rise to investigation of the subject. Each inquiry, how-
ever, has resulted in the conclusion that there was no distin-
guishable difference.

In connection with the name given by Rafinesque to the
Mississippi Valley fish, Jordan and Evermann say:

The name salmoneum has been applied to the so-called “blue pike”
originally described from the Ohio river, but more common in the Great
Lakes, particularly Ontario and Erie. It is smaller and deeper in body
than the ordinary witreum and different in color, but it is not likely
that any permanent distinctions exist, this species, as usual among
freshwater fishes, varying largely with the environment and with age.*

The fact referred to by Jordan and Evermann, that it is
usual for freshwater fishes to vary largely with environment
and age, is without significance in a study of the relation-
ships of fishes unless the way in which they vary and the
cause of variation are considered. Their statement implies
that distinctions to be of taxonomic value must be permanent.
Conversely, if a distinction is permanent it is of specific value.

So far as the blue pike concerns the fishermen and fish
dealers, there is a permanent distinction, that of color. The
question, then, is how permanent this distinction is. Is it
restricted to young fish and is it therefore, a distinction that
disappears with age and maturity? If it is a distinction deter-

* Jordan and Evermann. Fishes of North and Middle America. Bull. 47, U. S.
National Museum, vol. 1, p. 1021. Washington, 1896.

258 American Fisheries Society

mined by environment, and not particularly restricted to young
fish, what is the environmental factor affecting certain aggre-
gations of fishes associated, at least part of the year in the same
waters, with other aggregations in Lake Erie and Lake On-
tario, which latter are at all ages distinguished by color? And
does the distinction disappear if removal from one environ-
ment to another takes place? These are points which cannot
be determined by cursory inspection of a few individuals.

In connection with a biological survey of the Great Lakes,
the U. S. Fish Commission Report for 1902, page 127, states
that Dr. Raymond Pearl undertook a demonstration by statis-
tical methods of the relations of the blue pike to the yellow
pike (Stizostedion vitreum) of the Great Lakes, and that
enough was learned to know that the wall-eyed pike is a species
of remarkably low variability, and that there are no structural
differences between the blue and the yellow varieties, this
being in accord with other observation.

It is not my purpose to discuss the question of nomencla-
ture of the pike perch, or so-called wall-eyed pike. But, as
concerns the species which Rafinesque called Perca, or Stizo-
stedion salmoneum, there is no indication in his description
that it is the form recognized in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario
as blue pike. It is the common pike perch of the Mississippi
Valley which, as Rafinesque stated, occurred all over Ohio,
and in the Kentucky, Licking, Wabash, and Miami Rivers,
during the spring and summer and was known as salmon,
white salmon and Ohio salmon.

In accordance with the wishes of the United States Com-
missioner of Fisheries, I have recently examined a series of
each form, for the most part representing Lake Erie and Lake
Ontario. In view of the fact that previous discussions have
been io the effect that the blue pike were immature fish, I
selected a series of 20 specimens of yellow pike which in their
maximum lengths would include the lengths of the available
blue pike. The yellow pike ranged from 91 mm. (about

Kendall.—Blue Pike and Yellow Pike 259

3 2-5 inches) to 600 mm. (about 23 2-5 inches), and the blue
pike from 280 mm. (about 11 inches) to 436 mm. (about
17 1-6 inches). The majority of each form in which the sex
could be distinguished, were either gravid females or females
just past the spawning season.

The fish were first laid out and compared as to general
appearance. The contrast in color was most pronounced in
fresh specimens. The blue pike were darker, and had no trace
of yellow which the yellow pike always showed as tints or
reflections. The fins were never yellow, while in the yellow
pike they were often so colored. The belly of each was al-
ways white, although in the larger yellow pike and a few of
the smaller it was sometimes tinged with yellow. Most of
the blue pike had ventrals and anal strongly marked with dark
shades or spots, in some faint, but never entirely absent. In
the case of most of the yellow pike, these fins were plain, but
in a few faintly spotted.

Aside from color, the general appearance of the blue pike
suggested a more slender head, narrower interorbital width,
and noticeably larger eye, particularly in the smaller specimens,
than the yellow pike. Fin ray and scale counts, though vari-
able, revealed nothing distinctive. Closer inspection showed
that as a rule, the preopercular teeth were more numerous and
finer than in the yellow pike, in which the teeth were simple
and not bifid or trifid as in the blue pike. One specimen each
was skeletonized and no difference detected in the cranial
bones or number of vertebrz.

Besides counting series of scales and the fin rays, various
measurements were taken of the head and body and reduced
to percentages of head or body. The percentages were then
tabulated in the order of the total lengths of the fish, from
the smallest to the largest, regardless of whether they were
yellow or blue pike; the two kinds were indicated by different
colors of ink. Thus those of similar lengths were brought in
juxtaposition.

260 American Fisheries Society

In following the figures down the column, it was found
in practically every instance that each form contains measure-
ments so close to the other that very likely one would unhesi-
tatingly pronounce the fish specifically identical. But with a
little closer scrutiny, it was observed that the percentages
practically throughout graded variably from a higher to a
lower or from a lower to a higher percentage in each form,
in some of the measurements in the order of the size of the

fish.

This fact suggested averaging available percentages of the
two forms and flattening the variation by overlapping the
percentages from one group to another of equal number.
Taking 18 specimens of each form, five groups of six figures
each resulted. Group 1, composed of the smaller sizes, and
Group 5, of the larger sizes, were, of course, unaffected by the
overlapping. In this way it was found that there were con-
siderable variations, irrespective of the size of the fish, some
of which variations were possibly attributable to inaccuracy
or lack of uniformity of measuring between two points not
always positively determinable.

Graphs of these results show, in many instances, more or
less crossing, which suggests individual variation not associated
with difference in size of the fish. But in others, they show
distinctly, and, in some cases, widely separated, more or less
parallel, converging or diverging upward or downward trends.
In but one or two instances, however, does the percentage of
one or more groups of one form remain wholly distinct from
that of one or more groups of the other. But where they
are alike in size ranges, the larger blue pike are nearly always
like the smaller yellow pike.

The study of these measurements has not been completed,
but enough has been learned to suggest a divergence of the
two forms. An important point is that there are mature
breeding fish of both kinds in practically the same range of
sizes. In order to ascertain, if possible, the ages of the fish,

Kendall.—Blue Pike and Yellow Pike 261

scales were taken and mounted; but they have not been studied
carefully enough to arrive at any positive conclusion. Photo-
graphs have been made of several of each which show, al-
though not as distinctly as one could wish, certain lines of
growth, whatever they may signify. If the crowded lines
are interpreted in the same way as in the case of salmon scales,
they indicate that some of the smaller blue pike are older than
some yellow pike of larger size.

The lack of time and the incompleteness of study of the
measurements do not permit a detailed consideration of results
at the present; but I shall refer to six of them which will
indicate what measurements may be of importance in deciding
the relationship of these two forms, especially when a large
series of each of an equal range of size is studied and compared.

The overlapping groups referred to were respectively com-
posed of fish of average total lengths, as shown in the follow-
ing table of total lengths, given in millimeters.

AVERAGE ToTAL LENGTHS oF GROUPS

Group numbers and averages General

Kind 1 2 3 + 5 Average

mm mm mm mm mm. mm,
Mellow: Pikes, «7. «soa 210 269 303 331 416 306
Bite Shika). 2 oct eens 202 = 317 342 =. 3367 400 S44

These averages, arranged in the order of size from the
lowest up, are as follows: Yellow, 210 mm.; yellow, 269 mm. ;
blue, 296 mm.; yellow, 303 mm.; blue, 317 mm.; yellow, 331
mm.; blue, 342 mm.; blue, 367 mm.; blue, 400 mm.; yellow,
416 mm.; yellow, average, 306 mm.; blue, average, 344 mm.
These figures show a fairly close running sequence of both
forms, with the exception of the first average of yellow pike,
which reduces the general average of that form.

In order to check up the results shown in the group
averages, 6 fish of each form of approximately the same
lengths were selected. These range from a little over 280 mm.
to 370 mm. in length. The sexual condition and the over-

262 American Fisheries Society

lapping groups of averages in which each fish appears are
shown in the following table:

Groups INto WHicH INDIVIDUAL YELLOW AND BLUE PIKE OF
APPROXIMATELY SAME LENGTH FALL

YELLOW PIKE. Biue PIKE.
Group Total length. Group Total length.

from which Rite a from which Sexual ys a a
selected. Cone Mm. Inches. selected. condition. Mm, Inches.
2 Immature 288 11-11/32 I Mature 284 11- 6/32

2 Immature 295 11-24/32 I Immature 295 11-24/32

3 Mature 302 11-29/32 I Mature 303 11-30/32

3 Immature 325 12-25/32 2s Mature 327 12-28/32

4 Immature 342 13-18/32 2 Mature | 346 13-20/32

4 Mature 370 14-18/32 4 Mature | 370 14-18/32
Average |..0.--.. | 320.33 | 13-13/32||Average | +----see H 320.83, 13-14/32

HEAD MEASUREMENTS

Distance from Tip of Snout to Posterior Edge of Preopercle.
The averages show a converging difference from the smaller
to the larger fish, thus indicating a decrease in the distance
with increase of size of the yellow pike, and an increase of
distance with increase of size of the blue pike, the yellow pike
having the greater average. The average of Group 4, of the
blue pike, reaches the average of Group 2, of the yellow pike,
which are respectively composed of fish averaging 367 and
269 mm. in total length. The six individuals of each form
show that this dimension in the second yellow pike 295 mm.
long equals that of the fourth blue pike, 327 mm. long, the
yellow pike being immature and the blue pike a mature fish;
this suggests that youthful characteristics of the yellow pike are
maintained in older or larger blue pike.

Interorbital Width—A narrower interorbital width ob-
tains in the general average of the blue pike than in the yellow
pike. The yellow pike changes but little from the smaller to
the larger fish, while the blue pike, at first considerably
narrower than the smallest yellow pike, approaches the yellow
pike in Groups 4 and 5 of larger fish. The next to the largest

Kendall.—Blue Pike and Yellow Pike 263

of the six individual yellow pike has the narrower interorbital,
which corresponds to the interorbital of the largest blue pike.

Eye.—The length of the eye affords the clearest example of
the manner in which the blue pike differs from the yellow pike.
In the general averages there is a uniform decrease in size of
the eye with the increase in size of both forms, the blue pike
having the larger eye of the two. Here the very smallest of
the yellow pike has eyes equal to the average as shown in
Group 3 of the blue pike, and the very largest blue pike equals
Group 3 of the yellow pike. As to eyes, the six individuals of
each kind are widely different, comparatively speaking; the
blue pike have constantly the larger eye, though in this kind
it is the most variable. The larger eye of the blue pike is a
youthful characteristic, as all young fishes have proportionally
larger eyes than adults.

BODY PROPORTIONS

The only dimensions to which I shall refer in this con-
nection are the position of the ventral and anal fins and the
distance between dorsals.

Distance from Base of Pectoral Fin to Base of Anal Fin.—
The distance from the base of the pectoral fin to the base of
the anal fin, as shown by the general averages, is greater in the
blue pike than in the yellow pike, but the dimensions are
equal in the different groups. The blue pike of Group 1 with
an average length of 296 mm. equals the yellow pike of Group
4 of 331 mm., and the blue pike of Group 4, averaging 367
mm., equals Group 5 of the yellow pike which averages 416
mm. in total length.

In the six individuals of each form, the same tendency to
increase the distance with increase of size of the fish is main-
tained, as in the general averages, and the blue pike maintains
the greater dimension. In this characteristic, the blue pike is
the more variable, and it is the smaller blue pike which equals
the larger yellow pike.

A blue pike 295 mm. long is slightly less in this dimension

264 American Fisheries Society

than a yellow pike 325 mm. long; and a blue pike 303 mm.
long about equals a yellow pike of the 342 mm. length. A blue
pike 327 mm. long equals a yellow pike 370 mm. long; a blue
pike 370 mm. long differs from a yellow pike of the same
length by about one per cent. In both forms, the dimensions
approach each other with increase in size of the fish, but the
average greater dimension is that of the blue pike.

Distance from Base of Ventral Fin to Front of Base of
Anal Fit.—In the general averages of both forms, the dis-
tance increases with the increase of the size of the fish; the
blue pike has the more posteriorly situated anal fin as relates
to the ventral. The difference, however, decreases with
increase in the size of the fish. In the six individuals of each
kind examined, the same tendency to increase the distance with
increase of size of the fish is observed, but it is very irregular
and variable. The blue pike is the more variable, this dimen-
sion sometimes being less than that of the yellow pike.

Distance between Dorsal Fins.—In the general averages,
the distance between the dorsal fins is constantly greater in the
blue pike than in the yellow pike and it decreases as the size
of the fish increases, while in the yellow pike the distance
increases with the increase in size of the fish, so that the
averages converge, although they do not meet. The greater
difference, by far, is in the smaller fish. In the six individuals
of each kind, the blue pike still maintains the greater distance,
but with the increase in size of the fish there is a slight ten-
dency to increase the dimension. ‘This dimension in a blue
pike 284 mm. long is equal to that of a yellow pike 302 mm.
long; in a blue pike 295 mm. long it is equal to that of a
yellow pike 342 mm. long.

CONCLUSIONS

The study has not proceeded far enough to warrant any
positive conclusions, and the material is hardly sufficient to
permit of generalization. Certain indications, however, some

Kendall.—Blue Pike and Yellow Pike 265

of which I have mentioned, suggest possibilities of our being
able to find positive proofs of the structural divergence of
these two forms, not depending upon immediate ecological
relations, but of phylogenetic significance. Some of the dis-
tinctive features, such as that of the size of the eye, indicate
that the blue pike maintains youthful characteristics, as judged
by the young of the yellow pike, in well-advanced maturity.
So, while there are no specific differences recognizable by the
ordinary methods of the systematist, there is in each an
aggregate of correlated small differential characteristics. The
fish are constructed on two somewhat different models, so to
speak, the yellow pike on the whole being the more symmetrical.
The adult blue pike resembles younger yellow pike, and is
more variable than the yellow pike. Except in color, there
appears to be scarcely a single characteristic in the one, so
far as the inadequate number of specimens examined reveals,
that is not found in the other; but it is believed that even with
the specimens at hand, a careful study of the tables of measure-
ments, combined with age determination by means of the
scales, will show that all blue pike will differ constantly from
yellow pike of corresponding ages. If so, what does this fact
mean? To me, the youthful, and more generalized character-
istics suggest that the blue pike is a retarded development more
closely resembling the ancestral form of the species. It is pos-
sible to absolutely prove this point only through biometrical
studies of a large amount of material, and by study of the
life history, habits, and geographical distribution of the pike
perches. Particularly should the geographical limits of the
blue pike be defined.

Yet this limited amount of study has revealed that the
blue pike are not all young and immature fish; that the color
appears to be constantly correlated with certain though small
differences of structure; and that blue pike, even as small as
some immature yellow pike, are mature fish. So, whether or
not taxonomical rules permit them to be endowed with a bi-

266 American Fisheries Society

nomial or trinomial designation, for all practical purposes, it
would seem to me, they should be regarded and treated as
distinct species.

Discussion

Mr. J. W. Tircoms, Albany, N. Y.: This is a very important
paper. In the matter of blue pike and yellow pike, a curious situation
prevails on the Great Lakes, affecting Ohio as well as New York and
Pennsylvania. In these districts the law protects the yellow pike under
a certain size, but it does not protect the blue pike. I was hoping it
would be settled definitely whether they were two distinct species or
not. But it is a fact that young blue pike, or blue pike in a spawning
condition, are allowed to be taken in the Great Lakes, while the yellow
pike is protected.

Dr. KenpALL: The name does not amount to anything. A taxo-
nomical species is one thing, and a natural form another. Taxonomi-
cally, we are considering these fish as we find them on a horizontal
plane. In this case it seems to me that we should take into considera-
tion more than their relation to each other on this horizontal plane.
The fact is that you have a divergence, and whether you call it a species,
or a subspecies, or a variety, or what not, does not affect the situation
at all. You have two things that are recognized by the fisherman and
by the markets and by everybody as two distinct forms, and for all
practical purposes they are as distinct as though taxonomically so re-
garded, and it does not matter what you call them.

Dr. R. C. Ospurn, Columbus, Ohio: Mr. President, in the first
place I want to express my admiration for Dr. Kendall’s nerve in tack-
ling these two very much mooted questions as to the relationship between
the rainbow trout and the steelhead trout, and the blue and yellow pikes.
I desire also to commend him for the admirable scientific way in which
he has undertaken to solve these problems by such careful and minute
study. It is the only way in which such questions can be handled if we
are ever to arrive at a solution of the problems involved. It seems to
me that these forms may be still very closely related; they may be
physiologically different species, but, perhaps, have not diverged suffi-
ciently so that we can separate them satisfactorily by structural char-
acteristics, and that as the ages progress, such data as Dr. Kendall has
worked out will enable the William C. Kendalls of a few thousand
years hence to make comparisons with the figures of the present day
and to say whether the divergence is growing wider as the ages go on.
I do think that such studies as these have a biological importance in
addition to any practical value they may have in connection with ‘the
fisheries.

Dr. E. E. Prince, Ottawa, Canada: I agree with Dr. Osburn that
these two studies are really among the most beneficial contributions to

Kendall.—Blue Pike and Yellow Pike 267

our proceedings of this meeting. Dr. Kendall has taken up some of the
problems which have been causing trouble wherever the steelhead and
rainbow trout are known, and wherever the blue and yellow pike are
marketed. The markets have always distinguished between the edible
qualities of the blue and of the yellow pike.

One other point I would like to mention in this connection is this:
I visited New Zealand some time ago and saw a great deal of their
fisheries. Much importance has been attached to the size attained by
rainbow trout in New Zealand. There the brown trout, which in
Europe is a comparatively small fish, frequently run to ten, twelve, or -
fourteen pounds. In the case of the rainbow trout, I saw a catch of
200, none of which was under 20 pounds, some of them even going up
to 25. The large steelhead trout I used to be familiar with on the
Fraser River were unlike these large rainbow trout. I hope that Dr.
Kendall will continue his studies and that we shall have something
further from him at future meetings of the Society. The study of the
blue and yellow pikes is, of course, of great importance from a com-
mercial standpoint.

RELATION OF CERTAIN AQUATIC PLANTS TO
OXYGEN SUPPLY AND TO CAPACITY OF
SMALL PONDS TO SUPPORT THE TOP-
MINNOW (GAMBUSIA AFFINIS)

By R. L. Barney, Director
and
B. J. ANSON, Scientific Assistant

U. S. Fisheries Biological Station, Fairport, Iowa

In attacking the broad and complex problem of furnishing
fish with those conditions which best fulfil their requirements
for growth and propagation, there are three considerations
of paramount importance. These have been well discussed in
a recent publication by Dr. R. E. Coker,* U. S. Bureau of
Fisheries, who suggested therein as the biologically fundamen-
tal factors governing the success of fish-cultural enterprises,
the provision of sufficient oxygen, the provision of sufficient
food, and the proper association of species. Much is known
generally of each of these necessities; comparatively little ex-
perimentally. A fish culturist and a stock raiser know very
well that their charges require plenty of oxygen and plenty
of food if they may be expected to attain maximum size and
maximum productiveness. The stockman takes no thought of
the first factor, knowing that oxygen for his purpose is as
free as the air, whereas, for the fish culturist, such a condition
does not always exist.

There is, too, the relatively larger consumption and possible
utilization of all the oxygen in the fish pond, since depletion
of this life-supporting element occurs from the chemical oxi-
dation of much material in the water, as well as through
consumption by the respiration of aquatic animals. To be

*Coker, R. E.: Principles and problems of fish culture in ponds. The Scientific
Monthly, Vol. VII, No. 9, August, 1918. Garrison, N. Y.

Barney and Anson.—The Top-Minnow 269

added to these facts, indicating the limitations of oxygen
supply in water, there is that of the limited capacity of water
to dissolve oxygen—its period of greatest capacity occurring
when the water is cold and when, apparently, it is of less value
to the fish, since metabolism of all cold-blooded animals is
very slight through the winter months. It seems a paradox
that the increased need for oxygen for metabolic processes
during the spring, summer and early fall should come when
the power of water in dissolving and in holding oxygen should
be continually decreasing, the capacity of water to dissolve
oxygen decreasing with the increasing temperature. There
is, however, the compensating factor of increased oxygen pro-
duction by submerged plant life during the warm weather,
which factor is negligible in winter.

In this general connection there also arises the question
of the actual capacity of a pond or body of water to support
animal life; how much fish life a body of water of given size
can be expected to bring to maturity and hold under certain
conditions where predacious species have been eliminated.
There is, of necessity, in this problem a consideration of the
means whereby, and of the quantity in which, oxygen and
food reach the fish, since oxygen and food, other factors being
the same, become, possibly, the most important criteria on
which the capacity of a pond may be estimated.

EXPERIMENTAL OBSERVATIONS

In 1918 four small ponds were built by throwing dirt em-
bankments across the very sluggish stream, Cypress Bayou,
Mound, La. These ponds average in size 30 by 12 feet,
varying in depth of water, because of seepage, from 10 inches
to 2%4 feet. The banks were kept clear of weeds, while the
waters were provided with four differing habitats by introduc-
ing into three of the ponds certain aquatic plants of different
habits of growth and by keeping one pond free of all vegeta-
tion other than microscopic. A description of the vegetative
environment of each pond follows:

270 American Fisheries Society

Pond 1. Supplied abundantly with the submerged aquatic plant Cera-
tophyllum. Surface kept entirely open and clear of all surface-
growing plants.

Pond 2. Kept entirely clear of all visible vegetation.

Pond 3. Supplied with a quickly and thickly growing surface-trailing
plant, Jussiaea diffusa. No other surface plants present; no sub-
merged plants present.

Pond 4. Supplied with a heavy surface covering of Lemna and Spiro-
dela, in which Wolffia filled in the interstices between the leaves of
Lemna and Spirodela.

After removing predacious species, there were introduced
into each of these ponds ten male and forty female
Gambusia affinis, all adults, the females being heavily gravid.
The date of this stocking was July lst. On September Ist,
sixty days afterward, the ponds were seined, with results as
follows:

GAMBUSIA PrRopUCTION OF PoNps IN 1918

Pond Gambusia
No. Surface vegetation. Submerged vegetation. production.
iM None. Abundant Ceratophyllum. 2575
2: None. None visible. 1361
3 Trailing plant Jussiaea None visible. 1040

diffusa.
4. Heavy mat of Lemna, None visible. 247

Spirodela and Wolffia.

The ponds, averaging in content about 450 cubic feet, had
doubtless reached their capacity for supporting animal life;
and a further month’s opportunity for increased output would
have changed the above figures very little.

These results quite plainly indicate the effect aquatic vege-
tation may have in partly supplying fish with the conditions
which best suit their requirements. The pond having the
submerged vegetation produced a much greater output than
any of the others, the production decreasing by approximately
half in the pond with the open surface and the pond with
the surface trailing Jussiaea diffusa. The pond having the
heavy surface mat of Lemna, Spirodela, and Wolffia seemed
to be least able to support Gambusia life.

Barney and Anson.—The Top-Minnow 271

By careful approximation and averaging of the volume of
the different organisms found in the stomachs and intestines
of 105 Gambusia collected at Mound, La., during the summer,
fall, and early winter of 1916, there were found the following:
Crustaceans, mostly entomostracans, 23.9%, insects, mostly
dipterous larve and pupe, 7.2%; rotifers and protozoa,
6.1% ; alge, mostly blue-green filamentous, 47.7%; and un-
recognizable debris, 14.4%. These examinations were made
at the U. S. Biological Station, Fairport, Iowa, by H. Walton
Clark.

Referring to the most important considerations of pond
culture outlined on a previous page, we may now well take up
the matter of food production in these ponds. Gambusia is
a plankton feeder.

For this study, then, the production of plankton and the
factors that influence its abundance must be given especial
consideration. The extent of plankton production in fresh
water, as is the case in plant production on land, depends pri-
marily on the amount of nitrogenous material available for
the metabolic processes of the plankton organisms. Needham
and Lloyd* point out that:

The supply of nitrogen for aquatic organisms is derived from the
soluble simple nitrates (KNO3, NaNO3, etc.). Green plants feed on
these and build proteins out of them. And when the plants die, their
dissolution yields two sorts of products, ammonia and nitrates, that
become again available for plant food.

Kofoid has indicated the effect of temperature on plank-
ton production in a planktograph in his work on the plankton
of the Illinois River.+ In the four ponds herein considered,
abundant plankton production was guaranteed, before the vege-
tative features of the habitats were added, by the presence on

*Needham, James G., and J. T. Lloyd: The life of inland waters. Ithaca, N. Y.
TOTG., Le. 48.

*Kofoid, C. A.: The plankton of the Illinois River, 1894-1809, with introductory
notes upon the hydrography of the Illinois River and its basin. Part I. Quantitative
investigations and general results. Bulletin, Illinois State Laboratory of Natural
History, Vol. VI, Art. II, November, 1903, p. 626. Pl. VIII. Champaign, IIl.

272 American Fisheries Society

the bottom of each pond of layers of decaying vegetation, the
result of the annual deaths of aquatic plants. It is evident
that plankton abundance in ponds 3 and 4, which were thickly
covered with Lemna and Jussiaea, would be considerably de-

CHARACTER OF PONDS

.| Open Surface Surface mat

i Submerged Open Surface | of Lemna,ete.

I Ne Vegetation No Submerged
Ceratophylium a eeatice

ea VAR RE:
34 | soo) ASU [a
eS. BS A
ae ee ES Yes!

Oxygen Gambusia

creased, as the matted condition of the surface vegetation tends
to keep the temperature of the water under it lower. The
production of plankton may also be regulated to some extent
by the amount of light. The introduction of certain plants

Barney and Anson.—The Top-Minnow 273

in ponds also has a tendency to modify plankton production,
as the plants become competitors with the plankton organisms
for the available nitrogen. In his conclusions, Kofoid says:

Summer heat pulses often attend plankton increases. * * * Light
affects plankton production. The half year with more illumination and
fewer cloudy days produces from 1.6 to 7 times as much plankton as
that with less illumination and more cloudy days. Seasons of unusual
cloudiness are accompanied by depression in production. * * * Lakes
rich in submerged vegetation produce less plankton than those relatively
free from it.*

In view of the fact that plankton production is modified by
temperature, light and the presence of vegetation in the water,
it is safe to say that our open-surfaced pond 2 produced more
plankton than pond 1 with submerged vegetation, and that
production in ponds 3 and 4 was smaller than in either 1 or
2, since the waters of the former ponds had lower temperature,
less light, and contained competitive plants. Inasmuch, how-
ever, as pond 1 produced more fish than pond 2, the conclu-
sion can be fairly reached that the quantity of food in each
was at least sufficient, and hence was not a determining factor
in Gambusia production. Very possibly the production of
Gambusia in the surface-covered ponds 3 and 4 was limited
because of scarcity of food. At least, this is probably one
cause for the small output of these ponds.

Passing from the consideration of food supply we are
confronted with the question of the other important factor,
oxygen supply. Oxygen may become dissolved in water by
two methods, mechanical and natural. Oxygen is introduced
into the water through the surface by mechanical means, such
as the effect of the wind, waterfalls and current, by the addi-
tion of falling rain, by the movement of animals on or in the
water, or by means invented to churn the water and cause air
to bubble through it. The natural means are of equal, if not
of greater, importance in ponds and small lakes, oxygenation

*Tbid., pp. 572, 573.

274 American Fisheries Society

occurring through the liberation of infinite numbers of tiny
bubbles of oxygen from the leaves of submerged plants, a by-
product of their metabolic process, photosynthesis. The re-
sults of the pond studies previously outlined being so indicative
of the value of certain plants of differing habit of growth in
pond culture—more ultimately of the value of dissolved oxygen
in different quantities—a number of observations on oxygen
content of three of the four type ponds were carried out in
1919. The banks of the original ponds having been destroyed
by high water and by the burrowing of crayfish, four new
ponds of larger capacity were built in another section of the
bayou supplied with the same vegetative environmental fea-
tures as had obtained in the former observations, with the
exception of pond 3, which was supplied with a heavy sub-
merged growth of Ceratophyllum in addition to a solid surface
mat of Lemna, Spirodela and Wolffia. The new ponds were
supplied as follows:

Pond 1. Submerged Ceratophyllum.

Pond 2. Open surface; all visible vegetation removed.

Pond 3. Heavy growth of submerged Ceratophyllum and heavy surface-
mat of Lemna, Spirodela, and Wolffa.

Pond 4. No submerged vegetation, but a heavy mat of Lemna, Spirodela,
and Wolffia.

Beginning our determinations approximately at the time
of the stocking in the year previous, and extending them
through August 15th, two weeks before the date of the seining
operations of 1918, twenty-six determinations of dissolved
oxygen for each pond were made, water samples being taken
at about 3.00 p.m. on days representing differing weather con-
ditions. The method of collection and determination of these
samples was that outlined in detail in Standard Methods of
Water Analysis. The determinations are listed and averaged
as shown in table on the following page.

It will be noticed from this tabulation that the pond
with the open surface and the submerged vegetation, Cer-

Barney and Anson.—The Top-M innow 275

atophyllum, averaged 5.73 parts of dissolved oxygen per mil-
lion, the average amounts for each of the other ponds being
lower. The lowest average record was 0.26 parts per million
for the pond with the heavy mat of vegetation and with no
submerged plants. The pond with a similar mat of vegetation
but containing a quantity of submerged plant growth averaged
nearly five times this record, with 1.23 parts per million. The

DISSOLVED OXYGEN CONTENT OF EXPERIMENTAL PoNps

Date. of Dissolved oxygen in parts per million
observation Pond 1 Pond 2 Pond 3 | Pond 4
1919

UNS 24 ee. | ae Ox 4.81 2.75 1.33
<A Cy ne OC: 5.91 4.83 2.93 2.19

27iie esc Hi OLOo 5-40 0.60 0.35

2S Ae ad es ss 7.90 4.90 0.43 0.15

ZO... =) ZO 5.69 1.50 0.79

uly. ex 7.00 4.68 2.10 0.10
2 7.44 6.76 1.16 0.00

ra 8.40 5.96 0.81 0.00

Sets ois!) <a eOG 6.10 0.61 0.05

7 8.50 5.80 0.70 0.07

22 5.78 5.48 1.70 | 0.00

ZY) asi) win acs 4.26 0.72 0.00

23 - +--+ -| 5.88 5-49 1.41 0.05

24 - + + +] 6.79 5.50 1.73 0.06

29) an We ie 4.70 | q.14 0.97 0.00

23 fet sy )1(" 4582 5:37 2.02 0.09

AF 4 ailgoxs 5-05 1.56 0.14

Aug. 22) = = =|) 3°89 4.15 a Sa =e Be
5 4.12 3-47 2.00 0.36

4 4-25 4.31 1.40 0.08

Gide Pega 4n63 3.87 I.Ir 0.09

Os ake coll acco 4.00 0.53 0.00

7 5.20 4.20 Bates 0.00

9 6.20 4.75 0.36 0.12

II 3.70 3.60 0.80 0.44

TS ia te betel hase 2.65 0.21 0.00
Average ... .| 5-73 4.80 re23 0.26

pond with the entirely open surface and none but microscopic
vegetation yielded an average record of 4.80 parts of dissolved
oxygen per million. The cause of the variation in dissolved
oxygen content in each individual case seems to be evident.

276 American Fisheries Society

Oxycen Recorp oF Ponps 1n 1919

Dissolved oxygen.

Pond Parts
No. Surface vegetation. Submerged vegetation. per million
1 None. Abundant Ceratophyllum. 5.73
2 None. None visible. 4.80
3 Heavy Mat of Lemna,
Wolffia and Spiro-
dela. Abundant Ceratophyllum. 1.23
4 Heavy mat of Lemna,
.Wolffia and Spiro-
dela. None visible. 0.26

It is reasonable to believe that pond 1 should have been
observed to have dissolved in it a larger quantity of oxygen than
pond 2, and pond 3 more than pond 4, from the fact that ponds
1 and 3 contained abundant submerged plants, whereas ponds
2 and 4 had none. It plainly indicates the value of submerged
plants in oxygenating ponds. That ponds 1 and 2 should both
have had higher dissolved oxygen records than ponds 3 and 4
is logical, ‘since their surfaces were open to allow for wind
action and for the penetration of the sun’s rays to assist in
photosynthesis, while ponds 3 and 4 were covered with a heavy
surface growth that permitted no wave action and allowed a
mimimum of sunlight to pass through to cause photosynthesis
in those plants which may have been beneath the mats.

These ponds were stocked similarly to those of 1918, but
their larger size (30 x 50 x 5 feet) and the physical impossi-
bility of drawing a seine through them because of immovable
snags, or of clearing them of fish with a dipnet, led to giving up
the idea of noting their production. Such ascertainment of
the output of Gambusia of these ponds would have been of
minimum value for our purpose under the conditions, since the
effect of predacious fishes could not be eliminated or measured.

The oxygen determinations and the differing plant combi-
nations of 1919 were, however, available for comparison with
the results of the 1918 experiments in numbers of fish in the

Barney and Anson.—The Top-Minnow 277

sixty day output, and capacity of the ponds in raising and sup-
porting Gambusia life. The effect of predacious fish had been
eliminated from consideration in the 1918 fish-cultural obser-
vations. The 1919 oxygen determinations had also been made
in similar ponds, in the same water system, and in three of the
four ponds with vegetative environmental features exactly alike.
The period in 1919 during which observations on oxygen con-
tent of the ponds were made was approximately the same as
that in which the fish-cultural study was carried on in 1918,
the oxygen determinations beginning the last week in June,
1919, while the fish cultural studies began on July 1, 1918. On
the basis of these facts a direct comparison of the observations
of the two years seems to be warranted.

The results are shown in tabular form as follows:

RELATION OF AQUATIC PLANTS TO OYXGEN SUPPLY AND TO CAPACITY OF
Ponps To Support THE Top-MINNow, Gambusia affinis

Vegetable environmental features Dissolved oxygen.

Gambusia
Surface Submerged Parts production
vegetation vegetation per million
Be ise ceca Waren Ceratophyllum 5.73 2575
OMG AL) koa None visible 4.88 1361
Trailing Jussiaea dif-
BMS (odo. ss calpaye None visible | satus 1040

Mat of Lemna,

Melat. 7 fa ee None visible 0.26 247
Mat of Lemna,

12S SoS rey re Ceratophyllum 1.23

CONCLUSIONS

In general terms of fish culture, there appears from the
cited data to be a correlation between the habits of growth of
certain aquatic plants in ponds, the dissolved oxygen content of
the water, and the capacity of ponds to support plankton feed-
ing fishes.

Specifically, there is a direct correlation between the pres-
ence of the submerged aquatic plant Ceratophyllum in a small

278 American Fisheries Society

open-surfaced pond, the dissolved oxygen content of the pond,
and the capacity of the pond to support the top-feeding fish,
Gambusia affinis.

Specifically also, there is a direct correlation between the
presence of a heavy mat of surface-growing aquatic plants
(Lemna, Spirodela, and Wolffia) in a small pond, the dissolved
oxygen content of the pond, and the capacity of the pond to sup-
port the top-feeding fish, Gambusia affints.

FIGHTING POLLUTION IN OHIO—
A DEMONSTRATION OF METHODS

By Joun T. TRAVERS

Superintendent of Streams, Ohio Bureau of Fish and Game
Columbus, Ohio

My purpose, on this occasion, is to explain, in as brief a
manner as possible, the progress the Ohio Fish and Game De-
partment is making in its efforts to control pollution and elimi-
nate it from Ohio streams. In this explanation I will avoid
all terms and phrases of a technical nature that might have a
tendency to confuse, or cover up the actual point we are aim-
ing at. It is my desire to present to you the results of our
investigation of this problem, following with a number of
demonstrations, made with raw industrial waste taken from
manufacturing plants at various points in Ohio. All the facts
presented to you here are the results of my findings, through
actual experience in wading around in polluted water for the
past year. This was necessary for me to do, in order to note
and observe, at first hand, the exact conditions as they exist
in the streams. In this investigation I have not taken anything
for granted, or accepted anything as a fact, unless it could be
proved as such. No tests of pollution have been made by
proxy. All tests have been made at the sewer or in the pol-
luted stream.

The history of stream pollution and of the contributing
causes leading up to it, as it exists today, are as familiar as an
open book. Thousands of pages have been written on this sub-
ject and the problem has been studied from all angles by the
ablest men in the country. The progress made so far has not
come up to expectations. Outside of the process developed
by the Ohio Fish and Game Department, the results so far
have been very unsatisfactory. I believe I am safe in saying
that pollution of streams in the United States has increased
more in the last five years than it did in the twenty years pre-

280 American Fisheries Society

ceding, and until now there has been no practical or satisfac-
tory solution offered for its control. It is conceded by all
authorities on the subject, that stream pollution is a real and
serious menace that threatens not only to exterminate all fish
life from our inland streams, but also its deadly effect is be-
coming very noticeable in our lakes and larger bodies of water.

Stream pollution dates back to the time of our forefathers.
When they were settling up new territory, they found our
streams a very convenient place to dispose of all manner of
refuse and trash for which they had no further use. By
throwing it into the stream it would soon float away and out
of sight. Later on, as the population became more congested,
and industries of all kinds began to develop along our water-
ways, following the established order of things, the waste
liquor was allowed to flow into the creeks and rivers, destroy-
ing everything with which it came in contact. Those once
beautiful streams, teeming with fish life, have been converted
into seething sewers of filth, a breeding place for all manner
of disease germs, continually throwing off an unbearable stench
that is detrimental to human health and causing an uncalled
for depreciation of property values wherever the stench reaches.
This crime must not be allowed to continue, if we have a
remedy that will correct the evil. If we hand down to our
children of the coming generation streams devoid of all fish
life and flowing full of all manner of filth, they will look back
on us with pity and shame, as being only partly civilized in
allowing our waterways to become so contaminated with filth
that they are a disgrace to all mankind. Instead of flowing
with pure, sparkling water, a place for recreation and pleasure,
they will be places to be avoided by both man and beast. In
looking at the surface of the water it is hard to realize the slow
but deadly changes that are taking place in the bottom of a
polluted stream.

You will say the manufacturers are the ones that are re-
sponsible for this destruction. I say, when we sit idly by and
do not raise our voices in protest against this wanton destruc-

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Ohio 281

tion of our streams by pollution, that we, as intelligent human
beings, are just as much responsible as are the manufacturers.
I find that the general public has a very wrong impression re-
garding the attitude the manufacturer holds towards stream
pollution. JI find that he evinces more interest in this matter
than the average citizen does, and is very willing to make all
waste liquor harmless, if shown how it can be done.

The effect of pollution in Ohio streams was first noticed
about eight years ago. Our attention was first called to it in
the twenty-two large coal producing counties of the state.
Copperas water from the mines was killing fish by the whole-
sale. At that time and continuing for seven years, we followed
the time-worn and out-of-date system of collecting samples of
polluted water from infected districts, and submitting them
to the proper state boards for relief. This system resulted in
our department accumulating a vast amount of long, learned
reports on the subject. Those reports gave us, in a very techni-
cal manner, just what the water contained in the way of sul-
phates, acids, and organic solids; also the amount of oxygen
this foreign matter would consume. But this was not what we
wished to know. We wanted to know how this poison could
be removed from the water, so that fish could live, without
hampering the industries in any way. This is what we had a
perfect right to expect from state boards that had made a
special study of this question. However, they were all silent
on recommending a remedy. In the meantime there was a
tremendous increase in stream pollution all over the state.

A little over a year ago Mr. A. C. Baxter, Chief of the
Fish and Game Department, realizing that we had not made one
step forward in this matter in seven years, detailed me to un-
dertake a special study of the question. At that time I found
hundreds of miles of streams so terribly polluted that no living
thing could exist in them. Steel mills and coal mines were
dumping into the streams millions of gallons of an acid pollu-
tion, destroying everything with which it came in contact, not
only depleting the streams of all fish life, but making the

282 American Fisheries Society

waters extremely dangerous for live stock to go near. Straw-
board and sugar beet factories, slaughter houses and packing
plants, creameries, leather-board and tankage plants, tanneries
and city sewage systems, all were putting into the streams their
millions of gallons of pollution every day. Pollution of this
_kind is organic in character, and where it is in excess of what
nature can take care of by self-purification, it is just as deadly
as an acid pollution. I soon had all known pollutions placed
for my purposes in two classes, acid and organic.

I discarded the use of calcium oxide, sulphate of iron, alum,
etc., as being too expensive for the treatment of industrial
waste. In my efforts to find something to cheapen the
treatment of trade waste, and not work a hardship on the
manufacturers, I found a clay marl deposit on the Kibler
farm, near Circleville, Ohio, of which I could use from
seventy-five to ninety-five per cent and get better results
than I could get from any other chemical. This marl used
in combination with any of the well known agents for
coagulation will, when applied to any organic pollution,
cause a very rapid precipitation of all organic solids out of
the water to the bottom of a tank or vat. It renders the
water very clear, and where such water flows into a stream
the fish will live and do well init. I also found that water,
treated by this process, will not ferment afterwards, or
have any odor to it, indicating that everything of a harm-
ful nature is removed from the water. This same marl
will also neutralize an acid pollution and make it harmless.

I have here a number of samples of polluted water,
taken from manufacturing plants, before it reached the
streams and became diluted with other water. I will treat
each one separately, giving you its history and how it is
formed. [Tests were made as the speaker proceeded. ]

1. Coal mine pollution. Copperas water from a coal
mine is very deadly to all fish life, being acid in its nature.
When first formed in a coal mine it is harmless, but as it
flows through the old workings of a mine before being

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Ohio 283

pumped out, it decomposes the iron pyrite and sulphur,
forming ferrous sulphate. This combination, going out
into a stream, will consume all the oxygen in the water,
killing off all fish life. Five minutes after treatment by this
process, fish will live in the water so treated.

2. Steel mill pollution. An acid solution is put out by
steel mills. Where pickling vats are used, the mills dump
into our streams from three to ten thousand gallons a day
of from 1 to 4 per cent solution of sulphuric acid. It is
very deadly to fish life. An application of this marl com-
bination neutralizes the acid in a very short time. The
amount necessary to apply is very small, depending on the
acid strength of the solution.

3. Canning factory pollution. We have an organic pol-
lution put out by a canning factory, of which there are a
number in our state. Pollution of this kind is very deadly
to fish life on account of the very fine particles of corn and
peas held in suspension in the waste as it leaves the factory.
This water is very impure, but about 100 grains of the
marl combination to 1 gallon will make the water clear as
crystal. This pollution is very offensive and is the cause
of considerable complaint. All organic pollutions are
handled in the same manner. The marl is applied by means
of an automatic dry feed machine in a tank of large
enough capacity to slow down the waste liquor as it issues
from the factory. The solids in the water drop to the
bottom of the tank, and the clear water, free from pollu-
tion, flows into the stream. I find that not all organic
pollutions, when they first flow out of a plant, are neces-
sarily fatal to fish life. However, after they are out in the
stream forty-eight hours or so a very decided change takes
place. In the process of nature, foreign matter held in
suspension will first precipitate to the bottom of the stream,
where it will soon commence to ferment and generate poi-
sonous gases which rise through the water, causing a de-
ficiency of oxygen. Where fish get into water charged

284 American Fisheries Society

with such gases they will soon die. It is very essential
that the tanks at the factories be so constructed as to re-
tain the residue or sludge and not allow it to enter the
stream. This sludge, if taken care of, makes a very valua-
ble fertilizer, which often’ more than pays for the treat-
ment of the sewage and gives the manufacturer a profit.

4. Leather-board factory pollution. This water is taken
from a leather-board works. The deep red color is caused
by the small invisible particles of leather held in suspen-
sion and ‘also by the great amount of anilin dye used in
the process of making leather-board. Seventy-five thou-
sand gallons a day of this pollution is put into the Hocking
River at Lancaster, Ohio. All life in the river is destroyed
for miles. This plant is now constructing a tank and ar-
ranging to use our process for the treatment of all their
waste liquor before permitting it to enter the stream.

5. Creamery pollution. This sample of pollution comes
from a large creamery at South Charleston, Ohio. The
plant puts out about 100,000 gallons of waste liquor every
day. It is contaminated mostly by the rinsing of milk
cans, along with some buttermilk. This pollution, after
being exposed to the sunlight for one day, throws off a
very offensive odor. It also causes a deficiency of oxygen
in all water it mingles with, making it deadly to fish life.
You will note the action of the marl combination on it.
The firm has just about finished a tank to treat all the waste
by our process. The residue, or sludge, when utilized as a
fertilizer filler, is expected to more than pay for the treat-
ment.

6. Sewage disposal plant pollution. This sample of
water, although it looks clear, is very impure. It comes
from one of our many sewage-disposal plants and is put into
the streams as pure water. You can notice that the smell
is very offensive. I find that odor is a very good indica-
tion of organic impurities in water. You will note that an
application of the marl combination causes a very de-

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Olio 285

cided change in the water, driving away all the disagree-
able odors that were present before it was applied. The
control of the stench, as well as the poison, by this process,
is, in My opinion, very important.

7. Straw-board factory pollution. This sample is taken
from the sewer of a straw-board factory at Cedarville, Ohio.
This firm puts 500,000 gallons of polluted water every day
into large retaining reservoirs twenty-five acres in extent,
and the longer it remains in those reservoirs, the more poi-
sonous it gets. The upkeep and maintenance of these
acres of reservoirs is quite expensive. This firm is arrang-
ing to convert them into chemical precipitation tanks, and
to use our process in treating the waste water. It is their
intention to use this water over again in their factory, not
allowing any of it to enter the stream. Government re-
ports, based on a number of tests conducted over a period
of three years, show that the residue from this kind of
pollution is of the same value as barnyard manure, making
the by-product a very important factor.

8. Natural copperas water pollution. This is a sample
of what is known as copperas water. It is very poisonous
to any stream into which it flows. Millions of gallons of
this kind of water flow naturally from the earth in places.
In order to show you how easy it is to eliminate organic
matter from polluted water and make it pure so that fish
can live in it, I will take a few drops of this copperas pol-
lution and put it into this tube of tannery waste. I will
now apply a very small amount of this marl which I will
shave from a lump of the material as it is taken from the
ground, and you will note that all the organic solids are
quickly removed, along with the odors.

Discussion

Mr. Dwicut LypELL, Comstock Park, Mich.: Have you among your
samples any water from a sugar beet factory?

Mr. Travers: No, but I visited the sugar beet factories at Toledo
and Paulding. They put out an immense volume of water, but this

286 American Fisheries Society

process treats it very quickly. At Cedarville, where they put out 500,000
gallons of water a day, they will feed this marl in at the factory and
let it run through the sewer to their retaining places, where it will b>
precipitated. In doing that, there is always a sort of scum that comes
on all polluted water. A baffle-board is put across to keep it from going
over. This marl is fed in and allowed to run down, and it will precipi-
tate as soon as it slows up; the scum is kept back and the clear water
will go on under the baffle-board to the next compartment. This factory
is going to pump its water back and use it over and over again; they
are not going to let it flow into the stream. A sugar beet factory can
be run the same way. Unfortunately, one of the sugar beet factories
that I visited had adopted an inside treatment by the time I got there.
I made an examination of the plant and was asked to offer suggestions.
They applied it all right, but it was a very complicated and expensive
system. They let the water, after being treated, go down into a reser-
voir five acres in extent, and there the residue is allowed to decompose
and generate gases—which, of course, should not be permitted; as soon
as the organic matter is removed the water should be allowed to go into
the stream. When gases are created, the water becomes fouled again.

Mr. LypeLtt: In some of these large factories they have a couple
of tanks through which the water is allowed to run, and while one is
clearing up they let the water run into the other; then the water is
allowed to flow into the stream in a pure state.

Mr. Travers: At most sugar beet factories and straw-board fac-
tories, places of this kind have already been constructed, usually some-
where out in the fields.

Mr. W. E. Barser, La Crosse, Wis.: In the application of this
purification system, when the water stands still, all the organic matter
settles to the bottom. Now, if your stream is flowing all the time, the
water will not clear as it flows along, will it?

Mr. Travers: Oh yes; you do not have to stop the flow of water in
order to precipitate it. At one factory a waste vat has been constructed
to take care of 150,000 gallons a day. It is fifty feet long, six feet deep at
one end, and three feet deep at the other. The water comes over from
the factory and the clay is fed into it. The water is pumped over to the
vat and as it strikes the end it is slowed up, the heavier part drops down
first and the water flows to the other end. It has to go under the
baffle-boards, and the water that goes in first must be the first out; and
when it gets over to the sewer it is as clear as crystal.

Mr. Barser: The sanitary engineer connected with our Wisconsin
Board of Health recommends a filtration plant constructed of coke.
They are going to compel manufacturing plants, turning out paper, sul-
phite, etc., to install that kind of arrangement.

Mr. Travers: It will probably break some of them to do so, because
it is a very expensive outfit. I recently visited a disposal plant at
Canton, Ohio, which is constructed along that line. They have 16
coke filtering beds, each half an acre in extent. The city of Canton is

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Ohio 287

instituting a suit for damages to the extent of $20,000 on the ground
that this disposal plant is not carrying out the work for which it was
intended. They are putting out city sewage. About four or five million
gallons of city sewage is very easy to control by the process I have
outlined. Five or seven grains will control all the organic matter in a
gallon of ordinary domestic sewage. But in the case of a white paper
factory, forty grains will be required—there are 7,000 grains in a pound.
The next in line would probably be the creameries, taking 75 grains.
The very highest I have come across so far would take 185 grains. I
am not a believer in coke filtering plants; I believe in chemical pre-
cipitation, a system which has been used with great success in the old
countries for a long time.

Mr. W. H. Rowe, West Buxton, Me.: Your samples show a pre-
cipitation of from 10 to 15 per cent. I should think that if you let it
run into your streams or rivers, you would soon fill them up.

Mr. Travers: We do not let it run into the rivers or streams;
that is the idea of these tanks. The first precipitation represents about
10 per cent. That is drawn off through a hole in the bottom of the
vat to an auxiliary tank where it is allowed to settle down again; or
it is taken immediately from there and passed through a centrifugal
drum built on the plan of a cream separator. It turns very rapidly,
drives the water off and brings it down to 40 per cent moisture. Then
it is available to handle, store away, or dry for use as fertilizer. But
we aim not to let any of it get into the stream as it would be useless
to precipitate it and then let it go into the stream.

Mr. Lewis Ranpcuirre, Washington, D. C.: Are you finding a com-
mercial market for many of these sludges you are securing from the
factory wastes?

Mr. Travers: That is a matter to which I have not given much
thought. There was one concern at Canton that was figuring on spend-
ing a million dollars on a purification plant. I told them that if they
invested an amount not exceeding $500 for a feeder, they could utilize
two of their vats and dispense with the use of sixteen, and that they
would get better results than in any other way. After I had made my
demonstration, a gentleman who was there said he would pay for the
treatment of the water by chemical precipitation if they would allow
him the sludge. Now, the International Harvester Company really is
an authority on fertilizer values, and I have a statement here made by
them with regard to the value of cattle, horse, hog, sheep, chicken
manure and sludge from domestic sewage. This list was issued before
the war; the values have increased considerably since. They state the
value of sludge taken from domestic sewage to be $8.61 a ton. Our
Government reports, carried over a period of three years, show that the
sludge taken from a straw-board factory, consisting of fine particles of
straw, have about the same or even greater value than barnyard manure.
A test was made by planting various crops and fertilizing in one case
with manure, in another with no fertilizer, and in another case with the

288 American Fisheries Society

residue from the straw-board works. It was found that the results from
the straw-board works residue were a little better than from the applica-
tion of barnyard manure, ton for ton. It also brings humus to the soil;
that is not taken into consideration in these values.

Mr. J. G. JoHNson, Riverside, R. I.: Is that clay found on a
certain farm in Ohio?

Mr. Travers: The only place I know where it is found is on Kibler
farm, Pickaway County, Ohio. The Geological Survey says that in
only three places in the United States are deposits of this kind found.
Two are in New Jersey and one is on the Kibler farm. I do not quite
agree with that, though. The first two carloads were shipped last week,
one to the’ Loudenslager Company, of Columbus, and the other to the
American Tinplate Company, of Cambridge. The day after a car
arrived, the superintendent told me that it was working fine and giving
far better satisfaction than the old treatment of calcium oxide and sul-
phate of iron.

Mr. Jounson: Is the supply of clay unlimited?

Mr. Travers: There are about 500,000 tons, as near is I could judge.
It will not last very long when it comes into general use.

Mr. Titcomsp: What does it cost per ton to produce?

Mr. Travers: It lies right on top of the ground; about two dollars
a ton, I suppose.

Mr. RApcLiFFE: Then there is danger of exhaustion of this source
of clay supply, is there?

Mr. Travers: There really is, I believe. The matter is of so much
importance that I think the National Government should take hold of it
and keep private individuals from grabbing up the raw deposits and
charging an exorbitant price, thus nullifying the good work which may
be done through its use.

Mr. Witit1AmM F. WELts, Albany, N. Y.: There is a good deal of
misunderstanding about the whole subject of stream pollution, and I
should like to bring out one or two of the fundamental characteristics
of pollution. It is usually necessary in treating wastes to take out most
of the solid suspended matter before discharge into a stream. The
suspended matter settles out and forms deposits which, as Mr. Travers
said, ferment and bring about a very foul condition in the stream. If
all the suspended matter is taken out the soluble organic substances are
left, and even a clear solution may still be very putrescible and cause
trouble when run into a stream. In other words, the question of putres-
cibility depends on the power of the soluble as well as the suspended
organic substances to absorb oxygen from the water. Any organic
material, of course, furnishes food for living organisms, the minute or-
ganisms being just as real as fish or other animals, and in the aggre-
gate they require a great deal of oxygen. For instance, if you take one
of these fluids and put into it a little methylene blue, it will be blue
today and colorless tomorrow, showing that the oxygen has been used
up, and if you put a fish in there, it will not live a minute, any more

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Ohio 289

than it would live if put in water which has been boiled, and the oxygen
taken out in that way.

The whole problem of coke beds, trickling filters, broken stone, etc.,
is to allow thin layers of liquid to flow over large surface areas so that
bacterial life can go on and exhaust the food material in the waste,
obtaining the oxygen from the air with which it is in contact, and oxi-
dize or burn out the organic matter. Unless this is done the oxygen
must be supplied by the stream.

This process, as I see it, is a precipitation process similar to iron
and lime. Of course, precipitation does not account for all wastes,
such, for instance, as you get from wood alcohol factories or the wood
distillation factories, which are toxic, and, though all suspended mate-
rials are precipitated, still contain deadly stuff in solution. All wastes
differ and the problem of treating varies according to conditions. Even
where precipitation is all that is needed you have the sludge to get rid
of, and that is one of the biggest problems in connection with sewage
disposal. When the cost of manure is compared with the cost of drying
sludge, you find that it is a rather expensive process to take the water
out of a ton of sludge. Of course, you can take out some of the water
by centrifugal machines, but that is a fairly costly operation. The ques-
tion of sludge removal is quite a serious one.

Mr. BarBER: No more important matter confronts the Commission
of Conservation of Wisconsin than that of taking care of waste pro-
ducts from manufacturing plants. We have probably 40 paper mills,
sulphite plants, etc. We have been able to take care of the solid waste
matter, but the chemical waste is a problem that the state boards of
health are now working on. We find that the paper, sulphite, and other
mills are ready and willing to install any sort of system that is recom-
mended by the Conservation Commission. Now, Mr. Tulley, Sanitary
Engineer of the State Board of Health, recommends coke filtration. The
problem is that many of these plants have been constructed rather close
to the water’s edge, and there is no room for the installation of a fil-
tration plant so that the water can filter through it from their mills.
May I ask Mr. Wells whether it is his opinion that the coke filtration is
practicable and will fill the bill?

Mr. Wetts: A great deal depends upon analysis. I do not doubt
that Mr. Tulley has complete results to justify his opinion in the case
you mention. The degree to which purification of a sewage is demanded
depends also upon the water into which it goes. First, the amount of
oxygen absorbed by a given amount of sewage is determined, and
second, the amount of oxygen in a given volume of water; we then
know whether the sewage will use up all the oxygen, or what percentage,
as the case may be. By knowing the necessary amount required for any
particular use of the water, the question of how much treatment is
necessary can be solved. The coke bed treatment is a rather thorough
treatment, though a more complete treatment is possible by passing the
water through sand beds, if the case demands it. Dr. Huntsman

290 American Fisheries Society

brought out the point that the water has to carry the atmosphere of the
fish—the air and the oxygen. The total amount is very limited and it
does not take much organic matter to use it all up. If that is done,
it is the same as if we all sat in this room, closed the windows, and
burned charcoal until the supply of oxygen was completely exhausted;
in this case we could not live.

The problem of preventing pollution is only one phase of the gen-
eral water conservation problem—the conservation of the quality of the
water. The value of quality in water has been very little appreciated as
a whole. Water is the greatest of our natural resources and almost all
of its uses are dependent upon its suitable quality. The fishing interests
are but one small part of its value. Its use for city water supplies,
industrial purposes, and recreational advantages all depend upon quality.
Everybody is thus interested in maintaining a suitable quality of water,
and more can be accomplished by uniting the efforts of all parties
working together, than by each trying to solve the whole problem alone.
The fishermen, instead of looking at the problem of pollution as their
problem, should undertake to join with health authorities and all others
who are trying to stop pollution. It is a really broad conservation prob-
lem which should be taken up as a whole by some official body in a
position to obtain cooperation. In New York State the logical place
is the Conservation Commission. Rhode Island has just created a purity
of waters board which must pass upon matters affecting the quality of
the waters of Narragansett Bay.

Mr. BarBer: We have the right sentiment, and we have the co-
operation of the manufacturers. Everything is ready for you scientific
men to tell us what to do. If you will just show us a plan and say:
“This will do it,” all we have to do is go to our manufacturers and say
to them: “Here is a plan.” The manufacturers are ready to agree to do
it. It seems as though the question were solved, with the exception of
the work you men must perform.

Mr. Wetts: We are in the same position in New York. We said
to the milkmen: “You are putting all this milk waste into the water.”
They said: “What can be done about it?” We said: “We do not know;
that is your job.” They said that they were willing to cooperate with
us in a solution of the problem and they appropriated $10,000, which was
turned over to Cornell University to be applied to experimental work.
That is evidence of progress. The moment we get to that point of
view, we are on the right road. Of course, we should not expect the
manufacturers to stop putting in that stuff tomorrow.

Mr. BARBER: We cannot arrest our manufacturers, as they put their
institutions there at the request of the people in the first place. The
people wanted the plants in order that employment might be afforded
to members of the community concerned. They knew nothing about
this matter of the pollution of streams, but most of the plants have
rcached such a stage of development that we do not longer want their
waste matter deposited in the streams or lakes, so we say it has to be

Travers.—Fighting Pollution in Ohio 291

stopped. The manufacturers in turn ask us what we want them to do;
they say that they themselves do not know what action to take. It would
be folly to arrest the manufacturers for polluting streams when we have
no remedy to offer them.

Mr. Wetts: In England they have had this problem, much more
acutely, of course, than we have. Over there the quality of the water
is most important. The question of water power, irrigation and all
that sort of thing it not such a big problem in England as it is in this
great country, a new country in process of development. There the
quality of the water is looked upon as very important, because they have
only a certain amount of it, and vast industries are dependent upon it
almost for their existence. In England a royal sewage commission was
appointed with a view to arriving at some solution of this problem.
They worked for 17 years, and in their final report said that the only
solution was the appointment of a central authority to take up all these
problems and to adopt regulations applicable to individual cases rather
than to make prohibitory provisions or adopt any uniform law, every
single piece of water being a law unto itself. Then, in the case of
rivers, there would be boards for the regulation of the waters of those
rivers, subject to appeals to the central authority. I think this country
is going to come to that; the day is drawing near when we are going to
unite these different aspects of the work—quality of the water, irrigation,
water power, storage, and so on—into one group, and work together
toward a common end. Decisions will be made in regard to individual
cases, and there will be courts of appeal. It will be possible to say that
in this place, sand beds are necessary to prepare sewage so that it may
go into that stream. But that course may not be necessary in another
case. In a river like the Passaic no treatment at all is needed. That
stream is a sewer, and as such is most valuable to the industries in its
vicinity. The fish in the stream are of small value when compared to
the value of that river as a means of carrying away the waste of indus-
tries that are worth millions of dollars. But where a stream is more
valuable as a trout stream than as anything else, for a little factory to
ruin it is not right. So different standards suit different conditions, and
these can only be determined by an examination and consideration of the
particular circumstances.

Mr. Barger: You think, then, that the deposits from creameries are
deleterious to fish life?

Mr. WeEtts: Many of our worst complaints are with regard to the
damage done by the waste from creameries. There are many of them
in New York State, located along the fishing streams.

Mr. Barser: What do you recommend to take care of the deposits
from these creameries?

Mr. Wetts: There are two kinds of waste which come from
creameries. First, you have the concentrated organic wastes, such as
skim milk, sour milk, whey, and buttermilk. These wastes are con-
centrated and they are serious because a small volume means a great

one American Fisheries Society

deal of organic matter. This kind of waste must not be put into the
streams; it can be disposed of in other ways. They can use it for hog
feed or bury it, or spread it on land, but the stream is not the place for
it. Then, there is the wash water, used in the washing of cans and other
kinds of apparatus. There is a large volume of this water; you cannot
bury or feed it to hogs, and the only thing to do with it is to allow it
to go back into the stream. However, this kind of waste is not so hard
to treat. We are working on methods of treating it, and the results of
our investigations will be available very soon.

Dr. R. C. Osspurn, Columbus, Ohio: Of course, it is possible to
neutralize any kind of pollution by some chemical method. It may be
very expensive; in some cases it undoubtedly will be. But the main
point, as it appears to me, in what Mr. Travers presented this afternoon
is that he has found a method, very much cheaper than anything hereto-
fore produced, for getting rid of a number of our greatest sources of
pollution, rendering the water pure so far as fish are concerned—pure,
because fish will live in it, as has been demonstrated by actual test.
Another point is that there is absolutely no danger in the use of the
material which Mr. Travers has discovered; you could put any quantity
of it into the streams and no damage whatever would result to the
fish; it is absolutely harmless in itself.

Mr. Travers: Do not get this treatment confused with the question
of treating domestic sewage. In our experiments we have not con-
sidered what is known as ordinary domestic sewage as being detri-
mental to fish life, because it will purify itself after it flows a few miles,
If we were figuring on treating domestic sewage, it would involve the
question of treating a very large volume of water; but we do not do
that. The pollutions of which I have been speaking are concentrated
pollutions issuing from factories, the volume of which is not great, and
the treatment of which, before it goes out, will do away with the
possibility of the pollution of large bodies of water. This treatment is
distinctly intended for industrial wastes, not domestic sewage.

ANTAGONISM AND ITS POSSIBLE UTILITY IN
POLLUTED WATERS

By Epwin B. Powers
University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebr.

During the past few years much has been said and written
about the pollution and contamination of streams, especially
as its bears upon the problem of the perpetuation of our most
important food fishes. Much injury and destruction of food
fishes is caused, for instance, by the ill-considered methods
of factories of getting rid of by-products. These pass un-
heeded by the general public, and the protest of those most
interested is often ineffective. Frequently the money spent
to improve the condition serves only as a sedative for the
public conscience. In most cases this is not intentional but is
the result of ill-directed remedial measures.

The first thought is to add something to the stream that
will counteract the harmful effects of the contaminating prod-
ucts. This is suggested by the work that has been done on
antagonistic substances. Experiments presented in this paper
suggest the possibility that under certain conditions the addi-
tion of an antagonistic substance to a polluted stream might
prove detrimental rather than beneficial—might tend to accen-
tuate rather than counteract the toxic element. For this
method to be most effective, great care must be exercised in
determining the exact quantity of the remedial material or
materials that should be added so as to be most efficient.

A few experiments were run with calcium chloride and
sodium chloride in connection with the work on toxicity of
salts to fish (Powers, 1920) to ascertain if there is any rela-
tion between the antagonism and the toxicity curves of these
two salts. Through these experiments it was hoped to throw
some light on the method of treatment of polluted streams.

A 0.297 N. calcium chloride solution, to which varying
amounts of sodium chloride were added, was used for testing

*Contribution from the Zoological Laboratory, University of Illinois, No. 179.

294 American Fisheries Society

the antagonistic effect of sodium chloride on calcium chloride.
In these experiments, Table I, the antagonism of the sodium
chloride did not, at any concentration tested, amount to more
than the additive effect of the sodium chloride solution itself.
That is, there was always more or less of a decrease in the
survival time of the fish when the sodium chloride was added,
over that in the pure calcium chloride solution. By compar-

I. DATA ON THE BLUNT-NOSED MINNOW, Pimephales notatus (RAFINESQUE),
WHEN KILLED IN 0.297 N. CALCIUM CHLORIDE TO WHICH DIFFERENT

. AMOUNTS OF SODIUM CHLORIDE HAVE BEEN ADDED

[Column one gives the normality of the sodium chloride of the 0.297 N. calcium
chloride solution. 20°

Survival
Weight time of Velocity
Normality of fish fish in of fatality
of NaCl in grams minutes 100/t
0.00 | 1.2 | 35 2.86
0.00 1.6 61 1.64
0.00 1.8 61 1.64
0.00 2.3 61 1.64
0.00036 2.0 53 1.88
0.00036 2.1 53 1.88
0.00074 Ly / 62 1.61
0.00074 U7, 68 1.47
0.00148 1.8 34 2.94
0.00148 3.1 31 3.22
0.00297 ey! 70 1.42
0.00297 1.5 50 2.00
0.00594 1.6 65 1.54
0.00594 2.0 52 1.92
0.0119 1.8 73 1.37
0.0119 1.9 38 2.63
0.0237 nA 99 1.01
0.0237 2.0 54 1.85
0.0445 Tey, 34 2.95
0.0445 2.5 29 3-45
0.0817 rey 47 2.13
0.0817 1.6 39 2.56
0.119 1.5 51 1.96
0.119 1.6 28 3-57
0.156 1.3 26 3.85
0.156 1.6 46 2027
0.230 1.6 31 22
0.230 Be 38 2.63

ing Table I with experiments on which the same fish, Pime-
phales notatus (Rafinesque), were killed at 22.8° C. (Powers,
1921, Table 1), it will be seen that the actual antagonistic
effect of the sodium chloride was increased up to the largest
amount of sodium chloride added. That is, the falling off of
the survival time of the fish was less rapid in the mixture
of calcium and sodium chlorides per actual concentration of
salts than an equivalent concentration of pure calcium chloride
or sodium chloride.

Powers.—Antagonism in Polluted Waters 295

In the experiments with a 0.297 N. sodium chloride solu-
tion, to which varying amounts of calcium chloride were
added, there was a greater antagonistic effect than the ad-
ditive effect of the calcium chloride. The antagonistic effect of
the introduced calcium chloride increased over that of its addi-
tive effect until the calcium chloride in the solution amounted
to approximately 10 per cent of that of the sodium chloride.
From this point on the survival time of the fish fell continu-
ously, up to the highest concentration of calcium chloride
employed, equalling that of the pure sodium chloride when
about 1.156 N. calcium chloride had been added. Follow-
ing this the antagonistic effect of the calcium chloride
amounted to less than its additive effect.

These experiments show that there is no relation between
the antagonism and toxicity curves. They also show that the
antagonistic effect of calcium chloride and sodium chloride is
most pronounced when they are present in the ratio in nor-
malities of about one to ten. These results agree fairly well
with those of Osterhout (1914) who found the most effective
ratio for the antagonism of these two chlorides to be one of
calcium chloride to twenty of sodium chloride.

These experiments show, in addition to the fact that a
definite ratio must exist between two antagonistic salts to be
most effective, that if this ratio is not approximated, the addi-
tion of the antagonistic salt to a toxic salt solution may be detri-
mental rather than beneficial. That is, if a toxic salt solution
requires more than an equivalent amount of another approxi-
mately equally toxic salt to have the greatest antagonistic
value, any amount, no matter how small, of this salt when added
to the solution will be detrimental rather than beneficial. On
the other hand a toxic salt solution can be benefited by an ad-
dition of another approximately equally toxic salt, provided
that it requires less than an equivalent amount of the second
salt to have the greatest antagonistic value. Thus in all treat-
ments of natural waters contaminated with a toxic substance,
the ratio for the greatest antagonistic value of the substance

296 American Fisheries Society

added must be determined for the treatment to be most
effective.

II]. DatTA ON THE BLUNT-NOSED MINNOW, Pimephales notatus (RAFIN-
ESQUE), WHEN KILLED IN 0.297 N. SODIUM CHLORIDE TO WHICH DIFFERENT
AMOUNTS OF CALCIUM CHLORIDE HAVE BEEN ADDED

[Column one gives the normality of the calcium chloride of the 0.297 N. sodium

chloride solution. 20° C.J

Survival
Weight time of Velocity
Normality of fish fish in of fatality
of Ca Clz in grams minutes 100/t
0.00 1.5 50 2.00
0.00 1.5 67 1.49
0.00 Ney 41 2.44
0.00 1.8 59 1.69
0.00 22 65 1.54
0.00 2.9 48 2.08
0.00036 2.0 64 1.56
0.00036 2.2 64 1.56
0.00074 LF. 84 1.19
0.00074 1.8 55 1.32
0.00148 is} 44 2.22
0.00148 1.7 66 I.51
0.00297 1.6 57 1.75
0.00297 1.6 60 1.66
0.00594 1.7 66 1.51
0.00594 Tes 78 1.28
0.0119 1.5 85 1.17
0.0119 1.8 78 1.28
0.0237 1.6 82 1.22
0.0237 2.3 III 0.90
0.0445 1.6 75 1.33
0.0445 Tay 73 1.37
0.0817 1.6 54 1.85
0.0817 yf 68 1.46
0.119 1.6 59 1.69
0.119 1.7 75 1.45
0.156 2.0 46 2.17
0.156 2.0 55 1.82
0.1903 1.6 33 3-03
0.193 2.2 33 3.03
0.230 m7, 29 3-45
0.230 2.2 22 4-55
0.267 1.4 20 5.00
0.267 1.4 21 4.76
0.207 Te7 23 4.35
0.297 1.7 20 5.00
0.297 137 2I 4.76
0.297 1.8 20 5.00

BIBLIOGRAPHY
OsterHouT, W. J. V.
1914. Quantitative Criteria of Antagonism. Bot. Gaz., 58:178-186.
Powers, E. B.
1920. Influence of Temperature and Concentration on the Toxicity
of Salts to Fishes. Ecology, 1:95-112.
1921. A Comparison of the Electrical Conductance of Electrolytes
and their Toxicities to Fish. Amer. Jour. Physiology, 55 :197-200.

SOME RECENT OBSERVATIONS ON THE
FRESHWATER EEL

By Hucu M. SmitH

United States Commissioner of Fisheries
Washington, D. C.

Mr. President, I fear that there is nothing I can say which
is not already known to you or which some other members
could not present in a much better way than I can—Profes-
sor Prince, for instance.

The freshwater eel presents the very interesting anomaly
of a food fish that does not require any protection. There
may be some others—perhaps the carp is one of them, but
there are not many migratory food fishes in this country or
anywhere else in the civilized world that do not require pro-
tection. The freshwater eel is very much less important in
this country than it is in western Europe. Nevertheless, in
some of our own states, such as Pennsylvania, Maine and
Massachusetts, the eel supports a considerable fishery; as a
matter of fact there are eel fisheries all the way from Canada
to the Mississippi River.

I have here what is probably the smallest specimen of
freshwater eel that any of you have ever seen. In spite of
all that has been learned about the eel, its migration, its
growth and spawning, it still remains a creature of mystery
to the layman, and some extraordinary views in regard to it
are entertained, as most of you are well aware. If you
consult the proceedings of the American Fisheries Society
of a dozen years ago you will find some discussion of new
observations of the eel made by Grassi in the Mediterranean.
You will find that we then thought we had learned nearly all
there was to be learned about the eel and we would have to
go to the Mediterranean in order to follow up the life history
of the eel—that is, the European eel.

I may say that nearly all we know about the eel is the

298 American Fisheries Society

result of studies of European biologists. | Thanks to the
studies of Dr. Johannes Schmidt, of Copenhagen, we are now
in a fair way to learn the complete life history of both the
European and the American freshwater eels. Dr. Schmidt,
who has been the greatest authority on the eel during the past
15 years, has recently completed an extremely important and
interesting expedition all the way across the Atlantic Ocean
from Gibraltar to New York in an exploring vessel, having
in view the primary object of collecting specimens of fresh-
water eels. I cannot do better than quote from a letter that
I have received from Dr. Schmidt. It was written only a
short time ago and will, I believe, give you the very latest
ideas about the freshwater eel. It is as follows:

I think I am now able, after so many years’ work, to chart out the
spawning places of the European eel (Anguilla vulgaris). The great
center seems to be at about 27° N. and 60° W., a most surprising result
in my opinion. I have had enormous trouble through the occurrence of
larve of Anguilla rostrata in the very same hauls as those of our
species, so much indeed that I wished I could send all the American eels
to the Pacific, but after all, we have the difficulties in order to overcome
them, and the fact seems to me to be so interesting that I enclose a
copy of the measurements of the anguilla larve from one haul at a
station southwest of Bermuda. When you arrange the measures graphi-
cally you find the figure to the left, but if you count the number of
myomeres you will find the graph split up in two, showing that your
American eel must spawn before Anguilla vulgaris, and further that
the specimens of the latter nearly all belong to the 1920 fry except a few
measuring about 4 1/2 cm. in length and belonging to the 1919 fry, of
which there are still a few left in these waters. (I have many graphs
showing the same as that of which I send you a copy.)

As far as I can see from my collections which I have not been able
to work up thoroughly on board this small ship, the American eel seems
to have its spawning places in a zone west and south of the European,
but overlapping. I hope the collections made by you will help clear up
this question. Unfortunately it is not easy to distinguish the two species
in their earliest larval stages, i. e., before the postnatal myomeres can
be counted with certainty, but I am sure I can do it down to a length of
15 mm.

The larve of both species appear to pass their first youth together,
but when they have reached a length of about 3 cm. they say good-bye,
the one species turning to the right, the other to the left!

When we are taking the facts shown by this cruise into considera-
tion, it is most astonishing to think of the almost complete “pureness™

Smith.—The Freshwater Eel 299

of the samples of eels from Europe and America, respectively. As far
as I remember, the number of American specimens in European samples
only amounted to a few per thousand. The whole eel question, in my
eyes, has become much more interesting than when I started work 15
years ago, and when it was believed that the problem had to be solved
in the Mediterranean (from Grassi’s publications). That the theatre
has been moved to 60° W. longitude and that the problem of the European
eel can only be solved in close connection with that of the American
species, makes the whole question of still more interest, in my opinion
at least.

I should mention that our work is done by towing 3 nets (2 meters
in diameter) attached to the wire in the same way as described in Hjort
and Murray’s “Depths of the Ocean.” The deepest net has 150 meters
of wire out, then follows the second with 100 meters of wire out, and
finally the third with 50 meters of wire out. (You understand that all
three nets are towed at the same time.) The nets are towed with a
speed of 2 1/2 knots in two hours during night. The leptocephali under-
take vertical migrations during the night, and it is therefore absolutely
necessary to use more than one net at the same time. It has happened
to us to take the enormous number of 800 anguilla larve in the 50
meter net and nearly none in the two others towed at the same time, and
the following night all the larve were taken in the 100 or 150 meter
net! As you are aware, hauls made during the day will give no results
at all in regard to leptocephali. The smallest and most important larve
occur deepest down, and we used to get them in the 150 meter net only.

These larve which Dr. Schmidt has collected out there in
mid-ocean pass to the shores of the respective continents,
requiring about a year to make the journey. They change
their form and size as they come shoreward, and begin to
take color when they get within close distance of the conti-
nents. They start their upstream migration in spring. Many
of you have seen eels coming up the small streams in spring.
There is a very early separation of the sexes, the females for
the most part going to the headwaters of the streams, and the
males remaining lower down, many of them doubtless not
going beyond tidewater. The females remain in the upper
waters until they attain a considerable age—probably five,
Six or seven years or older—and then they start downstream
in the fall on their first and only spawning migration. All
eels of more than 15 inches in length are females; no males
have ever been found that were more than 15 inches in length.

300 American Fisheries Society

These creatures go to sea to the region indicated on the chart
exhibited. They doubtless spawn at considerable depth, prob-
ably 1,000 feet or more. No eel eggs have ever been col-
lected, probably for the reason that when they are brought
up in collecting nets from that great depth they rupture and
we never get anything in the way of a perfect egg.

The young eels gradually come to the surface and pass
to the shores of the respective continents. Just as in the
case of the Pacific salmons, the freshwater eels of America and
Europe spawn only once and die. It is not known exactly
what happens at the spawning time, but there is reason to
believe that a gelatinous degeneration of the entire animal
takes place, as is known to occur in some other species of eel.
I believe I have seen a freshwater eel in Japan that had
begun to thus degenerate. It was obtained far out at sea
and brought into a little inn on the Japanese coast where I
was staying. It had the consistency of blanc-mange; you
could cut it with a fork. I believe that is all I need say.

ARTIFICIAL PROPAGATION OF OYSTERS
By WILLIAM FirtH WELLS

Biologist and Sanitarian, Conservation Commission
Albany, N. Y.

As long ago as 1879 Professor Brooks, of Johns
Hopkins University, working at Crisfield, Md., on the
shores of Chesapeake Bay, demonstrated that spawn could
be taken from the female oyster, fertilized in much the
same manner as are the eggs of fish in hatcheries, and that
the young oysters could be kept alive until they had ab-
sorbed their yolk—a period of about six days. In the
forty years which have elapsed since that time other sci-
entists have worked at the problem, but no records have
been published which indicate any material advance in the
artificial propagation of oysters. None of these investi-
gators has been able to carry the young oyster beyond the
stage when it has used up the food material bequeathed
by the mother and seeks to secure its own food. In
other words, no means has heretofore been devised for
feeding the young oysters.

The chief cause of this failure is the microscopic size
of the young oyster, which, at the time it starts to seek
food, is so infinitesimal that it would require four hun-
dred of them to reach one inch. Previous experimenters
have frankly admitted that they could proceed no further
because they had no method of changing the water—and
thus supplying fresh food—without losing their minute
charges. The difficulties were therefore chiefly technical,
and the attempt this summer, which has led to success,
was to develop the technical methods so as to be able to
handle the forms in such a way that the water could be
changed, enemies eliminated, and food, air and other neces-
sary factors provided.

302 American Fisheries Society

For this purpose we conceived the idea of using a
centrifugal machine, a De Laval “milk clarifier,’ by which
the tiny oysters could be separated from the water as
readily as specks of dirt are separated from milk. At first
it might appear that such delicate animals would be in-
jured by passing through a centrifugal machine, but we
found that, being enclosed in shells which afforded pro-
tection, they could be concentrated in the machine with-
out injury. In this way millions of little oysters were
separated from a large volume of water, and transferred
in a small bowl to another volume of water containing
fresh food and other necessities of life. The same ma-
chine was also used to eliminate from the water dirt
and various enemies of the oysters—which are not the
less dangerous because they, too, are of microscopic size.

In an improvised laboratory in the plant of the Blue
Point Oyster Company, at West Sayville, L. I., our first
trial began on June 10th and led to immediate success in
keeping countless numbers of young oysters, developed
from artificially spawned and fertilized eggs, for a period
of eleven to fourteen days. Five different batches were
included in this experiment, and they increased in size and
changed in form. All were lost, however, through im-
proper attention at a time when the writer was obliged
to be absent for a few days.

New batches were started on July 4th, 5th, 10th, 16th
and 21st. These all continued progressively to the “set-
ting” stage, and thus for the first time an oyster “set”
was obtained artificially under controlled conditions, and
when the progress of development could be observed from
day today. By “set” is meant the habit of young oysters,
after a preliminary period as free swimmers, of sinking
to the bottom and attaching themselves to shells and other
hard objects. The time of development from spawning to
setting was established by our experiment to be ap-

Wells.—Artificial Propagation of Oysters 303

proximately a month. It may be somewhat less in open
waters, but circumstantial evidence of varying conditions
leads us to think it cannot be much abbreviated. Early investi-
gators thought that the period was very short, and even
those who had determined that it was a matter of weeks
underestimated the interval that was actually found to
elapse.

The far-reaching significance of our success and the
possibilities for which it opens the way can be seen in the
fact that the set is the starting point of the commercial
oyster industry; and the continuous and unexplained fail-
ure of the oystermen to secure a satisfactory set of
young oysters is the main cause of the declining yield of
oysters in northern waters within recent years. Once
getting his set, the oysterman is familiar with methods
of handling the oysters to raise them for market; but if
the young oysters do not attach themselves to the shells
which the oysterman deposits for that purpose, his busi-
ness naturally fails. Our work thus fills in the baffling
gap between the previous studies of scientists and the
practical knowledge of the oystermen.

It is not now beyond the bounds of reasonable antici-
pation to look forward to the day when the crop of oysters
may be vastly increased, either by stocking the beds with
artificially secured sets, or by liberating at the proper
time artificially developed young oysters which will make
their own set in shell-planted waters. As a_ single
oyster will discharge from 10,000,000 to 100,000,000 eggs
each season, the day may be not far off when oysters will
come to be a common food of the people, instead of being
gradually forced into the class of a luxury for the epicure.

Our outfit consisted, during the latter part of the work,
of a battery of nine glass bottles—having grown to these
proportions from one bottle used at the beginning of the
experiment. The bottles were five-gallon carboys ordi-

304 American Fisheries Society

narily used to contain Saratoga waters. These were in-
verted and a tube inserted through the stopper so that
the air could be withdrawn from above the surface of the
water. Another opening in the ‘stopper contained a
porous wooden plug which permitted the air to rise in a
cloud of fine bubbles, and kept the water well aerated,
giving it at the same time a gentle circulating motion in
close imitation of the natural motion of the water in na-
ture. All water was obtained by going out to the bay in
a rowboat and bringing back bottles filled with fresh sea
water. After the fresh water was prepared, the little
oysters were concentrated by the centrifugal machine
from the bottle that was ready to be changed and the
transfer made.

A close watch was kept of the conditions of develop-
ment by taking a small portion of the forms when they
were concentrated, and placing them under the microscope.
It was evident at a glance whether the forms had devel-
oped naturally, whether they were active and in good condi-
tion, or whether many were dying. In this way their
progress was observed at every stage, from the egg to the
time when they became set. Abundant material also
was thus offered for the study of the life history of shell-
fish, which has been very incomplete in the past.

In our experiment, probably a million young oysters
reached the stage when they began to seek their own food.
The first change of water was then effected and was con-
tinued at two-day intervals. There were naturally cumu-
lative losses as a result of handling and observation.
However, a uniformly high percentage of development
was secured for about two weeks. From that time on it
is believed that crowding tended to kill off or stunt the
weaker forms. Some at this period began to forge ahead
and develop more rapidly. Over a thousand reached the
setting stage, and attached themselves not only to shells

Wells—Artificial Propagation of Oysters 305

which were placed in the bottles for that purpose, but
even to the glass sides of the bottles themselves. The
youngsters then began to grow apace, development being
much more rapid after the setting stage had been reached.
Before winter the oysters will be as large as one’s finger
nail.

In conjunction with the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, we
took the opportunity during the investigation to test the
effects of certain trade wastes upon the delicate young
oyster forms, in order to determine whether the presence
of chemical substances and other contaminating wastes in
the setting areas of Connecticut and New York has been
sufficient to explain the failure of the set. The quantity
of such pollution necessary to injure the forms was deter-
mined and the basis laid for the intelligent regulation of
waste matter in its effect upon the oyster industry.

Data are now at hand for proper design and technical
routine required for the artificial development of young
oysters. The experiment has worked pertectly on a labor-
atory scale, and on a larger scale the efficiency should
be greatly improved. There is every reason to believe
that the method can be practically applied on any scale
desired, and that it would work equally well for clams
and other shellfish, such as scallops, which multiply in
practically the same manner as oysters.

Discussion

Mr. Wetts: Mr. President, I do not suppose that very many here
are deeply interested in the shellfish industries, and for that reason
it has not seemed necessary for me to go into great detail as to the
results of the work which we have carried on this summer, or to apolo-
gize for not presenting more from the abundance of material. This
little paper was prepared by the Commission’s publication bureau, bas2d

upon notes which I took; it gives a popular account of what we accom-
plished.

Most of you realize, perhaps, that shellfish culture is very much like
agriculture; if we can obtain abundant seed, the methods from then on
are well developed, and the shellfish industries can look out for them-

306 American Fisheries Society

selves. The problem of getting the seed has become very difficult in
recent years. The amount of seed, rather than the amount of ground,
naturally determines the amount of the product, and any system which
will develop or increase the amount of seed will, of course, increase the
total product in direct proportion.

Earlier investigators had isolated information as to the different
events in the oyster’s life, while we obtained a continuous series of
accurate observations in their proper sequence and were, therefore, able
to determine the time intervals corresponding to the different stages of
development. Unfortunately, with all that wealth of material we were
not able to do more than hurry along and take what we could, the period
of the oyster’s growth, of course, determining the time that we could
devote to our investigation.

After the oyster egg is fertilized a period of about six hours elapses
before it can swim around in the water—six to nine, depending on the
temperature. At that stage it looks like a microscopic blackberry, being
divided into small cells. A little later it begins to grow a shell, the
time depending on the temperature; in some cases the shell appears
more rapidly than in others, but after a couple of days (sometimes in
twenty-four hours) it will be covered with thin transparent shell.
Oysters were reared to this stage by Prof. W. K. Brooks. I would call
it the termination of the embryonic stage of the oyster, which up to
this time has lived entirely upon the material in the egg, and has shown
no sign of increasing in size. Several investigators have carried the
oyster through the embryonic stage, but so far as I can find, no one
has ever shown any evidence of bringing it to the next critical stage in
which it obtains food from the water and grows. I would compare it
to the difference between the chick when it breaks from the shell and
the brooder chick which you have every reason to believe will, if left
alone, become full-grown.

The next stage is marked by a new growth of shell, having a cres-
cent moon effect, around the edge of the embryonic shell. What I call
the crescent moon stage, then, marks the scientific distinction between
the embryo and the larva, the embryonic stage being divided into the
pre-shell and the shell stage. The embryonic shell has a straight hinge
and is known as the straight-hinged stage. The larval stage extends
from the embryonic to the time the oyster attaches or “sets,” which has
been called the dissoconch stage. The early larva looks like a trans-
parent soft clam, but as it develops becomes more round and deeper
until it exactly resembles a hard clam.

FURTHER NOTES ON RAISING FRESHWATER
MUSSELS IN ENCLOSURES

By Roy S. Corwin

Scientific Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries
Homer, Minn.

The results of experiments in propagating freshwater mus-
sels of the species Lampsilis luteola in Lake Pepin continue
to shed light on phases of the problem of raising these mol-
luscs in enclosures. From three experiments information has
been obtained which guides one in answering these questions:
(1) When do fishes infected in late summer or fall drop the
young mussels? (2) What is the average number of mus-
sels produced per fish from a single infection? (3) How
many mussels to the square foot can be raised in an en-
closure?

LONG PARASITIC PERIOD IN LATE SUMMER INFECTIONS

On August 19 and September 4, 1919, two lots of pike
perch, or so-called wall-eyed pike, were infected with the
glochidia of Lampsilis luteola and confined in enclosures.

Of the first lot, infected August 19th, 5 were surviving
on October 24th, at which time they were carrying practically
the original infection. These fishes were marked with alumi-
num tags bearing numbers and were disposed of as follows:
Numbers 1, 3 and 5 were placed in a wire netting cage 10
feet square and 4 feet high, and submerged in the lake in
12 feet of water; and numbers 2 and 4 were taken to the
Bureau of Fisheries station at Homer, Minn., and kept for
examination in a tank of running water.

Of the second lot, infected September 4th, 8 were alive
on October 24th and carrying apparently an undiminished
number of glochidia. These fishes were also marked with
tags and separated, Numbers 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 being placed in

308 American Fisheries Soctety

the cage just described, and Numbers 11, 12 and 13 taken to
the Homer station and kept under observation.

Examination was made of the pike perch at the Homer
station every two weeks during the winter. Any decrease
in the number of glochidia carried could not be detected, and
inspection of sediment from the bottom of the tank failed
to disclose any young mussels.

Pike perch No. 4 died March 31, 1920, or 225 days after
infection.. At the time of its death it carried 3,495 mussels
on its gills. Several, scraped off and placed in water, dem-
onstrated that they were alive by thrusting out the ciliated
foot. Pike perch No. 2 died May 3, 1920, or 258 days after
infection. The glochidia on the gills of this fish were not
counted, but were conservatively estimated to be 3,000.
Numbers 11, 12 and 13 died on different dates between
March 18 and April 24, 1920, from 195 to 233 days after
infection. None had dropped any appreciable number of
glochidia, and all were carrying living mussels at the time
of death. It should be explained that the death of these
fishes was due to lack of food and attacks of fungus when
the water became warmer, 46 to 48 degrees F.

On June 3, 1920, the cage containing the companion
fishes was raised from the lake bottom. Seven of the eight
pike perch were alive and vigorous; the eighth fish was dead
but its body was recoverable. Pike perch No. 5 was identi-
fied by the tag, but Numbers 1 and 3 could not be identified
because they had lost their tags. The gills of No. 5 were
almost free from glochidia; three were removed, and, being
placed in water, were active after two hours. This took place
289 days after Numbers 1, 3 and 5 had been infected.

Fish No. 6 was also identified by means of the num-
bered tag. Although it had dropped nearly all glochidia, two
were removed alive. The remaining fishes had lost their dis-
tinguishing badges and could not be identified positively.
Each fish resembled the two on which the tags had remained,

Corwin.—Ratsing Freshwater Mussels 309

in that they had dropped all the young mussels except a few
scattered ones; but from each several lively infant /uteola
could be obtained. For pike perch Nos. 6 to 10, inclusive,
this was 273 days after infection. The temperature of the
lake water on June 3d was 67 degrees F.

Since the fishes at Homer station were carrying approxi-
mately the original infection as late as May 3d and those iri
the lake were about free from glochidia on June 3d, it appears
that the month of May is the time when pike perch, infected
as late in the summer as August 19th and September 4th of
the previous year, drop the larval mussels.

AVERAGE NUMBER OF JUVENILES PER FISH

Attempts to determine the average number of juvenile
mussels per fish host have resulted variously. In previous
years it was suspected that the larval mussels were devoured
by enemies, or, on dropping from the host, were swept out of
the enclosure by waves. The outcome of one experiment
this year was significant. | Two enclosures, each 10 feet
square and 9 feet high, were made, one with sides of galvan-
ized wire screen of 12 meshes to the inch, the other with
sides of l-inch mesh poultry netting. These enclosures or
pens were placed in the same locality fifty feet apart.

Of ten pike perch infected with Lampsilis luteola on May
21, 1920, five were placed in each pen. Both lots had
dropped the larval mussels, were free from infection and
were released alive at the same time.

The enclosures were not disturbed until September 11,
1920, at which time they were brought to shore and their
contents examined. Few organisms, other than the young
mussels, were present on the bottom of either pen; hence
it is inferred that neither crop of mussels suffered greatly
from predaceous enemies. From the fine screen enclosure
were recovered 4,150 living juvenile Lampsilis luteola and 19
pairs of valves of dead luteola, making a total of 4,169, or

310 American Fisheries Society

an average of 833.8 mussels per fish. From the enclosure
made of poultry netting were recovered 1,152 living juveniles
and 5 pairs of valves of dead luteola, making a total of 1,157,
or an average of 231.4 mussels per fish.

In view of the fact that the fishes in both enclosures had
received the same infection and doubtless had dropped the
same number of larval mussels, it appears that the enclosure
of fine-meshed screen prevented young mussels from being
washed out by waves, especially when, after releasing them-
selves from the host, they descended through the water to
the bottom, and as a result produced 3,012 more juveniles
than the other enclosure. It may be supposed that screen
sides of finer mesh than 12 to the inch would be even more
effective in confining the larval mussels within an enclosure.

MAXIMUM DENSITY OF MUSSEL POPULATION IN ENCLOSURES

Evidence regarding the maximum number of mussels
which will live and grow inside an enclosure is still being
sought. Records are available of such dense populations
of juvenile Juteola on the bottom of a pen as 41 and 77 to
the square foot at the close of the first season, but the greatest
number of juvenile inhabitants which can advantageously pass
their second year in an enclosure has not been thus far satis-
factorily determined. The best record, however, obtained
from the work in Lake Pepin will be cited.

On October 11, 1919, there were replanted in a half-
section of an enclosure 10 feet square, 1,060 live first season
luteola, this being at the rate of 21.2 for each of the 50 square
feet. These mussels ranged in size from 4.0 to 21.6 milli-
meters when replanted. After lying undisturbed for eleven
months, the enclosure was examined on September 10, 1920,
at which time 945 live second season luteola were recovered,
from 16.5 to 49.4 millimeters in length. Thus, the average
population was 18.9 for each of the 50 square feet. This
figure does not accurately represent the condition prevailing,
because the mussels were found crowded together in the cor-

Corwin.—Raising Freshwater Mussels 311

ners and against the sides of the enclosure, whence they could
be removed in numbers from 22 to 50 to each shovelful of
approximately one square foot of the sand and mud from the
bottom. From the middle of the area few, if any, mussels
were taken. Eight pairs of valves of luteola which had suc-
cumbed before their second year were found, leaving 107
of the original 1,060 not definitely accounted for.

How many second season Lampsilis luteola to the square
foot will live and grow during the third year of their ex-
istence? The present highest record is 8.94 to the square
foot, obtained when 447 second season luteola of the 461
replanted, passed their third year in a space 10 feet long
and 5 feet wide, increasing in average length from 19.1 to 41.6
millimeters. Seven pairs of valves of dead second season
luteola were found, leaving 7 of the original 461 whose dis-
appearance cannot be explained.

SUMMARY

1. Pike perch, infected as late in the summer as August
19th, carry glochidia until the following May.

2. The average number of living juvenile Lampsilis
luteola produced by one pike perch from a single infection is
at least 833. The use of more finely meshed enclosures may
raise this figure.

3. Eighteen first season mussels to the square foot will
thrive in an enclosure during their second year; and 8 second
season mussels to the square foot will flourish during their
third year. Further investigations may show that a more
dense population would not be detrimental to the growth of
the mussels.

SPAWNING HABITS OF THE SPINY LOBSTER
(PANULIRUS ARGUS), WITH NOTES
ON ARTIFICIAL HATCHING

By D. R. CRAwForD

Scientific Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries
Washington, D.C.

Since the spawning act among the larger crustaceans has
been observed so infrequently, any additional information is
of interest and value. Herrick records no direct observation
of the spawning act of Homarus americanus. Scott records
one observation on the spawning of the European lobster,
Homarus gammarus.* Although the available literature has
been searched, no record of the direct observation of the
spawning of the blue crab or spiny lobster has been found.

The difficulties surrounding observations of this sort are
numerous and often insurmountable, and the one who has an
opportunity to observe the spawning act is indeed fortunate.
It seems that crustaceans rarely spawn in captivity unless they
are captured just prior to the time when spawning would have
occurred under natural conditions. Close confinement often
causes abnormal conditions to which the crustacean does not
become adapted. It is pointed out that the spiny lobster,
which was observed in this case, was confined but one day be-
fore the act of spawning took place.

A brief review of the external features of the anatomy
which are peculiar to the female will be helpful in under-
standing what is to follow.

The fifth claw of the female, which differs from that of
the male, is considerably modified. At the articulation of the
dactyl with the propodus, there is a small chela which is com-
posed of spur-like extensions of the propodus and dactyl. The
inner surfaces of this chela are concave and the rims are com-

*Report for 1902 on the Lancashire and Sea Fisheries Laboratory at University ~
College, Liverpool, and the Sea Fishery Hatchery at Piel, pp. 20-27. Liverpool, 1902.

Crawford—Spawning Habits of Spiny Lobster 313

posed of dense, hard chiton. There are silky tufts of short
setee on the dactyl. The pleopods of the female differ from
those of the male in the development of the endopodites of
the last three pairs, the first pair of endopodites resembling
the exopodites. The last three pairs of endopodites are bifur-
cated and fringed with long, hair-like sete protruding in tufts
from the margins which are reenforced by thickened scutes
at these places. All of these hairs are not the same in char-
acter, for it is found that some of them are plumose and
shorter than the others which are simply rod-shaped. These
simple hairs carry the eggs when they are laid.

The spermatozoa are carried in a vesicle which is deposited
on the sterna of the female between the last three pairs of
legs. This vesicle has no internal connections with the ovaries
and fertilization of the eggs necessarily takes place after they
leave the oviducts. The oviducts open on the coxz of the
third pair of legs which is anterior to the great bulk of the
vesicle. The eggs, therefore, must pass over the vesicle be-
fore they reach their place of attachment on the pleopods.

On May 5, 1919, at the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries Biolog-
ical Station at Key West, Fla., a female spiny lobster which
had been captured the day before, was observed resting in one
corner of the enclosure with the pleon slightly flexed and the
margin of the telson resting lightly on the bottom. There was
nothing unusual to suggest that spawning was about to occur.

Presently, the fifth pair of legs was carried slowly fore-
ward and the dactyls reached underneath the body in the re-
gion of the seminal vesicle. The poking action continued for
about five minutes when the spiny lobster was removed from
the water. It was observed that the exterior of the seminal
vesicle was being scraped off. After replacing the animal in
the water, this action continued for half an hour, after which
time it was observed that the posterior third of the vesicle
was scraped off, showing a pinkish interior.

Forty-five minutes after the observation started, the move-
ments of the fifth pair of legs were quickened and they passed

314 American Fisheries Society

backward to the pleopods. It is not supposed that the eggs
were being carried backward by the chelz of the fifth pair of
legs. A number of estimates showed that a female spiny
lobster carries about 700,000 eggs. This large number, to-
gether with the time in which they were deposited and the
way in which they were attached to the hairs of the pleopods,
precludes the possibility that they could have been deposited
with the aid of the chele. These appendages are used to re-
move the surface of the vesicle and, later on, to manipulate
the eggs‘after they are laid. Whether or not small pieces of
the vesicle containing spermatozoa were conveyed to the pleo-
pods is not known, but the action of the fifth pair of legs sug-
gests this possibility.

The pleopods during this time beat slowly and rhythmicly
from side to side. That eggs were being extruded was sug-
gested by the continuous attacks of small fishes which darted in
toward the pleon. It was very desirable for various reasons
to learn, if possible, how long the eggs were carried, and so
the female was not disturbed. It, however, was noted that
the eggs were all laid six hours later when the spiny lobster
was removed for observation. Whether the time for egg lay-
ing is any shorter than six hours was not learned from this,
or subsequent observations of several other females which
spawned in captivity.

The eggs may be extruded with considerable force since
the mature ovaries are very large in proportion to the other
viscera and they must be under considerable pressure. The
fanning motion of the pleopods could have carried the eggs
backward against the endopodites. The fact that the eggs are
fastened to no other parts of the body than the simple hairs
of the last three pairs of endopodites suggests that the cement-
ing substance, whatever it may be, is secreted from the endo-
podites. Glands for this secretion, however, have yet to be
demonstrated.

Unfortunately, this spiny lobster died, but observations of
three other females which spawned in captivity showed that

Crawford.—Spawning Habits of Spiny Lobster 315

in three cases at least, the incubation period of the eggs is
eighteen days. Probably three weeks is more exact for nat-
ural conditions, since the water at this time was very warm.

It was observed that the remains of the seminal vesicle
are picked off a few days after the eggs have hatched. It is
thus possible to estimate within close bounds the spawning time
of any number of females which may be caught. If conditions
are favorable, the females molt ten days or two weeks after
the vesicle is picked off. Mating takes place, as observed in
one instance, shortly after molting, while the shell is still soft.

The eggs are bright coral red when they are first laid,
but they change to brown and finally clear, light gray as the
developing embryo absorbs the yolk material. The approxi-
mate age of the eggs can be judged by observing their color.
The newly laid eggs are slightly oval, measuring about 0.45
mm. by 0.5 mm. They increase slightly in size and become
spherical as the embryo develops.

Experiments in artificial hatching of the young were car-
ried on at the Biological Station at Key West in 1917 and
1918. The first apparatus consisted of boxes made of wooden
frames covered with cloth in which a female bearing eggs
was placed. The eggs were allowed to hatch and the female
was removed when the larve were observed at the surface.
This apparatus proved unsuccessful in rearing the larve. In
1918, more extensive experiments were carried on. A small
battery of McDonald hatching jars was set up and supplied
with running salt water. A wooden trough was provided to
catch the overflow from the jars and a device was developed
to keep the water circulating upward from the bottom.

The eggs were found to be rather difficult to strip since
they adhered to the pleopods quite securely. At first, only
those eggs which were known to be about to hatch were
placed in the jars. It was not difficult to select females bear-
ing such eggs, for it was observed that when the eggs are in
such an advanced state of development, the females are less
active than those bearing newly laid eggs. The females do

316 American Fisheries Society

not take food readily while bearing eggs, and the reduced
activity may be caused by starvation. The eggs which are
about to hatch are clear gray and the embryo can be seen
plainly through the outer membranes. They are semi-buoy-
ant and the flow of water through the jars must be gauged
carefully.

The first larve to emerge in the jars hatched abnormally
because of evident injury to the eggs while stripping them.
These larvee did not succeed in casting off the embryonic
sheath which covers all parts of the exterior and in which the
exopodites of the natatory appendages are folded down closely
to the endopodites. These larve quickly died. The first nor-
mal larve emerged during the night. It was observed that
just before hatching, the eggs became buoyant and as they
floated upward, the larve ruptured the outer shell and
emerged much doubled up like flecks of cotton waste. Ina few
seconds, the larve straightened out and began actively swim-
ming about. The larve have two movements; the first is a
rotary movement which causes the larva to proceed by a series
of summersaults; the second movement is spiral, the larva
rotating on its longitudinal axis as it moves forward.

The first stage larva, or phyllosome, is quite small, the
body, excluding the antennz and legs, measuring 0.9 mm. in
length and about 0.7 mm. in width. It is transparent except
for the dense black eyes and yellowish liver mass. The legs
which are developed in this stage correspond to the third max-
illipeds and the last three pairs of legs in the adult. The first
two pairs of legs posterior to the maxillipeds have well-de-
veloped exopodites with which the larva swims. The exo-
podites on the last pair of legs are reduced to short spurs.
The legs are very long in proportion to the body and they are
provided with numerous setz and spines. The first two pairs
of dactyls are very long and curved slightly while the last
pair of dactyls is short and hook shaped. It was observed that
these long legs became entangled when the larve were

Crawford.—Spawning Habits of Spiny Lobster 317

crowded and that it was impossible to separate the larve.
Consequently, they sank to the bottom in tangled mats and
soon died.

Experiments with newly laid eggs were unsuccessful be-
cause they adhered in compact masses which could not be
separated. None of them developed to the stage in which the
eye of the embryo can be seen. Stripping evidently injured
most of them before they were placed in the jars. Under nat-
ural conditions, the eggs on the pleopods of the female are
manipulated with far greater care.

Although none of the larve was reared beyond the first
stage, the experiment was important because it showed that
fluctuations in the temperature of the water are detrimental to
hatching and that the optimum temperature is not far from 75
degrees F. This temperature was observed at the hatchery
only at night during a rising tide when the water was flowing
in from the open sea. This strongly suggested that the tem-
perature of the water in which the eggs naturally hatch is
about 70 degrees, since the incoming water would rise in tem-
perature as it mixed with the much warmer shallow water
over the flats, thus accounting for the higher temperature
observed at the hatchery.

This fact is rather important for it tends to disprove the
common belief that hatching naturally takes place in shallow
water. Extensive observations over a period of two years
showed that the fluctuations in temperature of the shallow
water are too great and too sudden and that the maximum
temperature frequently rises beyond that which was observed to
be the thermal death-point of the larve, viz., 98 degrees F.
Although occasional females may stay in shallow water while
the eggs hatch, it does not seem likely that any great number
of the larve survive. The fact that large numbers of spawn
bearing females are caught in shallow water does not prove
that they remain there while the eggs hatch, for it is well
known that large numbers of spiny lobsters migrate shore-

318 American Fisheries Society

ward during the night and on stormy days when the inshore
water is cool for the purpose of feeding. No females with
well-developed eggs were ever taken at the station in traps
set in shallow water, and among many hundreds brought into
the market at Key West none was observed with brown or
light gray eggs unless the fisherman had set his traps in deeper
water than usual. That the eggs hatch normally while the
female is in deep water seems all the more likely since Waldo
L. Schmitt, of the United States National Museum, states that
he found the phyllosomes of the closely related species of
California, Panulirus interruptus, far off shore in 75 fathoms
of water.*

Any further experiments, therefore, must take into ac-
count the fluctuations in the temperature of the water. If this
factor can be controlled, one very difficult obstacle will have
been removed. It was found necessary to shade the trough in
which the larvee were kept, since they are heliotropic and tend
to crowd together with the result that they become tangled
inextricably and die. Water which is heavily laden with sedi-
ment is detrimental to the welfare of the larvz, since the silt
settles on them and weighs them down, causing death.

The problem of feeding the larve is difficult because of
their small size, although their mouth parts are well developed,
even in the first stage, and the mandibles are fully capable of
masticating small copepod larve. Any artificial food must be
very finely divided, such as the particles of beef liver that could
be squeezed through fine bolting cloth.

As far as the writer is aware, none of the many experi-
ments in rearing the larve under artificial conditions has re-
sulted in success. The reasons advanced for these failures are
numerous and varied, but they may all be summed up in the
statement that the natural conditions for larval existence and

* Waldo L. Schmitt. Early stages of the spiny lobster taken by the boat

“Albacore.”’ California Fish and Game, vol. 5, number 1, p. 24-25. Sacramento,
Jan., 1919.

Crawford.—Spawning Habits of Spiny Lobster 319

development have not been met in the aquarium. It is very
easy to place a spawn bearing female in any sort of floating
contrivance and allow the eggs to hatch, for they will hatch
readily under such conditions, but there is no gain or im-
provement over natural conditions unless many of the young
can be reared beyond the larval stages.

THE ECONOMIC HISTORY OF COPEPODS
By ARTHUR WILLEY
Professor of Zoology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

It is perhaps superfluous to repeat the time-honored state-
ment that the ultimate object of the scientific study of organ-
isms is to give precision to the facts of common observation,
to extend biological knowledge, and to apply it when oppor-
tunity offers. No single line of investigation is competent to
supply all the information necessary before we can undertake
to interfere with the course of nature and with the custom of
fishery. It is hardly a fair question to ask what is the use of
a particular contribution, because new and striking develop-
ments may arise from the most unexpected quarters. This
paper has to deal briefly with one small branch of the subject,
but it is one which has been cultivated much in our own time.

Crustaceans were called Malacostraca by Aristotle who
meant to include under that term only the higher forms (crabs,
crayfishes, shrimps, prawns, langoustes and lobsters) whose
shell has to be crushed, in contrast with the Ostracoderma or
shell-bearing mollusks whose shell must be shattered to get at
the soft parts. In more recent classification crustaceans com-
prise three principal subdivisions, beginning with those of small
size, then passing to those of larger average dimensions, and
finally the largest: Entomostraca (water-fleas and copepods) ;
Arthrostraca (sand-hoppers, scuds, and fish-lice) ; and Mala-
costraca, still employed in the Aristotelian sense.

The name of the order Entomostraca was introduced from
Denmark in 1785, but some of the members of it had been seen
in the 17th century, in the early days of the invention of the
microscope. One feature which nearly all of them possess in
common is a single median eye. It may be divided by notches
into three parts, in which case it presents a tribolate appearance;
and the parts may, in rare instances, become separated, but the
single eye is typical of the group. On account of this one-eye

Willey.—Economic History of Copepods 321

character, Linnzus placed all the Entomostraca known up to his
time under the genus Monoculus (1766, Systema Nature, 12th
edit.). The leading copepod of the sea over the fishing banks
of Norway, a widely distributed species now known as Calanus
finmarchicus, was originally named Monoculus finmarchicus in
£765:

The name Copepoda (“oar-footed’”) originated in France
(1840) and is applied to those Entomostraca, inhabiting
fresh and salt water, which have five pairs of two-branched
swimming feet on the forebody, and a five-jointed footless
abdomen terminating in a forked tail. Fertilization is effected
by means of spermatophores attached externally by the male
to the genital segment of the female; the eggs are carried about
in one or two ovisacs (according to the species), or are shed
directly into the water. The young hatch out as minute free-
swimming larve provided with three pairs of swimming
appendages corresponding to the future feelers and mandibles.
These larve are known collectively, irrespective of specific dis-
tinctions, as nauplii or nauplius-larve. After shedding the
outer skin or cuticle, the nauplius becomes transformed into a
metanauplius and after further exuviation the so-called cope-
podite stages begin, each stage being preceded by a casting of
the cuticle. Altogether there are six copepodite stages, the last
of which is the adult form. But the adult form still grows and
expands before reaching complete maturity.

While the zoological history of the Entomostraca began
about 1669 and the foundation of their classification was laid
down in 1766, their economic history dates only from 1867,
when their importance as fish-food in general and herring-feed
(‘“‘Sildeaat’”’) in particular was established by a Norwegian car-
cinologist, Axel Boeck.

The identification of these little animals, whose length ranges
from half a millimetre to five and even eight millimetres, natur-
ally preceded their nutritive valuation, and unless the original
description is adequate and subsequent determinations correct,
work upon them is apt to be thrown away. Much praiseworthy

322 American Fisheries Society

pioneer work had been accomplished in various countries up to
1882, when a better combination of textual description and
tabular illustration came into vogue as the result of operations
conducted in the inner bay of Kiel. The open water species,
Calanus finmarchicus, already mentioned, does not penetrate
into the Kiel Inlet, although it occurs in the outer bay or Kiel
Bay proper. An almost equally abundant North Atlantic
species, Temora longicornis, does occur there. In the win-
ter and spring of 1872 the herring fishery at Kiel was one of
unprecedented magnitude. For three weeks in January and
February it was estimated that 240,000 herrings were taken
daily. Their stomach contents consisted mainly of Temora
longicornis whose total length is 1.5 mm. Often in five or six
successive samples examined under the microscope, nothing
more than Temora longicornis could be detected, filling the stom-
ach of the herring with a compact pinkish bolus. The number
of individuals in such a mass ranged up to the astonishing fig-
ure of 60,000. Professor Mobius considered it safe to assume
that on the average every herring caught in Kiel Inlet had con-
sumed 10,000 Temora during its stay there, and the total num-
ber ingested during the three weeks amounted to 43,200 millions
of individuals. Tow-nettings showed that Kiel harbor at that
time was swarming with Temora longicorms.

The animals and microscopic plants which pass their entire
lives swimming or drifting in the sea and carried along by the
currents from the shore line to the high seas, from the surface
downwards, were not united under any comprehensive name
capable of world-wide adoption until 1887, when the term
“plankton” was successfully introduced by V. Hensen, the orig-
inator of the Plankton Expedition of 1889. Since that date
quantitative results have been obtained methodically, thereby
throwing much light upon the movement of life in the sea, the
circulation of food, and the reproduction of fishes. The animal
portion of the plankton is conveniently termed zooplankton, and
the plant portion is the phytoplankton, the latter consisting of
microscopic vegetable organisms known as diatoms and peri-

Willey.—Econonuc History of Copepods 323

dinians. Four kinds of plankton gatherings are distinguished
by the relative numbers of the leading types (K. Brandt, 1898)
as follows:

1. Peridinian plankton, with excess of peridinians, chiefly Cera-

tium, to which a great part of the phosphorescence in northern waters
is due.

2. Diatom plankton, with excess of diatoms, especially Chetoceras.

3. Mixed plankton, rich alike in diatoms, peridinians and copepods,
occurring in balanced proportions.

4. Copepod plankton, in which copepods and other animals prevail.

From a biochemical analysis of mixed plankton it is possible
to arrive at some idea as to the relative nutritive values of the
organisms. The figures, when reduced to roundness and con-
sistency, are of this order: 1 copepod = 125 peridinians =
2,500 diatoms. A rich vertical haul through 20 metres of
water taken in Kiel Bay on September 28, 1893, contained:
273,000,000 diatoms, 11,600,000 peridinians, and 96,000
copepods.

In Canadian waters there is still a wide field for qualitative
work which is an essential preliminary to progress. The divi-
sion of copepods to which Calanus and Temora belong is called
Calanoida. There is another division, not so well known on this
side, named Harpacticoida, whose members are only occasion-
ally taken in the plankton net, and are more generally found
swimming and creeping amongst seaweed. These are particu-
larly abundant around Passamaquoddy Bay, where young her-
rings assemble in immense numbers year after year and are
caught in fish-weirs for the sardine factories. A couple of
young herring, 44 inches long, examined recently at the Atlan-
tic Biological Station, St. Andrews, N. B., presented stomach
contents consisting of newly-ingested copepods, of which har-
pacticoids made up more than fifty per cent. Many of them
are identical with species found on the northern coasts of
Europe, but some are peculiar to the northern coasts of Amer-
ica. It is interesting to note that the two leading species of
Passamaquoddy Bay are the same as the two most abundant
species in Kiel Bay, namely, Jdy@a furcata and Harpacticus

324 American Fisheries Society

uniremis. These enter conspicuously into the food, not only
of young herring, but also of the winter flounder, Pseudopleuro-
nectes americanus.

Just as Passamaquoddy Bay is a great resort for young her-
ring on the coast of the Bay of Fundy, so Miramichi Bay which
opens into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is, as I learn from Dr. A.
G. Huntsman, equally attractive to the smelt (Osmerus mor-
dax). A plankton sample taken from the Miramichi River on
June 7, 1918, under the direction of Dr. Huntsman, contained
very many young smelt swimming, with mouth wide agape, in
the midst of a copious copepod pabulum. The smelt larve
varied in length from 6.5 to 11.5 millimetres, with an average
length of 8.15 mm. The average total length of the copepods
was 1.12 mm.; but as their oily nutriment is chiefly lodged in
the forebody, we may neglect the attenuated abdomen and con-
sider their average effective length to be 0.75 mm. In point of
numbers, in a small fraction of the sample examined under
the binocular microscope in a watchglass, there are about 100
fish larvee to 3,000 copepods. By taking into account the
dimensions of the copepods and young fishes in the three
directions of length, breadth and height, we arrive at the
conclusion, drawn from enumeration and from measurement,
that one larval smelt is approximately the equivalent of thirty
copepods. Amongst the multitude of the more ordinary pelagic
copepods found in this region, the Miramichi plankton contains
a Calanoid form hitherto unrecorded from American waters
and perhaps representing an undescribed genus.

The Shubenacadie River of Nova Scotia, opening into Cobe-
quid Bay, which in turn opens into the Basin of Minas at the
head of the Bay of Fundy, is known as a shad river and is now
under investigation by the Biological Board of Canada. The
shad (Alosa sapidissima) ascends this river to spawn. Its
stomach contents sometimes consist of copepod chyme, as
reported recently by Mr. A. H. Leim, of Toronto University.
Amongst the common species so far identified from the stom-
ach of a shad of intermediate size, taken in Scotts Bay, just

Willey.—Economic History of Copepods 325

outside of the Basin of Minas, there are two, one a calanoid,
the other a harpacticoid, offering peculiar and interesting fea-
tures. A plankton gathering taken by Mr. Leim at the surface
in the ebbing tide at Shubenacadie on July 31, 1919, and sub-
mitted to me for determination, contains 75 per cent of a har-
pacticoid genus named Canuella, new to Canada and oe
from the European species.

All of the bays mentioned in the preceding paragraphs have
special hydrographic conditions and therewithal a character-
istic population of copepods. Plankton studies and hydro-
graphical observations are thus seen to be inseparable and an
integral part of fishery investigation.

CLIMATES OF OUR ATLANTIC WATERS
By Dr. A. G. HunTsMAN
University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

The word “climate,’ coming from the Greek word
kA verv ,—to lean, was at first used in reference to the
changes in the elevation of the sun at midday on travelling
from the equator to the north, the sun getting lower and lower
in the heavens. The earth was, therefore, considered to slope
from the equator to the pole. From this usage it came to mean
one of a series of zones of the earth’s surface running parallel
to the equator, twenty-four in all, and later to mean the com-
plex of conditions in the atmosphere that characterize any
place and distinguish it from another not only in a different
latitude but also in the same latitude. It may be used in the
same fashion for the complex of conditions in the water or
hydrosphere that may characterize a place, and in that sense we
wish to discuss the question of the varied climates that are to
be found in our Atlantic waters as well as some of their effects
on the fishes living in those waters.

Conditions in the hydrosphere are more stable and in some
respects less variable than those in the atmosphere. [or
example, although the water is warmed by sun’s rays just
as is the air, its specific heat is so great compared with that of
air that heating and cooling are much delayed, midwinter in
the water with us occurring at the end of February and mid-
summer at the end of August. The total range in temperature
may be considered as only from 29° to 80° F. as compared with
from —50° to 105° F. for the air. Movements, to a very
much greater extent than temperature changes, are more limited
in the water than in the air. The much greater weight of water
as well as its greater viscosity makes it harder to set in motion
and more difficult to stop. Currents in the water are slower
and more constant than those in the air.

Differences of temperature are dependent largely upon lati-

Huntsman.—Climates of Our Atlantic Waters 327

tude, the heat coming from the sun. Currents, both horizontal
and vertical, are also a potent factor in such differences, often
transporting the conditions of one region to another distant
one. As the sun’s rays penetrate such a comparatively short
distance into water, currents that are more or less vertical are
concerned in all important differences in temperature at any
considerable depth.

Naturally we cannot speak of moist and dry climates in
water, but there are differences that to some extent correspond
with the varying moisture content of the air, namely in the
amount of inorganic salts in the water or its salinity, much
salt tending to abstract water from the animals and, therefore,
resembling dryness. The ocean contains a very uniform mix-
ture of a series of salts, but the amount of this mixture pres-
ent in a given quantity of sea water varies considerably with
the place and depth. Such differences are dependent upon the
amount of fresh water entering by precipitation from the air,
by melting of ice and by inflow from the land, and upon the
amount leaving by evaporation.

Light is a most important element in the ensemble of
climatic conditions, and we are familiar with the great differ-
ences in the amount and distribution of sunshine, our chief
source of light, depending upon latitude and the presence of
moisture and other particles in the air. These differences hold
for the water, and to them are added others which depend upon
the absorption of light waves by the water, the intensity and
character of the light changing with depth, and upon their stop-
page by particles of various kinds suspended in the water. The
light conditions are consequently more variable in water than
in air.

The extent to which certain gases as, for example, the oxy-
gen and carbon dioxide of the air, are dissolved in the water,
determines the character of the climate in the ocean. So signifi-
cant are these gases that they have been invoked to explain the
movement of fishes. Much oxygen in the water has been given
by Roule as the factor that determines when and where the sal-

328 American Fisheries Society

mon make their spawning ascent of the rivers. Also the pres-
ence of sulphuretted hydrogen gas from the decomposition of
organic matter is considered by Shelford as explaining the
abandonment by the herring of certain of their former haunts.
The influence of these gases can be readily understood, seeing
that they are present in air and affect man. Although in the
atmosphere differences in their abundance are usually slight,
very local, and temporary in nature owing to the equalizing
effect of the vigorous air currents, nevertheless in the hydro-
sphere they vary considerably in abundance, and such differ-
ences are maintained for a considerable time, the currents being
comparatively weak.

Quite different from anything to be found in air are the
conditions of alkalinity and acidity which characterize water.
They are opposed conditions and between them is a more or
less definite neutral ground or point. Water dissociates into
hydrogen and hydroxyl (hydrogen plus oxygen) ions. When
the former ions are in excess, as when furnished by some dis-
solved acid which dissociates in solution giving hydrogen but
not hydroxyl ions, the water is said to be acid in reaction;
when the hydroxyl ions are in excess, as when furnished by
some dissolved and hence dissociated alkali, it is said to be
alkaline in reaction; and when both kinds are in equal amount,
it is said to be neutral. The importance of these conditions in
their effect on the development of the life in the water has only
recently come to be recognized.

Currents, as we have already indicated, have a very definite
effect upon the climate. Their action tends to eliminate dif-
ferences, but they are not so uniformly present as to have the
general equalizing effect they have in the air. In certain places
or at certain seasons there will be equalization of conditions
and not at others, depending upon the presence or absence of
the currents. To illustrate their effect we may instance the
influence of the Gulf Stream on both the water and the air
climates of the coast of Europe, and also the mixing of surface
and deeper water that occurs in the autumn when the surface

Huntsman.—Climates of Our Atlantic Waters 329

water is being cooled. Another case is the action of the tidal
currents which churn up the water and not only carry the sur-
face conditions into the deeper water, but also bring the less va-
riable bottom conditions to the surface, making the surface
water, as in the Bay of Fundy, cooler and more salt than it
would otherwise be. These currents change not only the tem-
perature of the water, but also its salinity, its gas content, and its
alkalinity or acidity.

Of a very different nature are the effects of depth upon the
water climate. We have already referred to the absorption of
the sun’s rays by water. In the most transparent sea the red
rays are nearly all stopped before a depth of 250 fathoms is
reached and not many rays of any kind penetrate deeper than
500 fathoms. The depths of the sea experience a never ending
starless night and the intermediate waters enjoy a brief daily
bluish twilight. In coastal waters invariably with more or less
sediment, sunlight penetrates the water to a very much slighter
depth.

The gain and the loss of heat occurs at the surface of the
water, and as the latter is a poor conductor, the circle of the
seasons is felt only in its upper layers except when vertical cur-
rents come into play. These currents are chiefly caused by the
density of the surface water becoming greater than that below.
This occurs in autumn when cooling is in progress, the water
becoming denser as its temperature falls. The situation is com-
plicated in fresh water by the fact that below 40° F. water
becomes less instead of more dense as it gets colder, and in salt
water by the fact that the density of the water depends not only
upon the temperature but also upon the salinity.

Water gains and loses at its surface not only heat but also
many of the gases it contains. They diffuse but slowly through
its substance and, therefore, only its upper layers, except where
vertical currents interfere, will have a rather constant content
of these gases in equilibrium with their condition in the air.
Elsewhere the local production and consumption of the gases
by organisms will dominate their abundance.

330 American Fisheries Society

We may conclude that extremely varied and most interest-
ing conditions of climate are to be found in the water, and that
the differences that exist there are much more easily studied
and the order of events more easily discovered than is the case
with the conditions in the atmosphere, seeing that in the latter
changes occur so rapidly. Nevertheless as water is not the
medium inhabited by man, the science of its weather is as yet
only in its infancy.

The early classification of our Atlantic coast had to do
merely with such major divisions as correspond with changes
in latitude. Such were the Arctic province extending from the
pole south to Hudson Strait, the Syrtensian from the latter to
Cabot Strait and including Labrador and Newfoundland, the
Acadian from Cabot Strait to Cape Cod, the Virginian from
Cape Cod to Cape Hatteras, and others still farther southward.

In the light of our present day knowledge such a division
of the waters is far from adequate. Any classification that
might be attempted now is fairly certain to be premature, yet an
indication of the varied waters we have as regards salinity and
temperature, the only elements of the climate hitherto inves-
tigated with us, may be of interest and value. Without giving
figures we may refer to different stages in salinity and in tem-
perature as follows: excluding fresh water, four grades in
salinity from most to least salt, namely, oceanic, bank, coastal,
and estuarial; three grades in temperature, warm, cool, and
cold. By combining these we get twelve kinds of climate,
nearly all of which are to be found along or off our Atlantic
coast; and each of these supports a more or less special fauna
and flora to show how important its influence upon life is. We
have the great ocean currents to thank for the varied condi-
tions in our waters. The Gulf Stream with warm oceanic clim-
ate comes opposite our shores and exhibits not only tropical
conditions but also a tropical assemblage of plants and animals.
The Labrador current brings the icebergs of the arctic regions
to our latitudes and displays a cold oceanic climate. In it many

Huntsman.—Climates of Our Atlantic Waters 331

arctic species find congenial surroundings far from their usual
home.

We may mention several other types of climate, types that
are more natural to the temperate zone in which we are situated.
The inlets of the Magdalen shallows, which form the southern
part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, have warm estuarial waters
and harbor such southern forms as can survive the winter's
cold, for example the oyster. A cool bank climate is to be
found on the fishing banks off the mainland of Nova Scotia,
where the haddock and hake abound. Cool estuarial conditions
may be met with in many of the inlets opening into the Bay
of Fundy, and as this bay is farther south than the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, we have an exemplification of the way in which our
waters defy a classification according to latitude. A cold bank
climate occurs on the fishing banks off Cape Breton and New-
foundland, and its characteristic commercial fish is the cod.
Cold coastal conditions are found around Newfoundland and
on Labrador, and these favor the presence of the capelin, which
in Greenland is said to form the daily bread of the natives.

We cannot very well overestimate the value of a knowledge
of the climate in enabling us to predict what may or may not be
done in extending our fisheries and in increasing our stock of
fishes. In almost every problem it is a basic consideration. For
each of our commercial fishes we must put these questions and
seek for the answers to them. In what climate or climates will
the species succeed sufficiently well to be profitable? Where are
such climates to be found? Are different climates needed for
the different stages in its life history? From the last question
it can be seen how complicated the situation may be. It is well
known that some fishes spawn in special waters very different
from those in which they pass the greater part of their lives.
The salmon attains its best development in the coastal waters
of the sea, but it must enter fresh water to spawn. The eel
thrives in fresh water lakes and ponds often hundreds of miles
inland, and yet its eggs must be deposited out in the middle of
the ocean. Many, many instances could be given of the move-

332 American Fisheries Society

ments of fishes to special spawning places or the passive move-
ment of the eggs or larve to waters not frequented by the
adults.

Not always does nature provide the proper conditions for
the eggs, for the young, or for the old. During the year 1920
we obtained eggs of the smelt laid in the intertidal zone at the
head of tidal water in the Magaguadavic River, New Bruns-
wick, and we could not discover that any of these had developed
to the slightest degree, thus explaining the rarity of the fish in
that region. On the other hand we have the case of the floating
eggs of certain flatfishes and gadoids (most important commer-
cial fishes), which are to be found generally distributed in the
spring and early summer in the waters of the western archipel-
ago of the Bay of Fundy. We secure the eggs regularly and
yet we have never succeeded in obtaining any of the larve there
although on other parts of our coast the latter are very abund-
ant and easily found. The larve and young of the common
starfish are rather abundant on the gulf coast of the island of
Cape Breton, but during our investigations of that coast in the
summer of 1917 we failed to secure a single adult at any depth,
notwithstanding their abundance in our hauls taken at the Mag-
dalen Islands in the middle of the gulf. There can be no doubt
that the young settling on the shores of Cape Breton are fated
never to reach adult life.

In the literature there have been given several reports of
cunners and tautog, which are nearly related warm water
coastal fishes, having been found killed in large numbers during
especially severe winter weather. Heat may be equally fatal,
for in the Bay of Fundy we have observed sea urchins that
had been caught by the spring tides in a somewhat higher
pool than usual and exposed to the heat of a cloudless day, dying
and rotting by hundreds. On the other hand, changes in salin-
ity may prove quickly fatal. In estuaries at the head of tide we
have seen specimens of the large jelly-fish, Aurelia, that had
been caught by some obstacle and left by the retreating tide to
be bathed by fresh water, perishing and disintegrating in num-

Huntsman.—Climates of Our Atlantic Waters — 333

bers. The tragedy of unfavorable climate is indeed something
that should never be neglected in studying the life in the water.

A large and most important field in this direction is open
for investigation and we plead for its exploitation. Much can
be done with very simple equipment. Even the amateur can
furnish most valuable data as to the conditions where fish live,
if he only have the patience to make accurate observations and
record them; and we may point out that those that are more or
less constantly engaged in the hatching and rearing of fish have
unequalled opportunities in this direction.

CIRCULATION OF WATER IN BAY OF FUNDY
AND GULF OF MAINE

By Dr. JAMEs W. Mavor
Union College, Schenectady, N. Y.

A general movement of the water in the Bay of Fundy
and its approaches has been shown by investigations car-
ried on by the writer for the Biological Board of Canada.
During these investigations he has had the cooperation of
the staff of the Atlantic Biological Station and especially
of Dr. Alexander Vachon who performed the titrations of
the water samples and of Capt. Arthur Calder and the crew of
the Prince who set out all the drift bottles and made all hydro-
graphic observations.

Three different and independent methods have been
applied to the problem: The actual measurements at dif-
ferent points made with current meters by Dr. W. Bell Daw-
son have been treated mathematically so as to eliminate
the semi-diurnal oscillations of the tidal stream; a large
number of drift bottles have been set out; and lastly,
a series of hydrographic sections have been made in the
bay, and from the temperatures and salinities at the dif-
ferent stations the velocities at right angles to the sections
have been calculated by the hydrodynamic method devel-
oped by Bjerkan.

During the summers of 1904 and 1907, Dr. W. Bell
Dawson,* of the Dominion Tidal Survey, made an exten-
sive series of accurate observations on the currents in the
Bay of Fundy and its approaches, using the surveying
steamer Gulnare and anchoring at 19 different stations for
periods varying from two days to one week. Measure-
ments were made half-hourly with current meters working
at a depth of 3 fathoms. The results of these observations
“Tables of hourly direction and velocity and time of slack water in the Bay of

Fundy and its approaches. Published by the Department of Marine and Fisheries,
Ottawa, Canada. 1908.

Mavor.—Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine 335

are published in “Tables of Hourly Direction and Velocity
of the Currents and Time of Slack Water in the Bay of
Fundy and its Approaches.” These tables give the aver-
age velocity and direction during each hour of the tide.
If we imagine a drop of water at the depth, 3 fathoms,
for which Dr. Bell, Dawson’s tables are constructed, and
moving each hour with the velocity and in the direction
there stated, the path which it would take during one tide
is indicated in Figure 1, where the lines marked 1, 2, etc.,
to rz and H. W. indicate the direction and the distance the
drop would go during each hour. At the end of the first
tide it would have moved from ato b. The same final result
would have been attained had the drop moved directly from a
to b along the line ab. Were there no general movement of the
water, and were only the oscillations of the tide at work, the
drop would have returned to its original position a. The line ab
therefore represents a general movement of the water, and its
direction and length represent to the scale of the diagram
what may be called a resultant velocity in nautical miles per
tide. The resultant velocities have been determined for
each of the stations in the table and placed upon the chart
(Fig. 2), where the arrows represent in direction and on the
scale of the chart the distance traveled by the drop of water
in two tides or approximately one day.

From the chart (Fig. 2) it is seen that there is a general
movement of the water around the southwestern end of Nova
Scotia and into the Bay of Fundy on the Nova Scotia side.
This is seen in the direction of the resultant velocities at
Stations: K, N;. Moi J, Ee eG. Bland C: At stations’ S,’ QO;
P and L the resultant velocities are not in this direction, but
towards the shore. This may be due to these stations being in
eddies of the general current caused by the shoals which are
near them. Within the bay a general movement of the water
across it from the Nova Scotia to the New Brunswick side
is shown at stations B and A. At station E to the southeast
of Grand Manan the general movement is out of the bay,

vety

.

American Fisheries Soc

336

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Mavor.—Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine 337

At station D in Grand Manan channel a movement into the
bay is indicated.

Nine sets of drift bottles numbering in all 330 were set
out during the summer of 1919. Each bottle contained a
Canadian post card addressed to the Biological Station, and
offered a reward to the finder, who filled in the time and place
of finding the card and posted it. By December 31, 1919,
72 of these post cards had been returned to the station.
Various kinds of bottles were used.

The first set consisted of ten 8-ounce bottles with rubber
corks, and having attached to them by cod line a galvanized
iron drag to hang at a depth of 3 fathoms. On June 18th
they were spaced in a line between Flag Cove, Grand Manan
and Petite Passage, Nova Scotia. Returns were received from
two of these; both found on the coast of Maine.

The next set from which returns were received, Set D,
consisted of 100 2-ounce bottles with paraffined cork stoppers
and without drags. They were spaced evenly between Cape
Spencer and Parker’s Cove on August 21st. Returns from
23 of these were received. All of the bottles found within
the bay were found on the coast of New Brunswick west of
Cape Spencer, those set out on the Nova Scotia side tending
to come straight across the bay. The chart (Fig. 3) shows
the places of finding of the third of these bottles set out
nearest the New Brunswick shore. Five of the eight bottles
represented were returned by September 4th, or within two
weeks,

The prevailing and strongest winds during the latter part
of August, as determined by the Meteorological Station at
Pt. Lepreaux, were south to southeast; the maximum velocity
was 33 miles per hour and occurred before the bottles were
put out. Thus the wind could hardly have been responsible for
the drift of the bottles westward. Three of these bottles
were found so soon after they were set out that their rate
of travel is significant as establishing a minimum rate for the

American Fisheries Society

338

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Mavor.—Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine 339

current in which they were carried. Bottle 67, which was set
out near Cape Spencer on August 21st, was found three days
later in Musquash Harbor, a distance of about 15 nautical
miles, giving a rate of 5 nautical miles per day. Bottle 75,
which was set out at about the same time and farther from
shore, was found four days and six hours later, at a distance
of about 20 nautical miles, giving a rate of a little less than
5 nautical miles per day. Bottle 96, set out also on the same
day about a third of the way across from Cape Spencer to
Parker’s Cove, was found six days later at Little Lepreaux,
near Point Lepreaux, a distance of about 30 nautical miles,
giving again a rate of about 5 nautical miles per day. Bottle
72, put out on the same day near bottle 75, was found eleven
days later in Letite Passage, a distance of about 46 nautical
miles, giving a rate of about 4 nautical miles per day. The
finding of these bottles therefore indicates the presence of a
current running along the New Brunswick shore from east to
west at a rate of at least 5 nautical miles per day.

Another set, H, of 50 bottles, similar to those of the set
just considered, was set out on September 13th by Dr. Philip
Cox from the passenger steamer plying between St. John and
Digby. Twelve post cards from these bottles were received
by December 31, 1919, nine from the New Brunswick coast
west of St. John, one a few miles to the east, and two from
the Nova Scotia coast. The drift of these bottles has then
in the main repeated that of the previous set put out on a line
slightly to the east of them.

Still another set, G, consisting of 100 bottles of the same
kind, 2-ounce bottles without drags, was set out to the west
of these on a line from Point Lepreaux, New Brunswick, to
Petite Passage, Nova Scotia, on August 29th. By the end
of the year 27 post cards had been received from these. The
drift of the bottles of this set confirms also the presence of
a current across the bay, and westward along the New Bruns-
wick shore.

American Fisheries Society

340

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Mavor.—Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine 341

With set D, 30 large 8-ounce bottles with drags attached
to hang at 3 fathoms, Set E, were set out. None of these
has been reported from the Bay of Fundy, but 4 have been
found outside the bay, indicating that being less affected by
the wind and therefore not blown on shore these bottles were
carried westward out of the bay by the current on the New
Brunswick side.

Turning now to another series of 50 bottles, 25 small with-
out drags, and 25 large with drags, which were set on a line
NW by N from North Point, Brier Island, Nova Scotia,
extending for 10 nautical miles, we find that five of these had
been reported before the end of the year, and that they were
all found on the Nova Scotia coast in the Bay of Fundy
to the east of Brier Island, three of them reaching as far as
Port George near the head of the bay, a distance of 70
nautical miles (Fig. 4). One of these bottles, 387, was found
at Port George only 17 days after it was set out, giving a
minimum rate for the drift along the Nova Scotia shore of
over 4 nautical miles per day.

To sum up, it seems clear from the calculations from Dr.
Dawson’s tables and from the drift of bottles, that the water
in the Bay of Fundy has a circulation which may be de-
scribed as follows: Water enters the bay on its eastern side
and flows northeast along the coast of Nova Scotia; it crosses
the bay to the New Brunswick side and flows southwestward
out of the bay, the bulk of the water probably passing to the
east of Grand Manan. The rate at which the water flows
is probably somewhere between 5 and 10 nautical miles per
day, so that the complete circuit probably takes from twenty
to forty days.

A series of five hydrographic sections was made in the
Bay of Fundy during the summer of 1919. These sections
included 28 stations at which temperatures and water samples
were taken from the surface to the bottom at intervals vary-
ing from 10 meters near the surface to 50 meters at the lowest

342 American Fisheries Society

parts of the deeper stations. The water samples were titrated
and the salinities and densities found by Dr. Alexander
Vachon, of Laval University. From the data thus obtained,
isotherms, isohalsines and isosteres have been constructed. The
form and distribution of these surfaces show that the water
in the southwestern half of the Bay of Fundy throughout its
depth has during the summer period the cyclonic movement
shown by the current measurement and drift bottles to occur
at the surface. From the disposition of the surfaces of
equal density or, to be more exact, the surfaces of equal
specific volumes, called isosteres, the actual velocity of the
water between the stations and at right angles to the sections
can be calculated. This has been done, using the method of
Bjerkan, and the velocities found in this way for the super-
ficial water agree approximately in direction and magnitude
with the velocities determined from the current measurements
and drift bottles.

All three methods of investigation agree in showing that
the water in the lower half of the Bay of Fundy is in cyclonic
circulation and the hydrographic sections show that this cir-
culation extends to the deeper layers. It is therefore prob-
able that almost all of the water in the lower half of the bay
is completely changed in a comparatively short time, less than
one year. The practical agreement of these three investiga-
tions justifies the method of each of them for the investigation
of the movements of the water in regions comparable to the
Bay of Fundy.

Sixteen of the drift bottles set out in the Bay of Fundy
have been reported from the Gulf of Maine. An account of
the finding of these bottles has already been published by the
writer.* The following quotations are taken from that
account :

The bottles were of two kinds; two-ounce bottles and eight-ounce
bottles; to the latter a galvanized iron drag was attached to hang at a
depth of three fathoms, the object of the drag being to minimize the

*Science, N. S. Vol. LII, No. 1349, pp. 442-443, November 5, 1919.

Mavor.—Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine 343

direct effect of the wind. Fifty-five of these latter bottles with drags
were set out and six have been found and reported from outside the
Bay of Fundy, to date (August 6, 1920). Three of these were picked
up on the Cape Cod peninsula, the rest on the coast of Maine. Of the
two hundred and seventy-five bottles without drags, ten have been re-
ported from outside the bay. Eight of these ten were picked up on the
Cape Cod peninsula, the other two on the coast of Maine.

The times when the bottles were found are significant since they
establish a minimum rate for the drift. Seven out of the eleven bottles
which went to Cape Cod were found between 70 and 80 days after
being put out, the shortest time being 73 days. The distance in a
straight line from the Bay of Fundy is about 300 nautical miles. The
rate of the drift was therefore about four nautical miles per day.

The drift of these bottles, set out at various times during the
summer, indicates a surface movement of the water from the Bay of
Fundy through the northwestern part of the Gulf of Maine and striking
Cape Cod, the rate of this drift being about four nautical miles per day.

Discussion

Dr. A. G. HuntsMAN, St. Andrews, N. B.: Dr. Mavor’s paper on
the “Circulation of the Water in the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine”
has to do with a subject which, it would seem at first sight, is not very
closely related to the fisheries and, perhaps, a subject of little moment.
Fresh water circulation is a fairly definite thing. The water comes down
and runs through certain definite channels; so there is not much question
as to what the circulation is. But in the case of the waters of the sea,
the conditions are extremely different. You would at first think that the
measurement of currents would be the readiest means of solving this
question as to where the water is going, but unfortunately in the sea
there are what is known as tides which produce very strong currents
which do not always travel in one direction, but which go to and fro.
When these currents are extremely strong, as happens to be the case in
the Bay of Fundy, with tidal differences of as much as fifty feet, the
actual movement of the water in any one direction is entirely obscured
by the tremendous to and fro movements of the water, and current
measurements may accomplish comparatively little in determining the
direction in which the water is moving. For that reason, in order to
work out the results set forth in Professor Mavor’s paper, a very con-
siderable investigation had to be carried on into the conditions affecting
the circulation of the water in the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine.

The significance of these results as they affect the fisheries is the
way in which the floating life in the sea may be carried. The term
“floating life’ includes not only the microscopic plants and animals
that have no directive swimming capacity—that is, swimming in a
definite direction to one or the other points of the compass, or against

344 American Fisheries Society

the current—but also the young stages of many of the fishes as well as
their eggs when these are pelagic. As a matter of fact, before this
work was done, we had obtained definite evidence that the young herring
hatched out at the southern end of the island called Grand Manan in
the mouth of the Bay of Fundy, were carried out thence southwestward
a distance of at least twenty-five miles, while none could be found along
the sides of the island itself. All the drift was outward, not inward.

THE FOOD OF THE LARVAL AND POST-LARVAL
FISHES OF PLYMOUTH SOUND

By Dr. Marie V. LEBour

Naturalist, Plymouth Laboratory
Plymouth, England

The question of the food of larval and post-larval fishes
although carefully studied by those rearing them, yet has had
little attention paid to it with regard to the actual food taken
by the young fishes in the plankton. It was to supply this
deficiency that an investigation was undertaken by the writer
during the years 1917-19, many hundreds of pelagic young
from those newly hatched up to those of about 15 mm. in
length, with a few adolescent stages, being examined and the
food inside noted. A full account of the work is given in the
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of Plymouth
(Vol. XI, No. 4, 1918, Vol. XII, No. 1, 1919, and Vol. XII,
No. 2, in process of publication).

By dissecting out the alimentary canal of fresh specimens
from the tow-nets and young-fish trawl and by mounting spec-
imens whole as balsam preparations, the food is usually well
seen. Young fishes were kept alive in small aerated aquaria
standing in tanks at an even temperature, and their feeding
habits watched in order to study the food taken and method of
feeding.

Some of the most important questions in connection with
the food of the young fishes are the following:

(a) ‘What the fishes feed on and whether vegetable food
is much eaten.

(b) Whether the young fishes select their food or take
it indiscriminately.

(c) Whether fishes which still retain the yolk sac eat
solid food.

(d) Whether fishes of different species or genera present
in the same place eat the same kind of food and thus those eco-
nomically unimportant compete with the food fishes.

346 American Fisheries Society

(a) What do the young fishes eat? It is already well
known that copepods form a large part of the food of young
fishes and it was found that by far the greater number of those
examined ate crustaceans, chiefly Entomostraca, even at the
very early stages. Copepods and Cladocera are most generally
taken, and copepods certainly form the most important food.
Remains of green algz were found in some of the young clu-
peoids, especially the sprat, also in the sand launce, Ammo-
dytes, and a few others, showing a vegetable diet at the
earliest stage, but as a rule there is little sign of this and vege-
table food cccurs very sparingly in the young fishes. A strik-
ing exception, however, occurs in the flounder (Pleuronectes
flesus), which was several times found to be eating the flagel-
late Phzeocystis.

Diatoms are occasionally recognized among the food
remains. An Ammodytes of 10 mm. contained many Rhizo-
solenia (one of the needle-like diatoms), and fishes that were
hatched in the acquarium and fed on very fine plankton also ate
diatoms sparingly. Young gobies only a few days old in these
aquaria took Asterionella, Thalassiosira, and Chzetoceros, but as
they all died this apparently is not a suitable diet. A young
sculpin (Cottus) of 4.5 mm. from the tow-nets had inside it
Bidulphia, Coscinodiscus, and Thalassiosira. All these are dia-
toms commonly occurring in the plankton, but it is only very
seldom that any of these are found even in the youngest fishes.

Of other unicellular organisms coccospheres, peridinians,
radiolarians and infusorians occasionally occur, chiefly in the
smaller specimens.

Besides Crustacea, larval mollusks are almost the only rec-
ognizable metazoa eaten by the young fishes. These occur
occasionally in many species with Crustacea. In the her-
ring they often occur in the newly hatched young, and the brill
(Rhombus levis) and turbot (Rhombus maximus) up to about
20 mm. often contain them, but the only young fish examined
that seems to feed habitually on larval mollusks is the garfish
(Rhamphistoma belone), which up to at least 36 mm. usually

Lebour.—Food of Larval and Post-Larval Fishes 347

contains them, even after the long bill is formed. Oyster spat
and the pteropod Limacina were often offered to young fishes
in the aquaria and nearly always refused.

Certainly the most important food of the young fishes is
small Crustacea, especially the Cladocera, Podon and Evadne,
cirripede nauplii, and, most important of all, copepods, both
nauplii and adult. Decapod larve only rarely occur until the
fishes reach a much larger size.

In Plymouth Sound and outside, Podon and Evadne are
only available in large quantities in the summer months, cirri-
pede larvz in late winter and early spring, and again in July
and August. When these are in season many fishes eat them,
often together with the copepods which form their food at other
times. Very young fishes can eat them and they are often to be
found in the newly hatched specimens. | Copepods, however,
undoubtedly form the chief food of larval and post-larval
fishes, and those most often eaten are the species that are com-
monest, but each fish appears to prefer some special species
and usually keeps to it or to two or three species, not feeding
indiscriminately.

The copepods most frequently eaten are Temora longicor-
nis, Pseudocalanus elongatus, Acartia clausi, and Calanus fin-
marchicus. These occur practically all the year round, now
and then with short periods of disappearance of one or the
other, but they are most abundant and commonly breed in the
spring and summer when the young fishes are at their maxima.
Many very young fishes eat the nauplioid and small copepod
stages; those with large mouths eat the fully developed cope-
pods almost at once and the slightly older forms eat them
habitually.

Other copepods fairly often eaten are Metridia lucens,
Euterpina acutifrons, Paracalanus parvus, and several others.

(b) Do the young fishes select their food or take it indis-
criminately? Most of the young fishes prefer a certain kind of
food and keep to it. Thus a fish may usually eat a species of
copepod and only take others when this is not available, or it

348 American Fisheries Society

may like two or three species, or it may take several different
sorts of Crustacea. A few may specially like mollusks and
very rarely they may be almost exclusively vegetarians, but
certainly to some extent, and in many cases to a very large
extent, they select their food. Several different species may
prefer the same diet; thus most of the species of Solea espec-
ially eat Temora, often with Euterpina and Podon, and
Temora is also preferred by the dab (Pleuronectes limanda).

Some hundreds of the thickback (Solea variegata) were
examined, Euterpina and Temora being the usual copepod
food, often with Podon. A specimen of 4 mm. can swallow a
Temora 1.5 mm. long. Up to at least 11.5 mm. the same kind
of food is taken. The dab eats the same sort of food. Over
1,000 specimens were examined, Podon being the commonest
food, Temora coming next. At 5 mm. copepods were pres-
ent. It is thus shown that the dab competes with the soles for
food, a fact which may have an important bearing on the small
numbers of soles in certain areas. On the other hand the top-
knots (Scophthalmus norvegicus), although occurring with the
soles and dabs, hardly ever eat Temora, their favorite food
being Pseudocalanus, Metridia coming next, so that although
present in numbers they need not be feared as competitors for
the food of the sole. At 3.5 mm. a Scophthalmus contains
copepods. One of 4.5 mm. contained a Metridia of 2 mm.
It must therefore take copepods almost directly it is hatched
and it continues eating them until it is well over 12 mm.

The soles, dab and topknots, as well as the turbot and brill,
are all large-mouthed fishes with broad gullets, and these can
all take crustacean food almost directly they are hatched, but
it is different with the small-mouthed flat fishes, the flounder
(Pleuronectes flesus), the scaldback (Arnoglossus laterna),
and the lemon dab (Pleuronectes microcephalus) ; these have
very smail mouths and narrow gullets and no Crustacea have
been found in them until they were much further advanced,
not below 8 mm. Most of them are empty in the very young
stages and probably eat soft unicellular organisms. This is

Lebour.—Food of Larval and Post-Larval Fishes 349

known to be the case with the flounder whose feeding habits
are interesting. Several of the young pelagic stages from 10
to 11 mm. were found to be eating Phzeocystis which occurs
very abundantly in Plymouth Sound in May and June. Some
of these were kept in aquaria and fed on Phzocystis which
they ate until they began to feed on the bottom. When still the
same size they changed their diet and fed on copepod nauplii
and later on they took small copepods, chiefly Pseudocalanus.
Specimens of 11 mm. from one of the estuaries having already
metamorphosed, were feeding on small harpacticids, and still
later stages in the estuaries from 20 to 30 mm. were feeding
on harpacticids in the bottom mud. The change of diet is
thus coincident with the transition to the bottom stage.

Young pelagic brill, 4.5-6 mm., were eating copepod
nauplii, also eggs (probably copepod). The brill migrate
shorewards and at the water’s edge, those from 10 to 13 mm.
being then in the bottom stage, eat principally larval mollusks.
Older specimens of from 20-30 mm. feed chiefly on young
fishes.

The young gadoids are all specially fond of Pseudocalanus.
The whiting (Gadus merlangus), being the commonest in this
area, was the species chiefly investigated. By far the greater
number of specimens had eaten Pseudocalanus, many hun-
dreds, from 3 to 20 mm. long being examined, besides some
adolescent stages. Below 5 mm. copepod nauplii are chiefly
taken, after this size adult Pseudocalanus may be eaten.

Some young whiting were kept in aquaria and their feed-
ing watched. It was found that if several species of copepods
were given, they always went for Pseudocalanus first, Acartia
next, Calanus being taken before Temora, which agrees with
what is found by examining the insides. Calanus is usually
taken by the whiting in early summer when Pseudocalanus is
scarce. Specimens of 22 mm. can eat small fish, although cope-
pods are often taken up to 60 mm. or more, with decapod
larve. Still older specimens eat fish habitually.

All the other common gadoids Gadus pollachius, G. min-

350 American Fisheries Society

utus, and luscus in their young stages eat Pseudocalanus more
than anything else, Acartia being taken when Pseudocalanus
is scarce, and Calanus by the larger specimens. The few ling
(Molva molva) and hake (Merluccius) examined had also
chiefly eaten Pseudocalanus and Calanus. Thus the young
gadoids as a group seem to prefer the same sort of food.

On the other hand the wrasses, Labrus bergylta, L. mixtus
and Ctenolabrus rupestris, when young all prefer Temora, very
small specimens from 3.5 mm. containing Temora nauplii,
occasionally mollusk larvae being found.

Temora nauplii are also almost exclusively the food of the
very young mackerel from 5 mm. long. Calanoid nauplii are
also eaten and eggs (probably copepod). Larger specimens
up to 9 mm. or more eat Temora, their favorite copepod, also
Podon and Evadne and an occasional Euphausiid larva. From
9 mm. upwards the usual food is young fishes although crus-
tacea may still be eaten. Species of Trachinus, Blennius and
Gobius are often found inside the young mackerel. One of
13 mm. had eaten a blenny of 7 mm. Fish and Crustacea are
not found together inside the young mackerel. It is either one
or the other, a fact coinciding with the known feeding of the
older mackerel which may have half its stomach full of fish
remains, the other half full of planktonic organisms, but with a
hard and fast line of division showing that each meal consists
of a different food which is not mixed. It is thus seen that
the young fishes do select their food, and a certain kind of food
is characteristic of each species.

(c) Do the fishes which still retain the yolk sac eat solid
food? Not many fishes at such young stages were examined
but in some cases it is most certain that food is taken in by the
mouth when the yolk sac is still present. The best example
of this is the herring. Young herring hatch at about 7 mm.
and are to be found in the plankton almost immediately, retain-
ing the yolk sac up to 9 and 10 mm., in rare cases even more.
Although the gut in these young herring is very often found
to be empty, yet several specimens had eaten larval mollusks,

Lebour.—Food of Larval and Post-Larval Fishes 351

eggs (probably copepod) and copepod nauplii. It therefore
appears to be quite usual for solid food to be taken although
the yolk sac is present. At 7 mm., the usual length at hatching,
food consisting of green remains, larval mollusks or eggs was
found inside the young herring. Copepod nauplii are taken a
little later, thus agreeing with the observations of H. A.
Meyer* with artificially reared herring which first contained
_ greenish matter, later on larval mollusks, copepods and cope-
pod nauplii, the copepod diet increasing as the fishes grew.

Brill from 4 mm. which still retained the yolk sac were
found to contain many Temora nauplii. Gobius minutus hatched
in the aquarium were found to have eaten diatoms when still
retaining the yolk sac. <A plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) of
four days old, hatched in an aquarium, ate diatoms from the
bottom of the glass when still retaining the yolk sac. These
diatoms (Navicula sp.) grew in a dense layer at the bottom of
the glass jar.

It is thus certain, as already shown by those investigators
who have experimented in rearing fish, that food is taken
before the disappearance of the yolk sac, or at any rate in
many species.

(d) Do the food fishes eat the same food as those which
are unimportant economically? Although this question is
barely touched on, many fishes unimportant as food have also
been examined. These, especially young Callionymus lyra,
Trachinus vipera, several species of Gobius and Cottus and
many others, occur abundantly with the young of the food fishes
and eat much the same sort of food, especially the copepods,
Pseudocalanus, Temora and Acartia, with Podon. Calliony-
mus ate all these apparently indiscriminately, Pseudocalanus
was a favorite with the gobies, and Cottus ate many larval mol-
lusks with copepods and other small planktonic organisms.

It is to be remembered, however, that although these young
fishes are extremely abundant and eat the same food as the

*1880, Biological Observations made during the Artificial Rearing of Herrings in
the Western Baltic. Report of the U. S. Fish Commission for 1878.

352 American Fisheries Society

edible fishes, yet they serve to a very large extent as food for
many of the rather older food fishes and are of great import-
ance in that connection.

The same species of fish ate the same sort of food from
whatever locality it came from, so that the food is really
characteristic of the fish.

It is thus seen from the above-mentioned work that Crus-
tacea form the chief food of nearly all the young marine fishes,
the principal food being Entomostraca, and that vegetable food
is not taken to any great extent except by some of the young-
est specimens. That the young fishes do certainly select their
food although it usually consists of animals which are common
in the plankton. That solid food is taken by the young fishes
before the absorbtion of the yolk sac and that many of the non-
edible fishes occurring with those that are edible eat the same
kind of food.

A SURVEY OF GAME FISH CONDITIONS IN OHIO
By Dr. RayMonp C. OsBuRN

Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio

This paper contains some of the results of a partial survey
of the waters of the state, made by the Ohio Bureau of Fish
and Game during the summer of 1920. The work was con-
ducted by a scientific research party, temporarily employed by
the Bureau for the purpose of the survey. The writer was
in charge of the investigations and associated with him were
Dr. C. L. Turner, of Beloit College, and Messrs. E. L. Wick-
liff, Walter C. Kraatz and L. H. Tiffany, instructors at the
Ohio State University. The members of the staff were
selected because of their special training in different phases
of the work and for their ability to cooperate satisfactorily.
The whole summer’s program was placed in my hands with
the exception that Mr. A. C. Baxter, Chief of the Bureau,
indicated certain waters which he especially desired us to
examine.

We began our work on July 16th, the first day we were
free from our college duties, and continued without interrup-
tion until September 15th. This gave us three full months in
the field, at the time best suited for studying the food and other
conditions of growth of the young game fish. As the breeding
season was later than usual in Ohio, the young bass and crappie
were barely off the nest at the time we began to work, and in
fact, many of them did not appear until later. The bluegill
and common sunfish had not hatched at this time.

The characteristic game fishes of the inland waters of Ohio

[*This paper by Dr. Raymond C. Osburn and the three which follow, namely,
“Food of Young Small-Mouth Bass in Lake Erie,” by Edward L. Wickliff; “Food of
Young Large-Mouth Black Bass in some Ohio Waters,” by Dr. C. L. Turner and W. C.
Kraatz; and ‘‘The Gizzard Shad in Relation to Plants and Game Fishes,” by L. H.

Tiffany, constitute some preliminary results of a fishery survey in Ohio in the summer
of 1920.]

354 American Fisheries Society

are large-mouth bass, small-mouth bass, rock bass, crappie,
bluegill sunfish, and yellow perch. The little pickerel is
common in some localities, and the Ohio River muskallonge,
also the wall-eyed pike, are reported as frequently taken in
some of the larger rivers. While the catfishes can scarcely be
considered game fish, the bullhead and channel cat are common
in the lakes and streams and afford many people amusement
and food. The channel cat has been satisfactorily planted in
many of the lakes by the Ohio Bureau of Fish and Game and
is much appreciated.

In Ohio the small-mouth bass is a characteristic fish of the
creeks and smaller rivers, while the large-mouth bass is typi-
cally a lake fish. In the long, quiet stretches of rivers and
back waters where lake conditions are simulated, the large-
mouth bass may be found, and similarly in rocky and gravelly
parts of lakes the small-mouth bass may occur, but less fre-
quently than in streams. In Lake Erie the small-mouth bass is
common to the open waters of the lake, while the large-mouth
bass occurs in the weedy bays and inlets.

The main problem we sought to solve was one of practical
interest to the state, that of determining whether there are
satisfactory conditions for the production of the various game
fishes in the waters studied. The comparative number of this
year’s young was considered usually a good index of the num-
ber and condition of the adults and of the general produc-
tivity of the stream or lake. The condition of the young,
especially as to food, which could be learned from the exam-
ination of the stomach contents, was studied to discover
whether feeding conditions were satisfactory. To check up
on this, however, studies were made to determine the number
and condition of various other fishes which serve as food for
game fishes, especially the various minnows, suckers, and the
gizzard or hickory shad. Also general studies on the abun-
dance, kinds, and distribution of invertebrate animals and of
plants, especially alge, were made in the various waters.

Osburn.—Game Fish Conditions in Ohio 355

Messrs. Turner, Wickliff and Osburn devoted their time to
the study of fishes and their food; Kraatz to collecting the
invertebrates, especially insect larvee and Crustacea ; and Tiffany
to the collection and study of the alge.

Naturally, most of our material remains unworked at
present, as our field operations kept us on the move to such an
extent that often little could be done except to preserve material
and to make general notes. Microscopes, however, were taken
along and when we had occasional opportunity, use was made
of them in the study of stomach contents of the young fish,
material in the plankton, and so forth.

For the fish collecting, fine meshed seines of 1/8 to 1/4
inch mesh, about twenty-five or thirty feet long, were used.
For a good part of the work, the middle or bag portion of the
seine was overlaid with cheese cloth, so that very small organ-
isms were captured. A twenty-five foot seine of this type is
about all that two men care to handle, even in still water, but
it is astonishing what an amount of material can be taken under
favorable conditions. The material brought in by the seine
was worked over for invertebrates and alge in addition to
fishes. Messrs. Kraatz and Tiffany also made use of dipnets
and townets in the collection of invertebrates and alge. Tem-
perature records were also made.

Ohio is an exceptionally well watered state, especially in
rivers and creeks of suitable size for the small-mouth bass, so
it was manifestly impossible for us to cover the whole state in
one summer. As a matter of fact we made investigations in
twenty lakes and reservoirs and parts of six river systems
mostly in the central and northern parts of the state. Usually
two or three days were spent in a place, but two weeks were
given early in the season to Buckeye Lake, situated near the
geographical center of the state, to get a good basis for the
comparison and more rapid study of the lakes visited later.
Many of the smaller lakes of Ohio are now privately owned,
or in the possession of fishing clubs to the exclusion of the

356 American Fisheries Society

general public. I will say nothing about the policy of per-
mitting such natural bodies of water to become individual
property, but merely state that with two exceptions we did not
include them in our investigations.

The natural lakes of Ohio are all small, rarely being over a
couple of miles in the largest dimension. They are all glacial
in origin, being usually rather deep for their area and varying
from gravelly to muddy and weed-grown shores. Many of
them are spring fed almost entirely, except for surface waters
in rainy seasons.

The reservoirs, many of them now known as lakes, were
mostly constructed in the old canal-building days of the first
half of the past century, though some are of recent construc-
tion for water power. Buckeye, Indian, Loramie, and St.
Mary’s Lakes are all old reservoirs of this type and have long
ago settled down into permanent conditions. Buckeye Lake
especially, presents this appearance, as the water level has been
interfered with but little. In the other reservoirs, including
East, West and New reservoirs, near Akron, recent fluctua-
tions in the water level give them more or less, according to
conditions, a newer appearance about the shores. St. Mary’s
Lake, formerly known as the Grand Reservoir, has an area of
17,600 acres and is the largest body of water entirely within
the state.

All of these bodies of water, natural and artificial, are well
stocked with the various game fish native to Ohio, and have
been for many years. They are ideal for large-mouth bass,
perch, crappie and bluegills and other sunfish. Our survey
shows considerable variation in the number of different game
fishes, however, with the exception of the large-mouth bass
which is plentiful in all suitable waters of the state. It is
probable that fluctuation of the water level interferes less with
the large-mouth than with other game fish, on account of its
great activity, its rapid growth, and its ability to take many
kinds of food because of the large size of the mouth. More-

Osburn.—Game Fish Conditions in Ohio shy

over, the bass spawn earlier than most other game fish and are
thus less likely to be interfered with by changes in water level.
At any rate it is about as common in waters that are drawn
upon for power as in those that are not, while this appears not
to be true of other game fish of the lakes. The hatcheries also
have devoted a great deal of attention to the large-mouth bass,
planting the output chiefly in the lakes. In the western Ohio
reservoirs, known as Indian, Loramie, and St. Mary’s Lakes,
the crappie are exceedingly abundant. They grow to a good
size, 1 to 1% pounds, and one was taken this spring weighing
314 pounds. Thousands of people were angling for crappie
during the spring season and it was an easy matter to catch
the limit of forty fish at these lakes. I venture to say that no
better fishing of this kind ever existed in the waters of the

state.

St. Mary’s Lake is especially interesting because when I
examined it just twenty years ago, it was so polluted with
refuse from oil wells that it was practically barren. At that
time there were 300 oil wells in the lake itself, not to mention
those in the near vicinty. At present there are only three wells
in the lake and few around it, and they all take care of their
refuse pretty satisfactorily. Most of the lake is now in
excellent condition, and the rehabilitation of the fish life is a
fine thing to observe. Large-mouth bass, crappie, bluegills,
and perch have all been planted in recent years, and the bass
and crappie afford as good fishing as one could expect in a
thickly settled country where there is much angling.

St. Mary’s and Loramie Lakes have suffered considerably
from occasional lowering of the water in recent years, so the
shores present a newer and cleaner appearance than they should,
and there is an unsatisfactory lack of submerged plant growth
near the shore. While on this subject, I wish to call attention
to the necessity of maintaining a high and constant water level
in lakes and ponds during the breeding season and the feeding
and growing season of the young fish as well. Fluctuation of

358 American Fisheries Society

the water level to any great extent is one of the surest means
of causing breeding fish to leave the nest. Lowering the
water materially during the season when the young fish are
feeding and hiding in the shallow, weedy margins causes many
of them to be stranded in the weeds, or, if they escape, it is
into the more open water where they readily fall a prey to the
larger fishes and where their natural food is much less abun-
dant. If it were possible to maintain a fairly constant level
subject only to changes due to evaporation from the first of
April to October, I have little doubt that we should see a great
increase in the productivity of our smaller inland lakes that
are drawn upon for water power or for city use. Such waters
are usually under the control of a board of public works or a
similar body, which operates too often without knowledge of
or consideration for fish life. There should be closer coopera-
tion between such bodies and the state fisheries departments
to the end that more fish may be produced.

At the Louisville meeting of this Society, Mr. James Nevin
presented a paper on “Changing Food Conditions of the
Trout Family,” printed in the Transactions for December,
1919, in which he mentioned the damage done to trout streams
by cleaning them up too well. The same thing applies very
forcibly to our game fish waters in Ohio, both streams and
lakes, and there is a striking difference in most of these waters
as compared with even twenty or twenty-five years ago.

The banks of our lakes and streams are becoming very
much appreciated by the people of our cities for playgrounds
and summer residences and, naturally enough, wishing their
surroundings to present a neat appearance, they remove all
fallen trees and other debris from the water. Stumps inter-
fere with boating and one may also lose a hook on such an
obstruction, so they wish the stumps removed. Because vege-
tation interferes with fishing, several inquiries have been re-
ceived recently as to how to remove it. Of course, it is a false
notion of cleanliness that requires these things to be done, for

Osburn.—Game Fish Conditions in Ohio 359

there is nothing unsanitary in a fallen tree, a decaying stump,
or submerged vegetation in the water. But the main point is
that when you remove the weed you take away the refuge of
the perch and the bluegills, and when the fallen tree or the old
stump is removed, the favorable lurking place of the big old
bass goes too. If it were possible to have a perfectly clean
body of water with no decaying organic matter in it, such a
body of water would be a fish desert absolutely. I may add
that it is not the policy of the Ohio Bureau of Fish and Game
to remove the old stumps from our magnificent reservoirs,
but to preserve them as fish refuges as long as they will last.
In many cases the stumps have been there nearly a century,
and as they are still sound they are likely to remain to bless
coming generations of sportsmen for a long time. In some
cases, smaller rivers and lakes that were once good bass waters
have been cleaned and controlled until the “old swimmin’ hole”
and the big fish have both disappeared.

Like most other states, Ohio has suffered by the removal
of too much of her forest growth from the hills, with the result
that we have higher freshets than formerly, and lower water
in periods of drought. Smaller streams that once afforded
good fishing are now, in some cases, practically barren. For-
estry work should cooperate with fishery work when possible.

Pollution, too, has played its part in the reduction of game
fish, though we are not as bad off in Ohio as in some other
states. Only one lake in the state is now known to be badly pol-
luted, namely, Summit Lake, which is nearly surrounded by
the city of Akron and which, in addition to some sewage, re-
ceives chemical wastes from a large salt works in the city.
Twenty years ago this lake was teeming with good game fish.
In the streams all sorts of conditions are found. An occa-
sional river is so polluted that it is absolutely devoid of all life.
In other waters the game fish are entirely wanting or they are
few in number or in bad condition, with only a few hardier
kinds, such as the catfish, present.

360 American Fisheries Society

Some of our streams have been satisfactorily cleared of
pollution. Thus the Licking River from Newark to Zanes-
ville, a distance of 25 miles, was polluted a few years ago until
everything in it was destroyed. A large glass manufacturing
plant which caused the damage was made to take care of its
chemical wastes, and one of the finest bass streams in the state
is being restored. Restocking was necessary of course. An
examination of it by our party this summer showed that while
conditions are not yet quite normal, the hatch of young game
fish is excellent and within a couple of years the effects of pol-
lution may no longer be noticeable. With the perfection of
our new method of\controling pollution, it is hoped that the
state may rapidly proceed with its clean-up campaign. Other-
wise it is only a question of a few years until there will be
little angling in our streams.

Perhaps I should not have dwelt so long on the unfavorable
conditions, for Ohio is much better off than many of the states,
especially those to the east of us. We still have numerous
fine streams where there is excellent fishing. Where there
is no pollution, breeding conditions are usually satisfactory and
there is an ample supply of fish food. There is a great deal
of angling, astonishingly great as compared with a generation
ago. We must, therefore, expect the individual catch to be
smaller, but the legal limit is very often attained, and the fish
are as large as in former years. With the bluegill and perch
there is a serious falling off, but these fish are easily caught
by the inexperienced angler and there should be more protec-
tion devoted to them during the breeding season.

In regard to the non-game species of fishes, it may be said
that many of them appear to be much less numerous than in
former years. It was my privilege to make a fairly thorough
survey of the fishes of Ohio during the summers of 1897,
1899, and 1900, and in the twenty years that have elapsed many
species of the smaller fishes seem to have become rare or to
have disappeared entirely from the waters surveyed during the
past summer. Pollution may be responsible for this in some

Osburn.—Game Fish Conditions in Ohio 361

cases, causing the disappearance of the more delicate species.
Pollution farther down the stream may be a barrier to some
of these fishes, preventing them from running up stream at the
spawning season. In other cases the construction of dams
may now prevent certain species from running up stream to
breed. It would seem that the reduction of the number of.
individuals of these smaller species can not help having an
effect on the production of game fish by limiting their food
supply.

Crawfish, an important element in the food of bass, are
fairly abundant, except where pollution is evident.

Ohio has been doing excellent work in fish production and
protection for years, but little mention has been made of the
fact. Except where conditions beyond the control of the Bu-
reau of Fish and Game have interfered, game fish are plenti-
ful and are reproducing in satisfactory numbers. There are
occasional reports of seining and trapping, but the game pro-
tectors are an excellent body of men, and their work results
in the seizure of much of the illegal fishing apparatus and
the apprehension of the owners. Moreover, the education of
the public in conservation, through publicity afforded by the
press and through the medium of sportsmen’s associations, is
having a noticeable effect. An educated public which will not
wink at violations of the law or place obstacles in the way of
the warden’s performance of his duty, is a necessity to the pro-
duction of fish in any region where the population is at all
dense.

A few observations showing how weather conditions may
affect the breeding and food of fishes were made incidentally
during the course of the survey. In the open water of Lake
Erie, about the islands, where in 1919 small-mouth bass fry
were very abundant, there were no fry to be found in the sum-
mer of 1920, although a special effort was made to find them.
The only ones taken were in a sheltered locality in Put-in Bay
harbor, where a gravel bar afforded protection. The only ex-
planation that presents itself is that a succession of storms

362 American Fisheries Society

during the nesting season had destroyed the nests before the
eggs were hatched. At the same time there was an excellent
hatch of large-mouth bass in the enclosed harbors, where the
storms had little effect.

More positive evidence of the effect of storms was
noted in Mosquito Creek, a tributary of the Miami River,
at Sidney, Ohio. This creek, which is an excellent small-
mouth bass stream, was set aside as a breeding sanctuary
early in the season when the bass were observed making
their nests. A series of freshets washed out the nests or
silted them under, destroying the whole hatch and, al-
though we searched carefully for a mile and a half, only
one bass fry was taken and only a few other young fish
were observed. The Miami River above Sidney showed a
similar effect by the absence of young fish of nearly all
kinds, though yearling and older fish were abundant. The
fishes present showed the effects of the unusual number
of rains by their underfed condition. The water had been
high and very muddy all the spring and until in July at
the time of our observations, making it difficult for the
predaceous fish to obtain food.

To sum up, the game fish conditions in Ohio are as
satisfactory in the lakes and reservoirs as could be ex-
pected in a region as densely populated and where there
is so much angling. The catch per person has been
greatly reduced within the past generation, and even the
productivity of the lakes is not as great as formerly when
the water level was interfered with less and the water
along the shores was not kept as clean. Over-fishing,
especially during the breeding season, is also responsible
for the decrease in number and size of bluegills and perch.
The laws afford much better protection for the basses than
for the other species, especially those whose breeding sea-
son does not quite conform to that of the basses.

Conditions in the streams are usually much less satis-

Osburn.—Games Fish Conditions in Ohio 363

factory. Pollution by mills, factories, mines and so forth
is one important reason, while stream control, deforesta-
tion and over-fishing have all played a part in decreasing
the productivity. While there is excellent angling in
many of our streams there is no doubt that there are fewer
fish than formerly in practically all of our rivers and
creeks. Elimination of pollution and more protection dur-
ing the breeding season will go a long way toward re-
establishing and maintaining good fishing in our streams.

Discussion

Mr. Lewis RapciirFE, Washington, D. C.: Some of the references
made by Dr. Osburn to the feeding of bass remind me of the results of
the study of the food of the squeteague or weakfish in North Carolina.
At the beginning of the season we find the squeteague feeding on crus-
taceans and other material; later on, as they get larger, they begin to
feed on menhaden. As they increase in size the number of menhaden
appearing in the stomach contents increases until constituting the bulk
of food, the reason being that in the earlier stages it is impossible for
squeteague to swallow the menhaden that occur in those waters at that
time. As to the gizzard shad being an item of food, it may be of interest
to know that in our southern markets, Baltimore and Washington, the
gizzard shad is sold as winter shad.

Dr. OspurN: How do they manage to eat them?

Mr. RApcLirFE: They are used fresh. They are also very good fish
when salted. Of course, they are rather bony.

Dr. OspuRN: You can get a little slab of meat off the sides, but
the network of bones is so heavy that it would discourage almost anyone,
I should think, unless he had plenty of time.

Mr. RapciirFeE: They are used in southern districts, largely by
the colored people.

Dr. OspurN: I understand that some of the foreign population
catch them and put them through a grinder. I would not be surprised
if they could be made use of in that way. While I think of it, may I ask
whether it would not be possible to make use of the young gizzard shad
as sardines, as is done in the case of young menhaden?

Mr. RapcuirFeE: I think not; they would not equal the sardine, nor
would they command as good a market. At least, this will be the case
so long as we can get sardines in such abundance.

FOOD OF YOUNG SMALL-MOUTH BLACK BASS
IN LAKE ERIE

By Epwarp L. WICKLIFF
Olio State University, Columbus, Ohio

The small-mouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu Lacepede),
is one of the most important game fishes of Ohio waters and
is especially abundant about the Bass Islands and other islands
of the western end of Lake Erie. Because of the high esteem
in which sportsmen hold this fish, it seemed advisable to make
some study of the food and feeding habits of the younger stages
in their most characteristic breeding places under natural con-
ditions. My thanks are due to Dr. Raymond C. Osburn, and
the Ohio Bureau of Fish and Game for the opportunity to
make this study.

The work was begun in the summer of 1919 at the lake
laboratory of Ohio State University at Put-in Bay. The
youngest stages could not be obtained that season, but these
were added in 1920, when the breeding season was somewhat
later. ‘Collecting was done with a 25-foot minnow seine, re~
inforced with cheese cloth over the middle third.

The bass fry were obtained chiefly about North, South,
and Middle Bass Islands, but in all seventeen islands within
reach of Put-in Bay were visited and specimens were obtained
from fifty-one stations. The young bass were preserved at
once in a 5 per cent solution of formalin which killed them
instantly and preserved the stomach contents. If the fish were
above 34 inch in length, the body wall was slit to allow for-
malin to penetrate more rapidly.

The young fish were found in nearly all types of environ-
ment, such as sandy, gravelly, and stony bottoms, but none was
obtained on mud bottom. Very few were found directly in
vegetation, although they were abundant at the edge of aquatic
plants. The young bass has a wide range in its feeding habits,
and its distribution was found to be more universal than that

Wickliff—Food of Small-Mouth Black Bass 365

of any other fish seined in shallow water in that region. This
bass, however, is an inhabitant of the open waters of the lake
in shoal regions and near shore, and is not found commonly
in the weedy bays and harbors. In such situations it is: re-
placed by the large-mouth bass.

The stomach and intestinal contents of 313 young bass,
ranging from 8% to 65 mm. have been examined to date. The
results obtained from the study of those above the 45 mm.
stage are not considered complete, as only 14 specimens from
45 to 65 mm. have been examined, but they are not as impor-
tant as those on the food of the younger bass. The food of
the bass beyond 45 mm. in length differs but little in character
from that of the adult.

The growth of the young bass is directly related to the
food supply, and it was estimated from the daily collections
that the rate is about .8 or .9 of a mm. per day, although there
were wide differences in length from the various islands.

To show the feeding capacity of the young bass, the fol-
lowing table was made for 210 specimens:

FEEDING CAPACITY OF YOUNG BAss

Condition of stomach. | Number of bass. | Percentage.
Stnited | 2 lage jeaee ae Av are ements sc 53 252
Tee: a eee tans Skee ee Ce Pe ee ee 78 37.2
Moderately full .............00..0008. | 52 24.8
Wiery little 280d) sis word Secsets Pro abi ean® 25 11.9
NOMPOOR es. 5 cayistersine. hia deiasteitis cee sine lary 2 9
PEORALA See ae cee hu Gee ene ete | 210 100.0

This shows that over 60 per cent of the bass had the stom-
ach either stuffed or filled, and 87 per cent at least moderately
filled, which would indicate the bass did not suffer from lack
of food. From observations made on eight of the bass from
16 to 28 mm. in length, it was estimated that 12 hours are re-
quired to empty the stomach and 24 hours to empty the intes-
tine. The young bass feed throughout the entire day and prob-
ably at night, or at least early morning, as bass caught at 7
a. m. had their stomachs well filled.

366 American Fisheries Society

For convenience, the bass were divided into various stages,
each stage representing a difference in length of 5 mm. except
the first, where there is a difference of 614 mm.

In the following table is given the various stages, the num-
ber of bass in each stage examined, the seven most important
articles of diet, and the percentage of the total number of bass
in which each article is found in the different stages.

PERCENTAGE OF YOUNG SMALL-MoutH BAss CONTAINING SEVEN MOST
IMPORTANT ARTICLES OF DIET

of : Midge Adult Midge Mayfly
fish Length | Copepods| Cladocera} pupz insects larve Fish nymphs
Mm. Per cent. | Per cent. | Per cent. | Per cent..| Per cent.| Per cent.
80 8.5-15 5 93-4 10.5 5.2 13.7 Te 123
23 | 16 -20 30.5 8.7 4.3 26 217 13
46 | 21 -25 b 32.6 32.6 16.9 30.4 23.9 19.6
48 | 26 -30 25 43-7 37-9 25 8.3 14.6
47 Nan 35 5 14.9 36.1 46.8 12.7 23.4 20a
30 | 36 -40 : 23.4 40 30 23-3 30 13.3
25 |41I -45 16 36 40 12 32 20
6 |46 -50 17 16.5 50 33 33 to)
452 1°55 25 25 25 . 50 ie)
2 |56 -60 ° 50 50 50 fo)
Bele -O5 ° fe) 50 (3)
BS ill ireevokoke 27.4 19.8 12.1

Copepods, as shown by the table, are the most important
article of diet in the food of the young bass. They were found
in 61.9 per cent of the bass examined. The copepods are util-
ized as food principally in the younger stages. They are very
abundant up to the 35 mm. stage, after which there is a sudden
decline to 45 mm., and from here on no copepods were found
Twenty-six bass ate copepods exclusively, and the number
eaten varied from 1 to 500. The copepods eaten in order of
their prominence are: Epischura lacustris, Cyclops leuckarti,
Cyclops bicuspidatus, Diaptomus sicilis, Diaptomus minutus,
Cyclops serrulatus, and Cyclops albidus.

Cladocera, like copepods, are very important in the food of
the young bass. They were found in 39.9 per cent of the bass.

Wickhiff.—Food of Small-Mouth Black Bass 367

In 1919 Cladocera ranked fifth in importance in the fish ex-
amined, and only at one island (Old Hen) did they surpass
the copepods in number. In 1920 they were found in much
greater numbers than the copepods in the food of the young
bass, and ranked second. This makes the difference in the
8%-15 mm. stage. The percentage of bass eating copepods in
this stage (814-15 mm.) is lower than the next (16-20 mm.) _
because of the smaller number eating copepods in 1920, and
the percentage of bass eating Cladocera in the 82-15 mm. stage
is much higher than the rest for the same reason. The table
shows that cladocerans, like copepods, are important in the
younger stages, but are eaten up to the 50 mm. stage, or a
little later than the copepods. The number eaten by a single
fish varied from 1 to 202. Thirteen bass ate Cladocera exclu-
sively. The cladocerans eaten were, Daphnia retrocurva, Dia-
phanosoma leuchtenbergianum, and Sida crystallina.

Midge pupz ranked third and were found in 27.4 per cent
of the bass. They ranged in number from 1 to 41. Midge
pupz are unimportant up to the 21 mm. stage, but from here on
up to the 45 mm. stage they are very important. After the
45 mm. stage there is a dropping off in the number of bass
eating them. Some of the important midge pupz eaten were,
Chironomus, Cricotopus, and Tanytarsus.

Adult insects were found in 24.9 per cent of the bass. They
are unimportant up to the 21 mm. stage, but from here on
there is an increase, and the larger the bass the greater the num-
ber eating insects, up to 45 mm. Eight orders of insects are
included in the food of the young bass. Of the total number
of bass eating insects, mayflies were found in 52 per cent, two-
winged flies in 32.4 per cent, caddis flies in 10.8 per cent, moths
and bugs each in 8.1 per cent, beetles in 2.7 per cent, and Hy-
menoptera and Physopoda each in 1.3 per cent.

Taking insects as a class and including the larve, pupe,
and adults, 180 bass or 57.4 per cent of the total number fed
upon them.

Midge larve were found in 19.8 per cent of the bass, and

368 American Fisheries Society

ranged in number from 1 to 85; twelve bass ate them exclu-
sively. Midge larve are important in the food of the bass
throughout the period they were examined, although they are
less important in the 8% to 15 and 41-45 mm. stages than
the others. They are particularly abundant between 16-40 mm.
The most important larve are: Chironomus, Tanytarsus, Or-
thocladius, Cricotopus, and Tanypus.

Fish are not important in the food of the very young bass
between 8% to 15 mm. but increase as the bass grow older.
Above 16 mm. they are common in the diet of the bass, and
gradually increase except in the 36-40 mm. stage. The young-
est bass to eat a fish was 12 mm. long and 25.4 per cent of the
bass eating fish ate them exclusively. Fish were found in 17.8
per cent of the bass. The fishes eaten were the ones most often
associated with the bass, except in the case of the perch. Those
eaten, in order of their importance, are: Minnows (spot-tail,
most important), stone rollers, fan-tailed darters, carp and the
darter Cottogaster copelandi. One young bass was eaten,
which points to a slight amount of cannibalism.

Mayfly nymphs rank last of the seven important foods of
the young bass, being found in 12.1 per cent of the fish. They
are unimportant up to 15 mm., as they were found in only
1 bass below that length. They are very important between
16 and 45 mm., and are not found after the 45 mm. stage.
The number eaten varied from 1 to 41, and three bass ate
mayfly nymphs exclusively. The most common mayflies were
Hexagenia, Ephemerella, and Betts.

The 29 remaining articles of diet will be grouped together,
as they are found in from one per cent to 5.7 per cent of the
bass, and are unimportant.

Caddis pupze were found in 5.7 per cent of the bass, about
equally distributed between the 21-45 mm. stages; none was
found above or below these stages. Ostracods were in 3.8 per
cent of the bass; like the copepods and cladocerans they are more
abundant up to the 25 mm. stage, and after that decrease in
importance. Seven bass between 21-45 mm. ate caddis larve.

Wickliff.—Food of Sinail-Mouth Black Bass 369

The greatest number, 4, eating them occurred between 26-
30 mm. Four bass ate crayfish. Their lengths were 40, 45,
48 and 51 mm. respectively. Four also ate amphipods. These
were distributed throughout the various stages. Three bass
between 12-30 mm. ate mites. One bass 33 mm. long ate two
spiders. One stonefly nymph was found in a bass between
41-45 mm., and one damselfly nymph in a 12 mm. bass. Cole-
opterous larve were found in two bass between 21-30 mm.

Vegetation was found in 9 bass ranging in size from 8%-
45 mm. It was in such small amounts that it was no doubt
either accidental in swallowing the prey, or occurred in the
food of the animal eaten. Vegetation does not form a part
of the diet of the young bass, although in an indirect way the
vegetation forms the basis of all fish food, as the animals the
fish feed upon in turn feed upon the vegetation.

Small amounts of unrecognizable material were found in
about 5 per cent of the bass. One bass 43 mm. and another
65 mm. long had eaten nothing.

From these results it seems the bass fry and early finger-
lings eat practically all the time, and from observation the
adults eat intermittently.

COMBINATION FOOD EATEN BY THE YOUNG BASS

The best two-food combination for bass fry between 8%-
15 mm. is copepods and cladocerans. Above 15 mm. midge
larve and pupz form the best combination.

The chief three-food combinations up to 45 mm. in length,
were either copepods, midge larve, and pupz, or cladocerans,
midge larve, and pupz, depending upon the season. Between
15-45 mm., midge larve, midge pupz, and mayfly nymphs
also made a good three-food combination.

The best four-food combination was either copepods or
cladocera with midge larve, pupz, and mayfly nymphs. Add
adult insects to the four-food diet and you have the best five-
food combination after the 20 mm. stage.

In the 8%4-15 mm. stage, 17 different kinds of food

370 American Fisheries Society

were eaten. Although the very young bass is a specialized
feeder at first, feeding almost entirely upon entomostracans,
it soon becomes a generalized feeder, and up to 45 mm. feeds
upon an average of twelve different kinds of food. The 14
bass examined above 45 mm. show a gradual restriction in
the kinds of food eaten.

As to the number of stages in which each of the seven
most important kinds of food occurred, it is noted that cope-
pods and mayfly nymphs were found in the first seven stages
of bass from 8%4-45 mm. Cladocera were in 8 stages from
8%-50 mm., midge pupe in 9 stages from 8'%-55 mm., adult
insects and midge larve in 10 stages from 814-60 mm., and
fish all stages from 8%4-65 mm. This shows that in all stages
between 8% and 45 mm., bass ate the seven important kinds
of food, a fact which indicates that the bass at least between
these lengths is a versatile feeder.

The following table gives the total list of all the materials
found in the stomach contents of the 313 bass examined:

MATERIALS FouND IN STOMACH CONTENTS OF 313 BAss EXAMINED

Order of

5 Kind of food. No. of fish. | Percentage.
importance.
I Gopepodsekeeticeieiimiieseeeereerisierelere 193 61.9
2 Gladocerater res echeieeie cree elele chistes ots 125 39.9
3 Midge vpupe tamieieleerecrereilsroicterdeteiete steals 86 27.4
4 Adal tinSects aeeieiee ieisbxclcieisibiele!sietsistete 78 24.9
5 Midge dlarvaersiccte cictete eoielaieletoteloterel steiele 62 19.8
6 Eta Sha Wirretatelevsisl onclal sfatet oie telsterelerelalavelaiesbieyalels 56 17.8
7 May fly, Saymiplisinictercrs <isiviet oy avote oreteie rote a1 38 T25r
8 Gaddis apupaenciciyare spcroecieteietcnetlererarcce oie 18 5-7
9 Insect? Casesiy. dic mececic creleivelte/Mestawieinies 15 4-7
10 Ostracodsi. cee saceieee ee cee os “ 12 3.8
II Vievetation isle vec enicistscccetneicie nis keine 9 2.9
12 Caddisarveeteccci cs tie eeretoisie tice hears 7 2.2
13 Copepod, eggs. suis cecelsistene ers retails 6 1.9
14 May fl yee) occ iionchcratmpevcrateeisieceltotorminters 5 1.6
15 Crayfish (052 eich shore.avs areteratetetcvers koto ieciana 4 reg
16 AMP HIDOS 1 «crave sraiare olajatecaele tees Meteianrek 4 T23
17 Statoblasts of Plumatella princeps..... 3 -96
18 BNA UDINL « os sdverele minis the eratetainne mivetcte mika nieke 3 -96
19 Mitteey ADIL Abc ec cat anes CRE Oe 3 .96
20 IN AIG WOKS i 55,012 /Uitis econ vcs. ci ph olstarete rennet 2 -64
21 Coleopterous | larwee 6:0 cis.c.cvele stole foieletaisvore 2 -64
22 Dameeliy cyan phy “eo levaciucre i ivjaiciaterictalarete I 32

Wickhiff—Food of Small-Mouth Black Bass 371

23 SS POMEL VP VATI PIT ate cl a: halal sieielac nial clei eleieiae'? I 32
24 Ciltatenrrercraea-ia tia tiers nroie ere’ a desoratel avevenn I +32
25 DMR laate tetsts sieraraisleteteiiasisia ic a oastones I +32
26 SPICE re siaie, desaccin’ aia Pratale.« sievevetesateia’s, «jevets I +32
27 Parnidy DECtle TALVeaioless sclelviae'clese'eie I 32
28 Nematodenwornt 5 ctesaanien cece ace. st I ‘aa
29 DANA, roroiere eeinsoers aPatcke Sere See die ale aversl as I 32
30 Pebbles fein sticies siterdereiciste sats ccrs lems a I 32
31 Unrecognizable material ............ 12 3.8

Eight orders of adult insects give 36 different types of food.

SUMMARY

Copepods and cladocerans are the first food of the young
_ bass. They are found in from 80 to 90 per cent of the young
bass, depending upon the general abundance of each. These
minute animals are important up to the 40 mm. stage. From
this point on they are not important, and were not found in
the 8 bass examined between 50 and 65 mm.

Mixed with the copepods and cladocerans in the 814-15 mm.
stage are a few midge larve, pupe (12 per cent), and adult
insects.

After the 15 mm. stage, midge larve and pupe, mayfly
nymphs, fish, and adult insects become more important, the
midge larvze especially so up to 40 mm. and the pupz to 45 mm.
The larvze are important after the ae mm. stage, and the pupz
after the 25 mm. stage.

Adult insects and fish become more important as the bass
increase in length, and these, with crayfish and a few midge
larvee and pupe, are the chief articles of diet in the food of
bass between 45 and 65 mm.

From the few yearlings examined, I would say that cray-
fish and fish with a few insects are the three important foods.

The food cycle seems to be copepods and cladocerans of
an almost pure diet to 15 mm.; then from 16 to 45 mm. mixed
with these are mayfly nymphs, midge larve and pupe, with
fish and adult insects ; and above 45 mm. fish, adult insects, and
crayfish are important. Although these overlap, the series is:
(1) entomostracans, (2) insects (larve, pupz, and adults), and
(3) crayfish and fish.

FOOD OF YOUNG LARGE-MOUTH BLACK BASS
IN SOME OHIO WATERS

By DrioG@ i: “Lurwer
Beloit College, Beloit, Wis.
and
W. C. Kraatz
Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

Selected specimens of young large-mouth black bass
taken, were immediately immersed in 5 to 10 per cent
formalin and the contents of the alimentary canal later
studied with the aid of binocular and compound micro-
scopes.

The large-mouth bass is well distributed over the state, and
probably occurs in every body of water which offers suitable
environment and is free from pollution. As compared with
the small-mouth bass, the large-mouth prefers relatively quiet
and deep waters containing much vegetation, such environment
being found in most of the iarger inland lakes, sometimes in
the larger streams, but seldom in the smaller streams.

The large-mouth bass in Ohio spawns from the last of
May to the middle of July, but for the most part spawning
is completed by the middle of June. The young bass remain
in schools for a few days after hatching, but they rapidly be-
come individualistic, and hunt singly. They appear to be
game fish from the time they begin to take food, darting about
on the surface and snapping at any small object that moves.
In suitable localities they remain near the surface in large
numbers, but dart below when disturbed. There is apparently
little migration, merely a general scattering out of the school,
as food is usually abundant in and about the vegetation.

The young bass considered here are all in their first sum-
mer or first year’s growth. While a reference is made to
one yearling bass examined, it is not considered in the tables,
nor within the range of this particular study.

Turner and Kraatz.—Food of Large-Mouth Bass 373

Twenty-six different articles of diet, that is, kinds or
groups of organisms or remains of such, were recognized in
the contents of the stomachs and intestines of the young bass.
These have been arranged in Table 1, giving the length
in millimeters of the fish examined; the total number of fish
of each length examined, and the percentage of the entire
volume of food which each article of diet forms in fishes of all
the various lengths.

Cladocera, Copepoda, and the larve and pupz of midges
(Chironomid) are the most abundant articles of food.
Ostracoda occur rather evenly distributed in the stomachs of
young of all sizes, but they are found only in very small num-
bers at best. Amphipoda constitute a fairly important food
for the intermediate size of young bass, but are relatively un-
important in the larger ones. Nymphs and adults of Corixa
and small fish are taken very freely by the largest of the
young bass. Mayfly nymphs are occasionally found in
stomachs of the intermediate-sized and larger fish, as was the
case of a few coming within the range of this report. How-
ever, in a larger yearling fish, 92 mm. in length, 22 mayfly
nymphs were found, constituting 95 per cent of its food.
Insects recognizable by the hard chitinous parts, but too much
broken up for identification, often formed the major part of
the diet of a fish, and were sufficiently abundant in the inter-
mediate and larger stages to form a fair proportion of the
total diet. The occurrence of filamentous alge was exceed-
ingly irregular. Sometimes such algz occurred as small frag-
ments, making a negligible proportion of the food, but in a
few exceptional cases formed nearly 100 per cent of the
stomach contents. The filaments, wadded together into small
pellets, proved to be Spirogyra and CEdogonium. Material,
undoubtedly animal remains, but so well digested as to render
further identification impossible, was listed as animal debris.
The other articles entered in the table were irregular in oc-
currence and in most cases were very small in quantity.

American Fisheries Society

374

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Turner and Kraatz.—Food of Large-Mouth Bass 375

This arrangement of the various articles of diet of the
fishes examined, brings to light some interesting facts as to
changes in food. For convenience the six chief articles are
shown in the graph, the figures and spaces running upright in-
dicating the percentage of the whole which each article forms,
and those running crosswise, the length of the fishes in which
each was found.

First: The food of the very young specimens consists of
few forms and these are all minute. The Cladocera are
mainly Bosmina longirostris and Chydorus sphaericus, and
the Copepoda nearly all are species of cyclops. The midge
larve are fairly abundant, but are very minute, the average
length being 1.97 mm. in the 10-15 mm. fish.

Second: The food of the intermediate forms becomes more
complex. There is a distinct decline in the number of Clado-
cera, Copepoda and midge larve, while the Amphipoda, of
which there are only a few very minute ones in the small fish,
become more important, forming 45 per cent of the total food
mass in fish of 35-40 mm. in length. There is also the intro-
duction of insect larva and nymphs, such as those of may-
flies, damselflies, beetles and Corixa, and also of fish remains.

Third: The larger forms have a relatively simple diet
again, in which larger insect larve, fishes and crayfish become
more important. Rarely a larger fish is taken in which the
Entomostraca, Amphipoda and very small insect larve con-
stitute a considerable part of the stomach contents; but the
tendency, as shown by the graph, is for the Entomostraca,
Amphipoda and midge larve to disappear almost entirely.

The question arises at once as to the reason for these defi-
nite changes in diet, and several solutions suggest themselves.
It is possible that part of the change may be accounted for
in the cycles of organisms that develop within the habitat
of the young bass. If this were the case, however, we should
expect a correlation between the appearance of an organism in
the habitat and its use as food. But in the case of Corixa,
for instance, one rather small species was found abundantly

iss)
N
OV

American Fisheries Society

5-10 10-15 15-20 20-25 25-50 30-85 35-40 40-50 50-60 60-70 70-80
mm. mm. mm. mm. mm. mm. mm mm. mm. mm. mm.
eee sseoceuae. {(Seecusees toa ++ om

een
faeteeee

Key to Graph.

Cladocera

Copepoda eee ee
Midge larve and pupe cove @g0e0
Amphipoda SEES HY
Corixa nymphs and adults -m~7W~ wv

Fish remains

Turner and Kraatz.—Food of Large-Mouth Bass 377

throughout the summer in the same localities with the bass;
and likewise Amphipoda and Entomostraca, of apparently the
same or very similar kinds, were generally present. Yet the
young bass consumes largely first one, then another, and later
still another of these foods. It might be urged that the bass
is by nature a selective feeder, choosing certain definite kinds
of food. But this would not furnish adequate reason for a
definite change in diet. The young bass is not a random
feeder, on the other hand, otherwise the stomach contents
would offer more promiscuous collections of food. Neither
is there any marked change in habit or mode of living that
would correspond to the periods of change in diet.

The results of a careful study of the lengths of the chief
different articles of food, together with the lengths of the
young bass, are shown in Table 2.

It seems that the size of the food as compared with the
size of the bass is the most important factor. It is likewise
the same factor which brings about a change in the diet later.
It will be noted from Table 2 that the 10-15 mm. bass eat
Cladocera which average only .35 mm. in length and that
with an increase in size of the fish, larger species of Cladocera,
such as Daphnia and Camptocercus and others, are eaten. The
same general correlation is shown in the size relationship of
the Copepoda and of the midge larve. Some very minute
amphipods appear in fish 12 mm. in length, but in 45 mm.
fish the average is 4.31 mm. The table shows that in bass
45 mm. in length the average size of all food animals is ap-
proximately 4 mm. to 4.5 mm. Corixa have not been taken,
up to this time, although they were present abundantly in
the waters. The species is one in which the adult is only
about 4.5 to 5 mm. long; a number of old nymphs, 4 mm.
long or slightly longer, were found in the food.

Corixa nymphs and adults become important in the food
of fish 45 mm. in length and upward, and it seems reasonable
that the bass turned to them at this stage because it had at-
tained a size when 4 mm. animals were not too large to be

378 American Fisheries Society

taken most conveniently as food. After 45 mm. the young
bass turns more to fish, and there is a definite increase in the
size of fish taken, as the bass grows larger. The same prin-
ciple of size relationship is still more evident in the grand

2. RELATION BETWEEN INCREASE IN LENGTH OF CHIEF ForMs or Foop
AND INCREASE IN LENGTH OF YOUNG LARGE-MoutH BLAcK Bass

Length of food eaten by ——

Fish Fish | Fish | Fish | Fish | Fish | Fish Fish | Fish
Chief article 10-15 15-20 | 20-25 | 25-30 | 30-35 | 35-40 | 40-50 60-70} 70-80
of food mm. mm. | mm. | mm. mm. mm. | mm
in in in in in in in
Vgth IJgth | l’gth | I’gth I’gth I’gth| I’gth
Cladocera: Mm. Mm. | Mm. | Mm. Mm. Mm. | Um.
Maximum ... 261 1) 43 .88 | 1.80 acetredlhatesie
Minimum... .26 31 +31 .52 alstista
IW OEE B Glic +35 37 48] 1.16
Copepoda:
Maximum .. . ype eet! sila ey
Minimum .. . 42 68 56 Ss
Average. ... -52 28571) :r204"|| 1-09
Midge larve and
pupe:
Maximum . . .| 4.00 2.10{ 4.00} 9.00 10.50
Minimum .. .| 2.20 1.40] 1.55 | 3.10 2.80
Average >) || 2.97) -X.80)| 2:07)1|) (5-41 5.16
Amphipoda:
Maximum . 5-25
Minimum ... 3.00
ANVOTARZSs Te eit 4.3K
Corixa nymphs and
adults:
Maximum .
Minimum S008 <vdedieg [eer
AVOTARC elias: lerl| taceets 4.00 4.50| 4.50
Fish:
Maximum . 36.00 | 24.00
Minimum 10.00 | 74.00
Average. 16.50 | 59.00
Grand average.. 05) 12.010) 16401 | 12:55 4-49 10.50 | 11.75

average of the lengths of all the chief forms eaten. The aver-
age rises with more or less regularity from .95 mm. in 10 to
15 mm. bass, to 11.75 mm. in the 70 to 80 mm. bass.

The young bass is a game fish from the time that it begins
to feed independently, and takes for its food moving objects
which it is physically possible for it to capture and eat. As

Turner and Kraatz.—Food of Large-Mouth Bass 379

it grows larger and swifter, it takes larger and more active
animals for food. If an animal be of suitable size the only
limitation to its use as food is its relative abundance and
there is little or no choice indicated for any particular animal
of the suitable size as long as it is active. This is the most
simple explanation. It does not seem necessary to invoke any
other complicating factors such as changes in habit, migration,
or definite selection on the part of the young bass.

A comparison of the food cycles of the young large-mouth
with that of the young small-mouth bass is of interest, owing
to differences in their general habits, causing minor differences
in their food cycles. The predominance of Entomostraca and
midge larve in the food of the very young is common to both
species. In the next stage the small-mouth bass turns imme-
diately to other insect larve, while the large-mouth bass takes
amphipods principally. This is to be accounted for by the
fact that the large-mouth bass frequents quiet waters where
masses of submerged vegetation afford feeding grounds for
innumerable amphipods, while the small-mouth bass is to be
found in waters freer of vegetation, and where insect larvze
probably supplant the amphipods. Both species take fish
and large insect larve principally during the late summer, but
the small-mouth bass becomes definitely piscivorous at an
earlier age than the large-mouth, the former at 12 mm. and
the latter at 35 mm. It is probable that the small-mouth
takes up the fish-eating habit earlier because of the lack of
other food of suitable size. Crayfish also play a larger part
in the food of the small-mouth, which is naturally to be ex-
pected in view of the fact that the small-mouth bass and the
crayfish both abound in the same habitat.

SUMMARY

1. The food of the young large-mouth black bass under-
goes two rather definite changes between the 10 and 85 mm.
stages.

380 American Fisheries Society

2. Up to 30 mm. in length the food consists almost en-
tirely of Entomostraca and minute midge larve.

3. From 30 to 50 mm. in length, Entomostraca become
negligible in quantity and midge larve diminish rapidly, while
amphipods form the principal article of diet, and larger insect
larve and fish are taken in small quantities.

4. From 50 to 80 mm. in length, Amphipoda, Entomos-
traca and midge larve practically disappear from the diet, the
food being principally larger insect larvz and fish.

5. The factors governing both the food taken by the
young fish and the changes in diet are: (a) The abundance of
suitable food in the water; (b) the size of the food organism;
and (c) movement on the part of the food organism.

6. The food cycles in the young of the large-mouth and
small-mouth bass are similar, though the changes occur at
slightly different ages, and there are minor differences in the
animals used as food which follow as a result of the differ-
ences in the habitats of the two species.

THE GIZZARD SHAD IN RELATION TO PLANTS
AND GAME FISHES

By LH. Cirrany

Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio

It is the purpose of this preliminary paper to record some
observations on the food and feeding habits of the young giz-
zard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum Le Sueur), and the place it
holds as a connecting link between microscopic plants and the
game fishes. This species, often called the hickory shad, is very
abundance at Buckeye, Indian, and Loramie Lakes, often more
than a thousand of the young being taken at one haul of the
collecting seine. It is less common in the other localities
covered by the survey in Ohio.

The fish collected were put into a five per cent solution of
formalin, thus preserving the contents of the stomach and intes-
tine and preventing further digestive action. The examination
of the contents of the digestive tract was made with a com-
pound microscope, the highest powers often being necessary
for identification of the food. Adult fishes are not considered
in this paper, examination being limited to young specimens
under seventy millimeters in length, measured from the point
of snout to the base of the caudal fin. About two hundred in-
dividuals were studied from the localities named above.

Since the excellent work of Forbes* nearly forty years ago,
very little study appears to have been made of the food of the
gizzard shad. According to Forbes the shad is ‘“‘a mud lover
par excellence’; swallows “large quantities of fine mud con-
taining about twenty per cent of minutely divided vegetable
debris”; and consumes, when young, food that is approxt-
mately 90 per cent microscopic animals and the rest microscopic
plants. From data at hand it appears that these statements

*On the food relations of freshwater fishes: a summary and dicussion. S. A.
Forbes. Bulletin, Illinois State Laboratory of Natural History, Vol. II, Art. 8, 1888.

382 American Fisheries Society

require considerable modification when applied to young fish
within the limits of this study.

The food of the young gizzard shad may be roughly
grouped into the following kinds, in order of their importance
as noted in the examination of stomach and intestinal contents :
microscopic unicellular plants (alge), microscopic animals, and
filamentous alge. Mud usually forms from ten to thirty per
cent of the contents, and a similar quantity is unrecognizable
plant debris. Mud is often entirely lacking from the stomach
contents and it is my belief that it is merely incidental to the
manner of feeding. No consideration is given, therefore, to its
varying amount in the digestive tract.

The gizzard shad feeds by swimming through the water
with its mouth open in an apparently aimless manner. The
presence of such masses of microscopic material in the diges-
tive tract is accounted for in part when the feeding apparatus
of the fish is examined. The very numerous fine gill rakers
on the gill arches oppose the escape through the gill slits of very
small objects which enter the mouth of the fish with the water
of respiration. Thus like a very fine sieve, these allow the
water to pass out through the gill slits as the fish swims along,
while the minute organisms are retained and introduced into
its alimentary canal.

The gizzard shad is the most wonderful combination of
tow net and centrifuge that one could desire. Wherever this
fish was found, it was not necessary to do any towing to get
an estimate of the number and kinds of microscopic plants, for
the stomach contents represented a concentrated sample of the
plankton. The number of different kinds of microscopic alge
found in an identifiable condition in the digestive tract of the
gizzard shad is markedly large. Ina single fish taken at Buck-
eye Lake on July 1, fifty species and varieties of alge were
found; from the specimens examined to date from the various
localities named above, the number of species exceeds 140 and
will doubtless reach considerably higher. The majority of
these are unicellular and colonial forms included in the group

Tiffany.—The Gizzard Shad 383

known as Protococcales; a number are desmids and diatoms:
and a few are filamentous. The number of any particular kind,
especially among the Protococcales, seems to depend directly
upon the richness of the plankton present. No attempt is made
in this paper to give the identification of the microscopic plants
and animals—a further study is necessary before such a report
can be made.*

The following table gives in approximate percentages the
food of the gizzard shad in a comparative way for each locality :

APPROXIMATE PERCENTAGES OF KINDS oF Foop IN GIzzARD SHAD

‘ Micro- Micro- Filamentous Plant
Locality. alge. animals. alge. debris.
Percentage. Percentage. Percentage. Percentage.

Buckeye Lake -. ... . 80-90 0-5 0-2 5-10
Loramie cake %, *.) 52) 03; 75-90 2-6 ° 5-20
Indian “Lake sg <<: 75-88 3-5 2-4 10-15
St) Mary7s) lake 4. 3 80-90 6-8 O-I } 8-12
Chippewa Lake . . . 80-90 1-3 O-1 5-10
Portage Lakes .. . 70-90 10-15 2-5 \ 10-15

One of the outstanding features of the foregoing table is
the constancy in the percentage of microscopic plants found in
the fishes examined, regardless of locality or size within the
range of this study. The kinds of alge comprising the food
were not the same for different localities, and even for the same
locality differences were noted in fish collected in June and
August. This variation is doubtless due to the geographic dis-
tribution of the plants and to the fact that most alge have
rather definite seasonal cycles of vegetative development. But
the more or less constant percentage seems to indicate that the
gizzard shad is able to utilize a rather large variety of micro-
scopic plants. The writer hopes to be able to follow out some
of the seasonal changes for a given locality in the near future.
Another interesting observation is the comparative sameness
of diet of the fish throughout the period it is attaining a length
of seventy millimeters and even more. Many other fishes, like

* A complete list of the alge determined in the food of the Gizzard Shad appeared
in the Ohio Journal of Science for February, 1921.

384 American Fisheries Society

the small and large-mouth bass, make decided changes in the
kind of food taken during the period of their growth to a
similar length. An examination of two gizzard shad 200 mil-
limeters in length did not materially alter the percentages as
given above, with the exception that there was a greater amount
of unrecognizable debris.

The animal percentages are not so constant, the amount
being sometimes zero, but it seems certain that no discrimina-
tion is exercised in food selection. The gizzard shad is chiefly
a vegetarian, but the percentages of animal food present are
too large to be considered otherwise than as the animal part
of the plankton. On the other hand it forms no such large a
factor as the report of Forbes would indicate, which means
merely that in the present case the plant life was proportionately
more abundant. Towing records indicate the same proportions
of animal and plant life in the plankton.

The filamentous algze were always present in small quanti-
ties, and there was but a single instance of the presence of
any parts of the higher plants. In one gizzard shad the re-
mains of some epidermal and palisade cells of a small leaf
were found, but it must be considered purely accidental. The
filamentous algze were largely young plants, broken up into
relatively small pieces. No plant was ever observed longer
than three-tenths of a millimeter, and the material was never
wadded up, either in the gizzard or in the intestine.

Not more than a decade or two ago most ichthyologists
were agreed that the gizzard shad was a beautiful but never-
theless worthless fish. That it is beautiful no one will dispute.
With its silvery white sides and its graceful rapid dashes
through the water near the surface, it makes a very attractive
fish. But it is decidedly not worthless. While it is not a game
fish and at the present time furnishes very little food for man,
it holds a very important place in the life cycle of a number
of our best game fish, notably the small and large-mouth bass,
the crappie, and the white bass. The younger gizzard shad fur-

Tiffany.—The Gizzard Shad 385

nishes excellent food for these fishes, which experience no dif-
ficulty in disposing of the too numerous bones.

As noted above, the shad is almost wholly a vegetarian, and
thrives on plants so tiny and minute that sometimes 10,000 of
them laid side by side would not reach an inch. These minute
plants form a very important part of the flora of most unpol-
luted bodies of water and are present by the millions in nearly
every lake of the state. None of the other fishes seems to be
able to utilize this great source of food to any considerable
extent except when quite young. Thus the gizzard shad does
not interfere in the least with the food supply of the game
fishes, and is itself excellent food for the majority of our
game fishes.

The gizzard shad offers for the game fishes one of the most
direct routes from ‘“‘manufacturer to consumer” that is pos-
sible among fishes. Of course, plants ultimately form the basic
food for all living organisms, but the cycle is oftentimes a long
one. The Chinese proverb, “Big fish eat little fish; little fish
eat shrimp, and shrimp eat mud,” gives a cycle that comes very
nearly standing the test of modern science, if we understand
the mud to be microscopic plants and animals. An ordinary
food cycle of a fish might be illustrated by a bass feeding on
smaller fish; these in turn on tiny animals which may eat the
larve of still smaller animal organisms; and the latter living
on microscopic algze. But the cycle from the same bass through
the gizzard shad to microscopic alge is a much shorter and
more direct route. Thus the gizzard shad holds a rather unique
position in that it may completely bridge the gap between our
game fishes and the ultimate source of their food supply, the
microscopic plants.

In 1888, Forbes wrote this very important paragraph about
the gizzard shad, but it is only recently that any practical ap-
plication is being made of such knowledge:

Among the soft-finned fishes the most valuable as food for other
kinds is the gizzard shad (Dorosoma), this single fish being about twice

as common in adults as all the minnow family taken together. It made
forty per cent of the food of the wall-eyed pike; a third of that of the

386 American Fisheries Society

black bass; nearly half of that of the common “pike,” or pickerel; two-
thirds of that of the four specimens of golden shad examined; and a
third of the food of the gars. The only other fishes in whose stomachs
it was recognized were the yellow cat (Ameiurus natalis) and the young
white bass (Roccus). It thus seems to be the especial food of the large
game fishes and other particularly predaceous kinds.

It seems important that such information should be widely
distributed among those interested in the propagation of fishes.
As an illustration of benefits to be derived from such knowl-
edge, mention may be made of conditions at the newly formed
Milton Reservoir near Newton Falls, Ohio. This fine body of
water with its plentiful supply of microscopic algz, as ascer-
tained from towed material, offers excellent living conditions
for the gizzard shad, and its presence means plenty of food
for the bass. Dr. Raymond C. Osburn has already advised
in one of his reports to the State Bureau, that this reservoir
be stocked with the gizzard shad.

SUMMARY

The observations recorded in the paper may be briefly sum-
marized as follows:

1. The distribution of the gizzard shad is general for the
inland lakes of Ohio.

2. Its food consists, in the main, of microscopic alge,
with a small variable percentage of microscopic animals.

3. It seems that mud, though present to some extent in
most of the fishes examined, is incidental.

4. The gizzard shad furnishes excellent food for most of
our game fishes, notably the large-mouth and small-mouth bass,
the crappie, and the white bass.

5. The gizzard shad holds an almost unique position as a
direct connection between the microscopic plants and the game
fishes, interfering in no way with the food supply of the latter

SOME FEATURES IN THE MIGRATION OF THE
SOCKEYE SALMON AND THEIR PRACTICAL
SIGNIFICANCE*

By Henry B. Warp
University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois

Problems suggested by the striking life history of the Pa-
cific salmon have attracted the attention of naturalists and
fish culturists for a long time, and many able men have worked
on the subject. Their contributions have given positive infor-
mation with reference to many factors in the situation, but
the subject is too large and too complex to have yielded en-
tirely to their efforts and some questions have been left un-
solved. It is also necessary to determine the precise appli-
cation of these observations and principles to the practical ques-
tions that present themselves at the present day.

The importance of the problem can hardly be overesti-
mated. Both of the great countries prominently represented in
this meeting count as one of their greatest natural resources
the salmon fisheries of the Pacific coast. In both of them the
feeling has long been cherished by some well-informed men
that this important and valuable resource was in danger of
serious diminution, if not of total destruction. One of our
great political leaders, himself an enthusiastic out-doors man, a
lover of nature, and a vigorous supporter of conservation, rec-
ognized the impending danger by appointing in 1902 a com-
mission to investigate the salmon fisheries of Alaska, and the
Alaska Salmon Commission under the leadership of David
Starr Jordan laid the foundation for a scientific work which
has been continued energetically by many investigators in both
Canada and the United States since that time.

* This paper is based on investigations made by the writer while in the service of

the Bureau of Fisheries, and is published by permission of the Commissioner of
Fisheries.

Contribution from the Zoological Laboratory of the University of Illinois,
No. 180.

388 American Fisheries Society

Perhaps the outstanding fact in connection with all of these
studies is the demonstration that the destruction of the salmon
is proceeding with tremendous rapidity, and the danger of its
extermination or of the reduction of numbers to a point which
will threaten a great industry is a consideration, not of some
time many years hence, but of the immediate future.

There has also come out of these studies a firm conviction
that joint action on the part of the two governments and their
workers is essential for the solution of the problem and the
protection of the industry. I think it must be equally clear
to all that to provide for joint action there must be thorough
understanding on both sides of the boundary. Certainly the
first and most fundamental preliminary to such understanding
is the demonstration of the essential facts in the situation and
their coordination with the practices that are in vogue in such
fashion as to indicate the lines of action calculated to protect
the species and continue the industry. It is with a view to
contributing a little at least to this basis of facts that I present
this paper before the Society at this meeting.

For a number of years I have been privileged to conduct
studies of the Pacific salmon during the season of its fresh
water migration, and to study the factors in the environment
and in the organism which, by their mutual interaction, pro-
duce the complex conditions that are described in relating the
life history of the species. It has seemed to me that part of
the confusion and difference of opinion that has been evi-
dent in the past might be due to the efforts to solve the entire
problem of the migration in a single investigation. The move-
ments of the salmon constitute a remarkable story. At some
period in life they desert their feeding grounds in salt water,
move towards the estuaries, ascend the streams, fulfill their
reproductive function, and perish. The migration is a con-
tinuous movement. Whatever the factors that control it may
be, they are all united in the fulfillment of the reproductive
function. They work without interruption and with striking
directness to bring about this consummation. However in

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 389

dealing with so complex a problem, it is frequently valuable
to analyze it into subordinate stages, even though they be some-
what artificial, and to endeavor to solve part of the question
in the hope that such solution may indicate a basis for the
solution of the entire problem.

With this thought in view, I shall confine myself in this
paper to that part of the subject which has been primarily in—
mind in all the investigations which I have carried out in the
field. This is the fresh water period in the migration of the
Pacific salmon, the life and activities of the fish from the time
when, having left the salt water of the estuaries, it is definitely
embarked upon the upstream movement. From the time when
it begins to ascend the rivers until the time when the eggs or
milt have been discharged and the fish dies, it is under the in-
fluence of a more definite and restricted environment than that
to which it is subject previously. I shall further limit the dis-
cussion to a single species of the five that occur on the coast
and visit these waters. This is the red or Alaska salmon,
Onchorhynchus nerka, also somewhat widely known as the
sockeye. This species, being of paramount commercial im-
portance because of its numbers and the price it commands in
the market, has received considerable attention at the hands
of various investigators both in Canada and the United States.
It has not however, I think, been intensively studied during
this period with reference to the factors that influence its move-
ments.

Possibly at the outset it is wise for me to confess that I
agree fully with those who have commented on the very com-
plex and marvellous character of the migration. I cannot,
however, share their view that such complexity is incompre-
hensible or beyond the power of observation and experiment
to explain when ultimately all the factors in the situation have
been analyzed in their bearing on the movements of the fish.
It seems to me fairly well established scientifically that fish are
primarily responsive to environmental stimuli, that their ac-
tions are due to external influences which may be difficult to

390 American Fisheries Society

detect and perhaps still more difficult to explain but which
nevertheless justify the student in attempting to find an ex-
planation of their actions in the environmental factors and in
expecting confidently to secure a solution of the problem ulti-
mately along these lines.

I shall not attempt to enter here into a discussion of the
parent stream theory so tenaciously held by fishermen and in
the past so vigorously combated by some most distinguished
ichthyologists. I do not desire to appear as an attorney for
either side in this discussion. It is my object to tell as clearly
as possible of certain facts which I have observed so repeatedly
that they seem to me to hold a significant relation to the move-
ments of the salmon, and to leave the decision to the judg-
ment of others, both here and elsewhere, who may now and
in the future test them as facts and in their relations to the
problems under discussion, with a view to determining their
correctness and the justification of the relations observed and
of the conclusions drawn from such relations.

MIGRATION ROUTE OF RED SALMON

The precise route followed by the migrating fish in any
given stream has been discussed by various students of the
subject. There is little doubt that in all classes under natural
conditions it is uniform and precise. Two somewhat different
phases present themselves. These are related to the character
of the stream, and may be designated as the route taken by
the salmon in streams having a single spawning ground only;
and, second, that followed by the salmon in streams which
carry fish going to several spawning grounds. In both cases
one is struck by the peculiarities of the situation and the diffi-
culty of finding any a priori explanation for the facts. In
most cases these facts are clear and their invariability is shown
by the consistent testimony of the native races which have
always depended, as most of them do, upon the salmon for
food, at least in those regions where the salmon migration as-
sumes considerable proportions. It is evident that the con-

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 391

sistent practices of the native fishermen are determined by the
definite movements of the fish. Moreover, however unusual
these movements may be, I presume we are right in assuming
that some factor or factors determine them definitely, since
they are in all cases invariable under natural conditions.

The factors which control existing conditions are difficult
to determine. Whether the stream be resorted to by a single
run of salmon or visited by several waves, seeking different
spawning grounds, the conditions appear on first examination
to be equally complex and inexplicable. Many parts of the
stream that would afford apparently admirable spawning
grounds are never visited. One may even find cases in which
the spawning grounds actually visited are apparently inferior
in size and fitness to others on the same stream to which no
red salmon resort. The study of the mechanical factors that
might possibly be determinative has led to no definite results.
For such studies the multitude of short, many-branched
streams in southeastern Alaska offers a most profitable field
for study. The movements of the fish do not depend upon the
swiftness of the water, for they pass at times from swift water
into quiet, and again from a quiet stream into rapid waters.
The waters which they leave are sometimes shallow and some-
times deep in comparison with those which they choose. In
fact, it is not difficult to find places where the salmon turn from
a stream that is readily passable into one that at the moment
is so shallow or so obstructed that they make their way up-
ward with difficulty and may even be blocked for the time
being. So many instances of variability in these particulars
can be found that one is justified in concluding that the vol-
ume and swiftness of the stream are not determining factors in
directing the movements of the salmon or in leading them to
select one tributary above another or in preference to the main
stream itself.

Once embarked upon a stream they strive constantly up-
ward, and yet not with equal pace. In the lower tide-influenced
sections of the great rivers it was observed many years ago by

392 American Fisheries Society

Rutter that the fish alternated in movements, traveling up and
then again somewhat downstream as the tide shifted. This
may be a uniform response to the current stimulus, for in
these regions the current changes with the change of tide, but
as the descending stream is stronger and its influence is felt
for longer periods of time, so the ascending movements of the
fish are superior to its reverse movements, and the salmon
ultimately pass into the river above the tidal influence and then
mount steadily upwards. The portion of the migration of
the red salmon in tidal waters has not yet been followed defi-
nitely so far as I know. Once the fish have started to ascend
the part of the stream which lies above tidal influences, they
press steadily onward. The rate of migration has not been
observed for the red salmon with a definiteness to determine,
even in general terms, the rate of progress.

I have also made many observations with reference to the
character of the water, without being able to find any uni-
formity in the conditions that conforms to the course of the
migrating red salmon. In some places they pass from turbid,
silt-laden waters to clear tributaries. In other places they
seem to have selected that branch of the stream which carried
the larger amount of sediment or was of the milky-white color
so characteristic of glacial-fed waters. Furthermore, in south-
eastern Alaska, where there are so many short and highly-
branched streams, one can find cases where the entire basin
of the stream is underlaid by a single rock formation, so that
the materials in solution must be identical in chemical char-
acter, and no doubt also in the amount of mineral substances
in solution; moreover, the plant growth is uniform in char-
acter, if not in amount, throughout the entire basin of the
stream, and it is difficult to formulate a theory which could
in any way account for chemical differences in waters of such
a limited and uniform area.

The rapid, turbulent character of the salmon streams indi-
cates clearly their extreme poverty in minute organisms and
the lakes are strikingly plankton poor so that there is only a

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 393

scanty food supply for the salmon fry. Further, that food
supply is apparently uniform in all parts of the stream basin
so that the return of the adult to a definite point does not seem
to be correlated with any peculiarly favorable conditions for
the development of the young.

It is hardly profitable to recount further the evidence which
has led to the rejection of these hypotheses. They are not
adequate to account for the movements of the migrating sal-
mon since the influences are not in definite fashion coordi-
nated with those movements. There is one environmental
stimulus, however, which has shown a high degree of cor-
relation with the path which the red salmon follows in its
migration in fresh water and that is the relative temperature
of the different waters. This I propose to discuss more fully
but first wish to consider one phase of the generally recognized
current stimulus. In fresh water the red salmon moves con-
stantly up stream. While it is not influenced by the strength
of the current, for it may desert a strong current to follow
more quiet waters, yet in the largest streams it seems to modify
its behavior, perhaps necessarily but yet in a way to affect
conspicuously its distribution and incidentally its relations to
commercial fishing, by sticking close to the shore, or having a
route which follows one bank of the stream and is distinct
from the route along the opposite shore.

During my last visit to Alaska I had the opportunity of
testing some of the working hypotheses previously formed
on a new type of stream. The Copper River is much larger
than any other stream I have previously studied in which the
red salmon is found, and careful attention was given to the
special features of the situation with a view to determining
the differences, if any, that characterize the migration of the
red salmon here in contrast with its movements in smaller
streams in other regions. One of the first factors which at-
tracted my attention was the apparent inclination of the fish
to migrate upstream near the banks. This was first noticed

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at the Abercrombie Rapids. Here the river makes a rapid and
violent descent for a short distance, and it was evident even
on the first inspection of the situation that the red salmon
must experience great difficulty in ascending the stream at this
point. It seemed altogether likely that the fish would have
to follow a course near one shore or the other. On the east
bank there are several large eddies in which it is well known
that the fish congregate in large numbers. The opposite bank
does not possess any such conspicuous places of refuge, but
there is a multitude of little eddies formed by jutting rocks,
irregular in size and shape, but constituting a series of resting
places, so that the fish can make the ascent of the rapids by
passing through the series without being drawn into the full
current of the river at any point and without being compelled
to traverse the more violent stretches of water for more than
a few feet.

The fishermen who are working along this shore are very
successful in scooping the salmon out of these minor eddies,
and have learned the spots at which the fish rest longest, for
these are the places where the scoop net functions most success-
fully. As the water in the stream is exceedingly turbid, it is
not possible for the fish to see the fisherman, so the net sweeps
through without alarming the fish. Having scooped out the
contents of the eddy the fisherman pauses a moment to permit
other fish to come in, and then makes another sweep to gather
in the salmon which have reached it in the interval. When
the fish are migrating rapidly, this fishery is very successful
and, I think, likely to catch a large percentage of the fish passing
while dip netting is being carried on.

The employees of the cannery located near this point insist
upon the view that the salmon also use the center of the stream,
since in the period of migration they have often been able to
see the fins cutting the water far out from the shore. It
must be borne in mind that the turbidity of the stream here
is so great as to prevent seeing a fish even a short distance

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 395

below the surface. The only time at which any fish could
possibly be detected, if even a short distance from the shore,
would be when it actually comes to the surface and the back
fin rises above the water. I have no desire to question the
accuracy of the observations, which is insisted upon. I think
that the fishermen have seen the back fins of fish appearing at
various points in the open stream, and perhaps at certain times
these appearances have been so numerous as to suggest a large
number of fish passing upstream through that portion of the
river. But even a brief study of the rapidity of the stream at
this point will, I think, suffice to demonstrate to anyone that
even a powerful fish like the red salmon would be unable to
stem the current for more than a very brief interval of time.

For myself, I should be inclined to explain the presence
of fish in the open current of the river in an entirely different
fashion from that just suggested. One who has observed the
salmon ascending rapids in a clear stream is familiar with the
general actions of the fish under these conditions. They are
enough like those of some other species to demand only a brief
explanation in order that the situation may be clearly under-
stood. The fish dart from point to point, starting from an
eddy or protected position, passing with a rush through a
stretch where they are more or less exposed to the force of
the current, and aiming to reach promptly another protected
place where they hang resting and gathering strength for an-
other rush. In this way, step by step, the long stretch of diffi-
cult water is overcome, but at no time do they, in my experi-
ence, attempt to pass a long stretch of violent water at a single
effort. They act with such care that it seems as if they were
clearly bent upon saving themselves as much as possible and
spending the minimum amount of energy in overcoming the
difficult water. Furthermore, I am sure that everyone who has
watched fish under these conditions has seen not one but many
individuals from time to time make a rush, get caught by
the full current or by broken water before they have actually

396 American Fisheries Society

reached their objective, and be carried downstream, at first
fighting powerfully against the force of the current, but later
slowing up or again making a rush to reach a protected situa-
tion in an eddy or under the lee of some rock. Now if these
movements were carried out in a stream which was so dense
that it was impossible to see the body of a fish even when
near the surface and one could get evidence of position only
when the back fin cut the surface, I think it is clear that one
might at times note the frequent appearance of fish breaking
the surface in the open current. It would, however, be
wrong to conclude that these movements were made in con-
nection with the regular upstream rush of the fish. They
would rather be the appearance of those fish which had been
swept off their course and were either stopped by the current
and forced to the surface, or were being gradually driven
downstream, after having been caught by the current and
forced out of the usual line of movement up the rapids.

But the tendency of the fish to move along the banks, de-
termined by necessity in the region of the rapids, seems to
have been followed in other regions also. In travelling up
the Copper River and its tributary, the Klutina River, there
was not much opportunity for us to make careful study of
this point, but we were camped for two days half a mile below
the outlet of Lake Klutina, where the stream is broad and
rapid, though not broken and tumultuous. While we were
at this point the salmon were passing up regularly and we fre-
quently saw them and also heard them jumping in the river at
night. Just at the time of our visit the most of the jumping
was near the opposite bank, where a projecting point and a
little bay behind it made an eddy in which the salmon were
abundant. We went up and down the stream to the lake
for several days, and in no case did I see a salmon jumping
in the center of the stream. They were more abundant along
the southwest bank opposite our camp, but they were also

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 397

jumping at intervals along the shore on which we were en-
camped,

In Lake Klutina itself conditions seemed to be equally
definite. This body of water is crescentic in form and some
25 miles in length, with a maximum breadth at the center of
the crescent of about 4 miles. I watched carefully for the
appearance of salmon during all of the time we were either
moving along on the beach or following close to the shore in
our boat. Fish were seen jumping regularly in the water
adjacent to each bank, but in no instance did I find them jump-
ing in the open water of the lake. Now this evidence is ob-
viously imperfect, but it indicates the same conditions I have
found elsewhere and it agrees with the situation in Lake
Tazlina which we studied a month later. It looks much as
if the fish in their movements followed the general shore
outline of the lake and in the rivers also moved along near
the banks. Much more evidence will have to be collected
before one can accept this as a final demonstration. Mean-
while, it may be taken as a working hypothesis. There is
every reason to accept it as the only possible condition of
movement through difficult channels, such as the Abercrombie
Rapids, and it will aid in explaining the conditions of move-
ment into subordinate streams.

The situation just pointed out has a very direct and im-
portant bearing on fixing limitations on the fishing of the
stream. The Copper River is one of those few streams in
which fishing for red salmon is allowed in fresh water. Miles
Lake, just below the rapids, is viewed as a splendid fishing
ground, and large numbers of fish have been taken in the rapids
also. At present fishing is confined to part of one shore, and
is entirely forbidden on the other bank. It is apparent at
once that if the streams of migrating salmon which pass up
both banks go to different spawning grounds, then this method
is directly responsible for the depletion of the run at one place,
and conversely serves for the protection of those fish that

398 American Fisheries Society

go to another series of spawning areas. It is, I think, further
evident that netting fish from the rocky banks along the rapids
is well calculated to advantage the fisherman rather than the
fish, and to work serious havoc on certain waves of salmon
migration, for whether the fish go to a set of spawning
grounds connected with that bank only or are dispersed more
regularly over the different spawning grounds of the upper
river, the excessive catching will reduce to a minimum the
number of fish that escape, and may even be sufficient, by
virtue of the concerted fishing of a line of dip-netters along
this bank, to eliminate almost entirely the run that is passing
up at the time intensive fishing is practiced.

In general it seems as if river fishing for commercial pur-
poses were inadvisable in Alaska streams.

There is another physical factor which I am led to think
exerts a controlling influence in some cases, at least, on the
movements of the red salmon, and that is temperature. Of
this influence I have spoken more fully in another place. But
to avoid possible misunderstanding, a brief general statement
must be introduced here. At the start one should bear in
mind that the influence may be very real without being abso-
lute. In other words, it is only one of the factors which
determine activity and in a given case may be more or less
influential than another factor. Again it is contact with a
change in temperature rather than the absolute level of temper-
ature which ordinarily at least affects the red salmon. There
are two crucial points or types of choice in the fresh-water
career of the red salmon. First, when such a salmon, moving
upstream, reaches a place where two streams join, it must take
one or the other path—and, as already stated, its path is fixed
and invariable; it always selects one and not the other. Sec-
ond, when the red salmon, having attained the lake in which
it is to spawn, comes to choose a spawning ground, it selects
one or more areas for that purpose. While the choice of the
salmon in this respect has not been so generally recorded,

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 399

yet it is confined in fact to a few places, or even to a single
stretch of the shore or a single small inlet, even though other
points seem to the observer to be equally favorable. In other
words, the choice of a spawning ground is precise and definite.
In both of these crucial choices, I think the salmon is in-
fluenced primarily by temperature conditions, and I propose
now to set forth briefly some of the evidence that leads me.
to support this view; and then to consider the practical bear
ing of these views on the problems of salmon culture and
conservation. Out of many localities studied, I select two
for detailed consideration.

Clear Creek, a small tributary of the Copper River, empties
into the easternmost channel of the river, a few miles above
its mouth. At the time of our first visit, July 22, the red
salmon were schooling in considerable numbers in every pool
along the lower course of the creek. There is no lake at any
point on the creek. Near the mountains the stream is marshy,
sluggish and shallow; but from the moment it leaves this area
it is a winding stream with alternating deeper pools and shal-
lows, all with a gravel bottom. Not a single red salmon was
seen above the point where the stream came from the broader,
shallower and more sluggish area and there was no trace of
previous spawning above this point. However, from a point
a few yards below that area throughout the more swiftly flow-
ing section of the stream, salmon were abundant nearly up to
its junction with the Copper where the waters were deeper
and quieter. We also found the fish spawning here on our
return from the trip inland. There was, however, at that date,
September 6, no opportunity to examine the stream more in
detail.

This statement of conditions shows clearly and strikingly
how Clear Creek differs from the ordinary spawning ground
of the red salmon. Here the fish are spawning not in a lake
but in the stream itself. Furthermore, they have not picked
out the slower and more quiet portions of the water course
‘ but are found only in those parts which have a steady and

400 American Fisheries Society

considerable current. Finally, they have not penetrated to the
real headwaters of the stream but are all grouped in the lower
half of its course. A series of temperature readings taken
with some care showed the following situation:

The east channel of the Copper above the mouth of Clear
Creek had on July 22 a temperature of 48.5° F. At the same
hour the temperature of Clear Creek fifty yards above its
mouth was only 44° F. At the railroad trestle the tempera-
ture of the creek had dropped to a level of 42° to 42.5° F.
A mile above this and just below the marshy region it was
again 44° F. and the same temperature obtained throughout
that region. The stream thus showed in the first place that
it was 4° cooler than the water of the Copper River at their
junction, and that the temperature after falling 2° at the trestle
again became warmer some distance farther up at the marshy
region. On running a line of temperatures across the stream
above the trestle it appeared that near the right bank the water
was 43.5° to 44° F. In the center it was full 44° and near
the left bank it varied from 41° to 42.5° F. Furthermore,
the lowest temperature found was in only one or two limited
areas. The exact examination of these places demonstrated
the presence of an inflow of seepage water not sufficient in
amount to constitute a visible spring or localized at special
points, but flowing in over a small area of the bottom in sufh-
cient quantity to reduce the temperature very noticeably at
that point.

It should be mentioned in this connection that the tem-
peratures are not constant from day to day, for on the follow-
ing day, July 23, the stream was about 2° colder, as the tem-
perature at the right bank was 42°, in the center 42.5° and at
the left bank 39.5° F. On the same day the temperature of
the Copper River where the railroad track crossed the east
channel was 49° F.

It was evident that the stretch of Clear Creek above the
trestle was supplied along the left bank constantly and largely
with seepage water so that the temperature was kept distinctly

Ward.—Mnigration of the Sockeye Salmon 401

below that of the stream above, and it was in this section that
the fish were most abundant and most actively engaged in nest
building, as well as furthest advanced in coloring and conse-
quently nearest the spawning period. Above the point where
the stream emerges from the marshy region there was de-
tected little or no cold water seepage from the bank, and con-
sequently the temperature of the water was distinctly higher.
The amount of water added to the stream in the way indi-
cated must have been considerable, for the volume of Clear
Creek where it flows under the trestle is apparently at least
twice as great as where it emerges from the swampy area, a
mile or two above the trestle. These facts serve to explain
that the situation in the stream accords with the movement
of the salmon, which kept themselves in the cooler part of the
creek and spawned in the section where a steady inflow of
cold water gave the minimum temperatures found in the
stream.

Although this spring-fed region is the coldest area of the
water during the summer season, it will evidently be the most
stable and hence the warmest during the winter. According to
the testimony of men familiar with the region, this part of the
stream remains open until very late in the year and does not
freeze over until long after other waters are solidly covered
with ice. Evidently also the gravels in the vicinity of springs
are least likely to become frozen and hence afford greatest pro-
tection to the developing eggs. Jordan and Evermann (1904)
state that freezing kills the eggs, and if any areas in this region
avoid that condition in the long, severe winter, it must be the
gravel beds in which springs emerge.

On the west side of the Copper River valley at a distance
of 20 or 30 miles from the stream and about 150 miles from
the mouth of the Copper River are three large lakes that have
been said to be important spawning grounds for the red sal-
mon. These three are lakes Tonsina, Klutina, and Tazlina.
Lake Tonsina is the farthest south and the smallest. Lake
Tazlina lies 50 miles northwest of it and is the largest. Lake

402 American Fisheries Society

Klutina, located midway between, is intermediate in size. The
lakes are alike in being crescentic in form, surrounded, at least
in part, by mountains and fed by the run-off of great glaciers.
The two larger lakes are 20 to 30 miles long and 5 to 6 miles
in maximum breadth. The upper horn of the crescent points
pretty nearly east and gives rise to a stream which is the out-
Jet of the lake. The other horn points nearly straight south
into the mountains and is in connection with large glaciers.
Each lake has several lateral tributaries. In each case certain
of these tributaries carry salmon and afford spawning grounds
for them, whereas others are without these fish. A stream
known as Saint Anne Creek enters Klutina Lake from the
northwest. This stream was visited twice during our stay in
that region.

Our visits fell fortunately at times that yielded important
results for the general problem under discussion. Saint Anne
Creek is a small stream which enters from the northwest ap-
proximately at the center of the outer curve of the crescent
of Lake Klutina. It drains a considerable body of shallow
water known as Saint Anne Lake, which is located about six
or eight miles from Lake Klutina and is about four miles long
by one mile wide. The stream has a gentle fall over a gravelly
bottom without rapids or serious obstructions. While the
depth does not vary greatly, the creek forms a succession of
small curves, in the elbow of which a deeper, more quiet area
alternates with the shallower, swifter stretches connecting the
quiet pools.

We first visited this creek on August 10, passing up through
the stream bed a distance of three miles or more. A large
number of spawning fish were seen. The shallow stretches
along the inside of the curves made by the stream were cov-
ered with dead fish. While many of these fish had been par-
tially eaten by bears, the majority of them were relatively
fresh.

This stream has a broad and shallow delta in front of it,
so that the water spreads out widely before coming in contact

Ward.—Mzugration of the Sockeye Salmon 403

with the main body of the lake. At the time of our visit the
current in the outlet was gentle, so that the mingling of the
waters with the lake waters must have been very gradual, and
this could be followed by the eye since the creek carried clear
water whereas the lake waters were milky. No evidence was
found at this time that any fish were entering the creek from
the lake or were waiting around the mouth of the creek.

At this time the temperatures taken were as follows: In
the lake 100 yards from shore and an equal distance below
the mouth of the creek, 49.5° F.; 100 yards above the mouth
of the creek, 48.5°; in the creek 250 yards from the mouth,
47° F.

On the following day we went to the head of Lake Klutina
and did not return until August 19. On that date a trip up
Saint Anne Creek a distance of two miles showed that the
spawning fish which had been abundant in the bends eight
days before had almost entirely disappeared. Only a very
few spent fish were still alive. Furthermore, the dead fish
which were on hand in large numbers on the shallows had
been eaten on the spot or dragged away, so that only scant
traces were left of the very considerable numbers conspicuous
at the previous visit, and the visible remains were mostly skele-
tons picked clean. It would have been difficult for anyone who
visited the creek on August 19 to have made any accurate esti-
mate of the actual number of fish which were spawning there
only a few days before. Fish were still passing up the lake
in large numbers, and apparently going by the mouth of
this creek. There was no evidence that any had entered the
creek recently or were inclined to consider using the stream
as a spawning ground.

This instance indicates very clearly that a single visit to
a stream, unless it occurs at a time that is distinctly favorable,
may give a false impression concerning the utilization of the
stream for spawning purposes or the size of the run that
visits this particular spawning ground. It will be noted that
during the time between our visits the volume of the outflow

404 American Fisheries Society

of the stream had also decreased considerably, for we were
able to ford the creek at the mouth, where on the previous
visit the water had been 12 to 15 inches deeper and fording
was impossible.

Later we visited Saint Anne Lake and a study of the con-
ditions there indicated clearly a marked and constant reduc-
tion in volume and a gradual rise in temperature during the
period just before our arrival at the lake. For a considerable
period the weather had been clear and sunny with very little
rain. The general aspect of the country shows that Saint
Anne Creek gets the major part of its volume from the lake
and only a smaller amount from lateral tributaries. The lake
lies in the flat land distant from the mountains, and can not
be in receipt of a constant supply of cold water from melting
snows. When the winter snows have mostly melted and the
storms of early summer are at an end, the water level of the
lake stands at its maximum height and the outlet creek carries
its greatest volume of water. The lower end of the lake
near the outlet, a stretch of two or three miles in length, is
very shallow and had warmed up considerably in comparison
with the other waters we had tested. In consequence, at the
time of our visit its temperature stood at 55° F. Colder water
was running into the creek at various places along its course.
and the volume of this inflow was sufficient to reduce the tem-
perature of the stream below that of the lake when the dis-
charge from the lake was reduced in volume. During the
warm sunny days which characterized this period there was
opportunity for the water in the creek to become distinctly
warmer than it had been earlier in the year. This evident
change in temperature, of which we observed the last stage
only, was associated with the cessation of the red salmon run
and the termination of the spawning by that species in its
waters.

The study of the situation at the head of Lake Klutina,
which I have discussed in detail in another place, showed that

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 405

at the time when the fish had evidently just stopped turning
into Saint Anne Creek they were just beginning to locate on
the spawning grounds at the head of Lake Klutina. We were
exceedingly fortunate in having made by chance our visits to
these places at the time when the shift was taking place. Ac-
cording to our observations, then, one may provisionally state _
the movement of the fish through this section in the following
brief form: Those red salmon which, coming up the Klutina
River, follow along the left bank of Lake Klutina (the outside
of the crescent), turn first into Saint Anne Creek and only
later, when the lessened volume of that stream and its rising
temperature fail to bring them under the influence of a direc-
tive stimulus, do they pass towards the head of the lake,
where they meet stimuli attracting them to the spawning
grounds in that region.

In the selection of spawning grounds temperature also
appears to play an important part. A single illustration will
suffice here to show the general conditions which I have dis-
cussed more fully elsewhere. At the head of Lake Klutina
a series of low, irregular projections of the shore create a
succession of small inlets or sloughs. These are highly vari-
able in form and size. They resemble each other in physical
conditions as far as these are discernible by the eye. They
are not separated from each other by any considerable dis-
tance, and there is no physical barrier which would direct
the fish towards one rather than another, unless it be the cur-
rent coming from numerous small channels of the rivers
emptying into the lake at this end. However, these channels
and their currents are related to the sloughs in variable fashion
so that it was not easy to detect any constant difference in
the influence that they might exert upon the situation.

In some of the sloughs red salmon were spawning or build-
ing nests. In others there was no trace of fish at the present
time and no evidence that they had frequented the spot previ-
ously. Along this bluntly rounded end of the lake the tem-

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perature of the surface water was 49° to 50° F. In the
sloughs where the fish were spawning the temperature was
from 37° to 40° F. It should be noted also that the water
in these particular sloughs was brilliantly clear in striking con-
trast with the milky water of the lake and more brilliant than
the relatively clear water in the other sloughs. A study of
bottom conditions showed that the places where spawning was
taking place were the seat of small bottom springs or a steady
general. seepage not sufficient to produce any visible current,
but enough in calm weather to extend the influence of the
clear waters well out into the milky waters of the lake proper.

Some of these indentations of the shore were branching,
and the different branches were distinguished again by tem-
perature only. No place was found where the fish entered
the branches which conform in general temperature to the lake,
and no branch was found in which the temperature of the
water was distinctly below that of the lake in general that
did not have at the time of our visit some fish spawning or
building nests and showing by their color that the period of
sexual maturity was at hand.

Some of the small channels running into the lake at this
point were distinctly cooler than some of the inlets and com-
parable in temperature with the others, as they registered
levels of 37.5° and 38° F. We ascended one of these channels
and encountered one red salmon in the act of climbing a
beaver dam. We were not successful in the time at our dis-
posal in reaching the actual spawning grounds on any of these
tributaries.

PHYSICAL CONDITION OF SPAWNING SALMON

The condition of fish on arrival at the spawning grounds
has been vividly described by different observers. In the
main they have emphasized the fact that during the migration
the salmon suffers conspicuous injuries, and often arrives at
the spawning grounds in a very dilapidated condition. It was
interesting to compare with such statements the condition of

Ward.—Mugration of the Sockeye Salmon 407

fish as observed both on Lake Klutina and on Lake Tazlina.
Nowhere were the fish appreciably mutilated; in fact, I do not
recall a single instance in which a living fish showed marks
that were the result of a struggle with the stream. Despite
the fierce current of the Copper River, the strenuous passage
of the Abercrombie Rapids, and the still more violent condi-
tions of the Klutina or Tazlina River, the fish that we caught
alive in the lakes or saw on the spawning grounds adjacent
to them were in perfect condition. It is true, to be sure, that
at no point in the course which they have followed was it
necessary for these fish to contend with falls. I have dis-
cussed elsewhere the jumping of the salmon, and have called
attention to the fact that their work is by no means as perfect
as sometimes supposed. The facts are that when salmon are
striving to surmount a fall not more than a small fraction
of the jumps is successful, and many of the efforts result in
dashing the fish against the face of the fall or on rocks stand-
ing in the stream bed at the foot of the drop. From such
adventures the fish drift away stunned, and require some time
to recover their wonted activity. They are also badly battered
by the collision and in some cases suffer so that they are un-
able to carry out the migration and reach the spawning ground.

The extent to which migrating salmon suffer from this has
been vividly described by several observers, including Ever-
mann* and Rutter. It is not to be wondered that the efforts
of the fish in leaping are relatively so little successful, for the
base from which they take off is a most inconstant and swiftly
changing one as the different currents in the water swing in
eddies to and fro at the base of the fall. One has only to
watch conditions there to see the difficulties under which the
jumping fish labor, and to get a full explanation of the con-
dition of the fish as a result of its many attempts to surmount
the barrier. Now the effort to ascend a rapid may be unsuc-
cessful also and even the maximum expenditure of energy

* Evermann (1897) holds the view that these bruises are received after arrival at
the spawning grounds. While this is largely true, it is not universal by any means.

408 American Fisheries Society

may result in the failure of the salmon to reach the spawning
ground, but this failure is not the result of injury such as
comes from the failure to make the falls at a given leap. It
is, then, readily inferable that streams in which rapids form
the barrier to migration are on the whole more favorable for
the salmon than those which are barred by falls.

One may even go one step further and suggest that at
times a little human labor might greatly improve conditions
for the salmon run in a given stream, if the worst natural
obstructions were removed or made less difficult by the con-
struction of an artificial pathway around the obstacle. The
older idea that struggle is essential for adequate production
of physical vigor doubtless has its basis in fact, but it is sub-
ject to limitations also, and under reasonable conditions our
domestic animals, which are protected from dangers and from
too great physical effort, yield a much larger return to the
human race than ever was secured from range animals. I
think it is not unreasonable to look forward to the time in the
near future when certain salmon streams, at least those which
are peculiarly significant in connection with the spawning of
the salmon, shall be so handled as to simplify and expedite
the migration of the fish, enabling them to reach the spawning
grounds in better condition than they do with the stream as
it stands. The investigations of Canadian officials have within
recent years shown most conclusively how the additional ob-
stacles which were inadvertently introduced into the channel
of the Fraser River have worked havoc with the salmon run
of that stream and have prevented an unfortunately large per-
centage of the salmon entering that stream from reaching their
spawning grounds. The readjustment of conditions at this
point, which was provided for by the action of the fisheries
officials, is precisely in line with what I have suggested for
the removal of serious obstacles existing naturally in that or
other streams. A comparison of the fish in the spawning
grounds of Lake Klutina and Lake Tazlina with those which

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 409

visit some other places, indicates clearly the difference in the
expenditure of energy on the trip from the sea.

It was not merely with respect to the absence of disfiguring
wounds that the salmon of these lakes commanded our special
attention. They were plump and full-meated, the flesh firmer
and the body less wasted than in the case of salmon at corre-
sponding periods of sexual maturity in other regions. It
would be unwise to attribute the perfect condition of these
fish solely to the favorable character of the highway that had
served as the route for their migration. These northern
waters are also radically lower in temperature than the waters
of more southerly streams, and that factor must certainly
have been of some influence. It may also be that the fish at
the start of their migration were in better condition, more
richly supplied with reserve material, and more vigorous in
general than those in other regions. In order to test the char-
acter of the flesh, we tried a fully ripe fish on the spawning
grounds, and found that the flesh, though not comparable with
that of a fish in prime condition, was still possessed of the
salmon flavor and in every way thoroughly palatable.

One other item is worthy of note with reference to the
condition of these fish. Among the dead specimens which
were thrown up on shore were found a number of females in
which the eggs were not yet fully discharged. Such fish were
frequent enough to attract our attention. They seemed on
examination to be in good physical condition; the substance
of the body was not in any apparent way more wasted than
that of other fish that were fully spawned out; the eggs them-
selves were ripe, apparently not matted, attached, or in any
way mechanically prevented from reaching the exterior ; so that
one was entirely at a loss to suggest why in this case an
amount of eggs totaling in the extreme perhaps one-fourth
or one-fifth of the entire egg mass should have remained in
the body not discharged by the process of spawning.

410 American Fisheries Society

DESTRUCTION OF SALMON BY NATURAL ENEMIES

Much has been said and written by various persons regard-
ing the destructive tendencies of some animals that naturally
prey upon the salmon for food. Among the enemies thus
charged with responsibility for the decrease in the numbers of
red salmon are eagles, gulls and bears. Under the terms of a
law placing a bounty on eagles, some 15,000 have been
slaughtered in Alaska during the past four years. It is possible
that these birds take occasional toll of the living fish during the
migration, but it is certainly infrequent and constitutes in total
an altogether insignificant factor in proportion to the number
of migrating salmon and the number destroyed by other
means. The gulls pick out the eyes of salmon thrown on the
bank by fishermen or of spawned-out fish floating about or
cast upon the shore. They also sometimes dig into the body
of dead fish to get the liver or such eggs as may not have been
discharged. Of course, it is possible that under peculiar cir-
cumstances they may attack living salmon but ordinarily any
such action is impossible. In any event they exercise no ap-
preciable influence on the situation.

The depredations of the bears are more significant. As I
have described elsewhere (Ward, 1919) their behavior when
feeding on salmon at the spawning grounds, that element in
the situation may be summarized briefly here. The bears there
catch and eat chiefly if not solely the spawned-out and dead
fish which are floating in the stream or are thrown on the
shores, and they do not molest appreciably the spawning fish.
Perhaps this condition is modified by food scarcity such as
would be associated evidently with a very scanty run of fish,
but I have no evidence of any kind to support such a view.

Where the salmon run up small streams or where the
water is shallow and conditions favorable, a bear may indulge
in the sport of tossing the active fish out on the bank and have
a good many fish distributed over the scenery so that it looks
as if the destruction wrought had been considerable. From an
individual standpoint it evidently is, and no observer can help

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 411

be astonished and dismayed at the sight if he chance to stumble
on such a place and to see a lot of fine fish scattered over the
grass or among the bushes alongside of the stream. But a
little analysis will serve to show the relation of the occurrence
to the salmon run in a fairer light. The places on any stream
where this can happen are not numerous, the days on which
it is possible are certainly few, stages of water, hours of day-
light and periods of salmon migration being duly considered ;
and finally the bears are after all few in number. In conse-
quence the total loss due to the work of the bears is not large
in comparison with the number of fish that visit a given
stream. It is unquestionably much less than the losses due
to low water, or the accidental obstruction of a stream. It is
trivial compared to the toll of fish taken for commercial pur-
poses and could be made good several times over if only part
of the wastage in the commercial fisheries were eliminated.

REGULATION OF SALMON FISHERIES

The bearing of these facts on the questions of fish con-
servation, the effective regulations that should be adopted, and
the degree to which their enforcement is essential, can be set
down in brief form.

Among the various plans which have been adopted in dif-
ferent places to regulate salmon fisheries and to permit the
adequate visitation of the spawning grounds, is one to allow
intensive fishing up to certain limits and to stop the taking
of fish at that time so that the remainder of the run may reach
the spawning ground unhindered. The limits set have some-
times conformed to the calendar, so that fishing was permitted
within certain dates and absolutely prohibited before and after
the limit, or the restriction may have taken the form of limit-
ing the pack, so that a fixed catch or definite output was
granted to the cannerymen, and when that limit had been
reached all fishing was stopped, so that the salmon arriving
subsequently passed unhindered up the stream.

There are evident difficulties in this procedure, and some

412 American Fisheries Society

of them seem to be very serious. It is clear that in the period
in which fishing is permitted, the taking of fish will be pursued
with maximum intensity and every effort be made to secure
the largest possible number of fish during the open season.
If all the fish that entered a given stream were bound for the
same spawning ground and if conditions for their progress
upstream and for the deposit of eggs at the spawning ground
were uniform at all periods, then this method would only have
the disadvantage that if fishing were practiced too assiduously
during the period of maximum movement or if by weather
conditions the run of salmon were concentrated more nar-
rowly than usual, then the percentage of the total run that
would be taken might easily exceed that which was desirable.
Many observers have noted the fact that when weather con-
ditions hold back the fish, because especially of low water in
the streams, and then abundant rains cause the streams to
rise suddenly, the fish will go up with arush. This is a char-
acteristic phenomenon in southeastern Alaska on the smaller
streams. It means that the fish are schooled longer than usual
in the estuaries, and because of their having been brought to-
gether can be seined more easily and the complete run be
caught with the minimum effort.

The case is somewhat different in those large rivers pro-
vided with numerous spawning grounds. Here the stage of
water plays a very minor part, and significant fluctuations are
not noticed in the lower courses of the stream. Furthermore,
in such cases the migration continues over a much more ex-
tended period of time. The evidence which I have given from
our studies on the Copper River substantiates fully the ob-
servations of Gilbert and Babcock on the Fraser River. The
fish which start first are bound to one spawning ground, and
those which follow at subsequent intervals are distributed over
other spawning territory. In such an instance as this, to per-
mit intensive fishing during the early part of the run would
eliminate from reproduction a very large proportion of those
going to a particular spawning place, and might indeed sub-

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 413

ject that portion of the run to total extinction. Our experi-
ence with reference to the conditions at Lake Klutina and
especially with that part of the Klutina run which spawns in
Saint Anne Creek is most illuminating. We did not see this
run start, but we were on hand to witness its cessation. All
of the fish which came after a certain date went to other spawn-
ing grounds, and the fish which spawned in Saint Anne Creek
were taken from that portion of the run which reached this
place before August 19, approximately. If intensive fishing
had been permitted during the time when these fish were pass-
ing the canyon, it is not difficult to see that the number which
escaped and passed up to this spawning ground might have
been reduced practically to zero. Intensive fishing within a
limited period is evidently equally dangerous if practiced out-
side the mouth of a river or on the coastal flats over which
the salmon approach a spawning stream.

It is evident that where the limit is set upon the number
of fish which may be captured or the number of cases of fish
which may be put up, much the same conditions will result.
It is of course in the interests of any commercial organiza-
tion to take its catch in the minimum possible time, and to
handle it with the maximum efficiency and _ expedition.
Thereby the cost of the work will be reduced to the lowest
figure and the profits be correspondingly increased. The
method of limiting the catch by quantity protects the run of
fish against the possibility that if the run happens to be con-
centrated by weather conditions, seining within a limited pe-
riod may secure much more than the amount that was planned
for removal; and a quantity limitation on the catch, if rightly
related to the total run, permits the escape of an adequate num-
ber of spawning fish, so that the spawning beds may be prop-
erly seeded.

Nevertheless, the quantitative limitation is open to the seri-
ous objection that it does not take into account any unusual
fluctuations of the run. Even if adequate allowance be made
for the normal and usual variations in the number of fish

414 American Fisheries Society

ascending a given stream, it is evident that the number of
fish taken under a permit based upon such a calculation may
easily be distinctly excessive in those exceptional years when
for some unknown cause the run of fish drops well below the
average minimum. The taking of a set number in such a year
may reduce the run to dangerously low margins, and seri-
ously encroach on the normal yield of those waters.

If a quantitative limitation is to be placed upon the fisher-
ies, it must be set so low that in the exceptional year enough
fish can get by the fishermen to insure the maintenance of the
run in the stream, and if there is a series of imperfectly sepa-
rated waves of migration in the general run of that stream,
then regulations must be so phrased that they will prevent the
extermination or even the serious reduction of the run to any
single spawning ground. The catch of fish can be distributed
equally over the groups of salmon that seek to spawn in dif-
ferent places only when the fishing is more or less continuously
carried on throughout the period of the migration and is so
limited that no single wave of movement can be deprived of
an undue proportion of its fish. Jntensive fishing during a
limited period is unwise.

THE PERMANENT PRESERVATION OF THE SALMON

One other point of fundamental importance enters natur-
ally into this discussion and that is the formulation of a per-
manent policy with reference to perpetuation of the salmon.
Evidently with the development of the country and the larger
utilization of its timber and of its surface for agricultural
purposes and with the modifications which the streams will
thereby necessarily undergo, it will become impossible to pre-
serve everywhere and fully the favorable conditions that exist
in the wilderness for the spawning of the salmon. The in-
crease in population and insistent demands for more land and
for the utilization to their fullest extent of all natural re-
sources, must and will change conditions rapidly so far as the
streams are concerned. When timber is cut off and large areas

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 415

of land are devoted to agricultural purposes, the volume of
the streams will diminish. As lakes are dammed to make
reservoirs for irrigation or for hydro-electric power, spawn-
ing grounds will be necessarily covered and areas that were
formerly resorted to regularly will become unsuitable for the
spawning of salmon. It will evidently be impossible to pre-
serve exclusively for the use of the fish all of the streams
and all of the spawning grounds upon which they were de-
pendent under natural conditions.

Of course, fish culturists and all of those interested in the
preservation of the fish fauna and in the utilization of this
important type of food will exert every influence to keep con-
ditions so that spawning may continue to be possible on the
old grounds. It is not my thought at all to suggest that the
arbitrary changing of channels or filling of streams should be
approved, or that the building of dams without fishways
should be countenanced. Unnecessary waste and easily avoid-
able losses should be guarded against constantly so that our
magnificent natural resources in fish life may not be wan-
tonly destroyed. Least of all would any thoughtful person
seek to excuse the sins of cities and of manufacturing plants
which are pouring immense amounts of city sewage or of in-
dustrial wastes into streams and are reducing fertile aquatic
feeding grounds to barren and loathsome aquatic deserts. The
barbarous practices of commonly passing the expenses of the
city or of the industry on to those who have rights on the
stream lower down, or would utilize it for rational pleasure
and profit, deserve the severest condemnation and should be
done away with by legal measures and at the earliest pos-
sible date.

However, if all of these unreasonable and avoidable de-
structive tendencies have been eliminated, there still remain
legitimate and unavoidable limitations set by the changed con-
ditions which will modify the water courses frequented by the
salmon sufficiently to exert a serious influence upon the supply

416 American Fisheries Society

of these fish. So long as rivers flow through a wilderness and
so long as the population in the contiguous areas 1s not large,
we may hope to preserve the runs in all their natural wealth
and variety. But when the changes come it will be necessary
to adopt other plans, and before that time arrives it is wise
to consider what policy is to be followed with reference to
the new conditions.

It is evident that the short streams with exceedingly
limited drainage areas and a brief course from the lake, in
which the red salmon spawn, to the ocean from whence the
adult fish came, will be the most readily preserved. Under this
heading come many streams of importance for the red salmon
in British Columbia and southeastern Alaska. On the other
hand, long rivers with extensive drainage basins and complex
systems of tributaries will offer the greatest difficulties. In
this class fall particularly the Fraser River in British Co-
lumbia and the Copper River in Alaska. The situation is
somewhat the same on the Columbia River and possibly also
on the Yukon, with which I am not personally familiar. Per-
haps there are also other streams that approximate the same
conditions.

In the Fraser River a careful study extending over a series
of years has been made of the spawning grounds, and the
character of those areas, as well as the number of fish by
which they were visited, has been pretty definitely determined.
Full data are given by Babcock (1914) and Gilbert (1914).
A recent examination has shown that even now some of the
spawning grounds are practically unvisited since the fish which
would normally seek those areas have been killed off. Now
the causes which are responsible for the destruction of these
fish, and thus for the total elimination of part of the run of
the river, are unfortunate in the highest degree because an
earlier recognition of the situation and a more perfect co-
operation between all of the interests involved might have
spared us this great loss. However, as outlined above, the

Ward.—Mugration of the Sockeye Salmon 417

result is much the same that must be expected with the de-
velopment of any such region.

Even the Copper River which flows through an area as yet
almost unutilized, and drains a region in which the population
is exceedingly scanty, has been affected by similar conditions
which are already recognizable. This is illustrated by my ex-
perience at Chitina. A small creek flows down from two small
lakes in the valley a short distance above the town and empties
into the Copper River a mile or more below it. The stream
is never more than 4 to 8 feet wide and 6 to 10 inches deep.
At several points in the town and just above it the course
of the creek is nearly blocked so that it was evidently difficult
for the fish to work their way up. Indeed, at one point at
least it was absolutely barricaded by a mass of brush and rub-
bish that had been dumped into the water, and fish no longer
spawned in the lake above to which, according to the reports
of residents, they had formerly resorted.

Drip and waste from a large oil tank on the railroad south
of the town had at times, according to reports, spread over that
part of the stream and must have done real damage to the
aquatic life in the small lake which the creek has formed
there. This is a serious menace to the salmon fry that hatch
in this stream. The salmon run in Chitina Creek is thus -
threatened at two points in the life cycle of the fish, viz., the
spawning of the adult and the growth of the fry, and unless
prompt attention is given to the problem this portion of the
Copper River run will soon be only a matter of history. The
town is very small and of most recent origin, and the incident
serves to show how very early the effects of settlement are
observable on salmon streams. A rational policy must recog-
nize such situations and decide in advance on the action to be
taken; otherwise the total destruction of the salmon will be
surely though gradually, and perhaps insensibly, brought about
by the elimination successively of individual units in the run
of a given stream.

418 American Fisheries Society

It is to be recognized then that ultimately the preserva-
tion of all the spawning grounds, or even of all the streams,
will inevitably become impossible and that the conservationist
and fish culturist will be forced to formulate a policy for the
handling of the problem. In view of this I think all will
agree that it is important to do the fundamental work essential
at the earliest feasible date and to outline the policy, as well
as analyze and discuss its details, before the situation becomes
so serious that action must be taken promptly, and while ade-
quate time is still available for careful study of the situation.
It seems to me that the very first step in laying the founda-
tion for this policy in the future must be to make a thorough
survey of all the salmon streams after the manner in which this
work has been conducted on the Columbia, the Fraser, and
possibly a few other rivers, so that complete and accurate
information is at hand concerning the size of the run, the pre-
cise course or courses followed by the fish in their migration,
the period during which the migration takes place, and the
actual spawning grounds to which the fish resort. No less
than the information obtained by such a careful survey will
show the relative importance of all the factors that enter into
the situation or enable the fish expert to determine the relative
value of different parts of the stream or of difficult runs in it.

Thus if reduced stream flow be the serious factor in the
changed conditions with which the fish have to contend, then
that part of the run which seeks to make its way to the spawn-
ing grounds at the time when the river is sure to be low and
decreasing in volume, is much more susceptible to the danger,
and consequently much more difficult to preserve than another
portion of the run which is so timed in its movements that
its migration is completed before the low water should be
feared, or which does not start until after danger from such
a condition has passed. Such an example shows very clearly
also the need of determining all the conditions for the par-
ticular stream in question since some streams derive their water

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 419

supply from territory that is well furnished with ground water
during the early part of the summer and scantily supplied later
in the season, whereas other streams that have their sources
in snow fields or glaciers are dependent for water changes upon
the effect of summer temperature in melting these fields and
upon the area of the fields themselves, since the period of
abundant supply by both factors would be determined. Not
only each river basin but even each important tributary would
constitute to a considerable degree an independent problem,
and the record of all the facts in the case would be essential
for the formulation of a permanent policy regarding the preser-
vation of the salmon run in that stream, or of any part of it.

Very evidently one of the serious dangers which the red
salmon have to face is the commercial utilization of the
streams which they visit. The erection of immense dams
and the transformation of large stretches above them into
reservoirs so that the water may be used for irrigation or
hydro-electric power, is a most serious menace to the salmon
runs in such a stream. In many cases it will be apparently
necessary to choose between the destruction of the salmon and
the abandonment of the project for utilizing the water in the
stream. This is by no means a simple problem from the stand-
point of general public welfare. To be sure the practice of
engineers seems to have omitted from consideration entirely
the question of the fish supply of the stream and the fact that
it also is valuable. Water rights have been acquired and in
some instances utilized without even a superficial attempt to
relieve the situation by constructing a fishway that might be
made use of by the migrating salmon.*

In many instances, however, even the most perfect pro-
vision of this sort would be inadequate and it is difficult to
see how an effective fishway could be constructed on any plan
yet proposed that would surmount a dam behind which the
impounded water varied greatly in level. When the size and

* For a conspicuous instance of this and the evidence associated with it, see the
article on the Atlantic and Pacific Salmon (Ward, 1920 4a).

420 American Fisheries Society

quality of the salmon run justifies it, new installations may
prove adequate to preserve the fish even under the adverse
conditions outlined. The migrating salmon will collect at the
foot of the dam and mature there; they can be stripped and the
eggs after fertilization cared for in a hatchery located either
above or below the dam wherever conditions for its mainte-
nance are most favorable.

Should conditions below the dam be such that the fish can
not be held and ripened, then it is feasible, I believe, though
more complex, to solve the problem by lifting them over the
dam. I have rough sketches of a carrier I designed for this
purpose which has been pronounced practicable and not ex-
pensive to operate at such a point. Some experiments are
necessary to determine its success in actual operation but I
am sure the situation is not hopeless as some incline to believe.
Such a carrier is readily adjustable to differences in water
level above the dam.

The handling of the young fish from such a hatchery in-
volves some complex questions. They could, of course, be
planted easily in the new water body created by the dam, and
if distributed rationally, would probably find adequate food
and protection, though, of course, a careful study should be
made of the new environment beforehand and of the salmon
fry after planting. The outlet of such an artificial lake must
be fully protected, since either irrigation ditches or the turbine
of a hydro-electric plant would destroy the young fish. Such
protective measures are not difficult to provide, but must evi-
dently be kept in perfect condition during the danger period.
Furthermore, provision must be made at the proper time to
lift the young fish over the dam and release them in the stream
below that they may continue their migration seaward.

Of course it may be possible to plant the fry in another
natural lake where conditions are favorable for their growth
and where the outlet stream offers no dangerous obstacles to
their natural movement towards salt water when the proper

Ward.—Mrugration of the Sockeye Salmon 421

time comes. But in my opinion such a lake, if its utilization
is to be successful, should not be nearer the sea than the orig-
inal home of these red salmon fry, nor less abundantly sup-
plied with their proper food, nor unfavorably affected by
lack of protected areas, abundance of predatory fish, or tem-
perature changes towards which the fry react unfavorably.
Otherwise they may be destroyed or be stimulated to migrate
too easily, and Gilbert has shown that salmon entering the
sea prematurely must perish since they never return to spawn.

In case it is not feasible to install a hatchery and care for
the eggs of the salmon that have been held up below the dam,
then they certainly should be enabled in some way to pass this
obstruction since they cannot spawn naturally below it, and to
prevent their going up stream farther will inevitably result in
the destruction of the run. This was demonstrated on a grand
scale with the Atlantic salmon more than a century ago and no
further experiments are needed to establish the fact (Jordan
and Evermann, 1902:164). It must be confessed that under
the changed conditions the results are uncertain in any case.
The introduction of a new water body of large area in most
cases has modified natural conditions greatly. The fish will
not be directed by the same stimuli that controlled them before;
the current is greatly reduced or entirely lacking, and the tem-
perature certainly highly modified so that the behavior of the
salmon cannot be foretold. But when the new lake has not
covered the original spawning grounds, one may expect the
fish to reach them and to spawn naturally. In this case it will
be necessary to protect the outlet of the artificial lake and to
lift the young salmon over the dam when on their down-
stream migration they reach that point. But, as suggested
above, even this type of situation is fraught with uncertainties.
The impounding of a huge mass of water and the formation of
a great artificial lake has modified biological conditions fun-
damentally. The depth of the water, the current, the char-
acter of the bottom, type of materials in suspension and pos-
sibly also in solution, and the temperatures of the water at dif-

422 American Fisheries Society

ferent times and places have undergone striking changes, so
that it is impossible to predict their influence on the move-
ments of the fish.

Still further complications are introduced if the new lake
covers up the original spawning grounds of the salmon. No
evidence has been adduced to show that the red salmon spawn
elsewhere than in shallow areas contiguous to the shores of
the lake. I have cited above some of the evidence to show
that the spawning grounds selected are not only shallow areas
of suitable material, but are also locations at which one finds
an influx of colder water, reducing the temperature at the
spawning period below that of adjacent waters. It is perhaps
unlikely that they can find new areas of precisely similar
character, and certainly the range of adaptability in the selec-
tion of a spawning ground, while unknown, is not likely to
be great. However, if the lake made by the dam has covered
up the area on which the fish were wont to spawn it is wise
to determine experimentally whether they can find another
equally fit place or be able to accommodate themselves at all
to the new conditions. Nevertheless, after all these possibili-
ties are taken into account, I fear that in some instances one
will still be compelled to face the unfortunate dilemma that
was suggested above: If the fish are to be preserved the pro-
ject for the utilization of the stream water must be abandoned,
or, if the stream is to be utilized according to the plans of the
engineers, the salmon run will be destroyed.

There is, of course, the possibility that in some mechanical
fashion the fish could be diverted from the channel which had
been their natural route of migration for an unknown period
and thus led to ascend some other tributary which would carry
them up to a possible spawning ground, and that in the end
this new ground might prove suitable, or at least sufficiently
so to preserve in part the run of fish. Some experiments have
been interpreted as indicating that the red salmon could be
forced by circumstances to select new spawning grounds and
that these would prove to be adequate for the perpetuation of

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 423

the species, but the data are involved and scanty and it would
be venturesome at the present to maintain that the experimen-
tal evidence is really sufficient to establish the possibility of
thus modifying the habits of fish.

It has occurred to me as a very interesting possibility that
the physical conditions, especially as regards the temperature
of water, might be so radically modified by the erection of
a great dam, and impounding of a vast area of water, that
as a result the fish would find at some junction point in the
stream different relative temperature conditions from those
that had existed previous to the erection of the dam and the
creation of the reservoir. If conditions should be thus changed
and the views which I have advanced concerning the directive
influence of temperature be correct, then the migration path
would be changed, naturally as it were, and the fish would
follow to parts of the stream which they had never visited
before.

I have devoted considerable time and space to the analysis
of the problems presented by the erection of dams since I be-
lieve it to be the most serious and immediate danger which
faces the salmon in fresh water in some regions. Overfishing
can be regulated by law and the run of salmon brought back
to a normal level, or at least very greatly increased so that
in my opinion the fished-out streams on the Pacific Coast can
be restored by appropriate measures. In making this predic-
tion, I am not unmindful of the fact that in the United States
and particularly in Alaska the laws governing the fisheries are
“obsolete and |inadequate,’ and their enforcement is quite
difficult. But some day and most unexpectedly the tide will
turn and under sane control the salmon run in those depleted
streams will be nursed back to life. Stream pollution, also,
which now seems to be at its maximum, will be corrected and
aquatic habitats will slowly return to a normal condition. But
the wave of development which is just beginning to affect
broadly the water power possibilities of the country will bring
rapidly changes that are permanent and so radical that unless

424 American Fisheries Society

plans are promptly worked out to meet the situation the sal-
mon will be exterminated in the streams affected and the fate
of the Atlantic salmon in the Connecticut River be repeated
on the Pacific Coast.*

The value of any particular run of red salmon depends
not only on possibility of maintaining the stream as a fish pre-
serve, or of protecting the fish against the changes involved in
the utilization of the water for one purpose or another, but
also on the condition of the fish on their arrival at the spawn-
ing grounds. This may be due in some degree to the length
of the trip from the sea to the spawning grounds but it is
more largely determined by the character of the stream. If
the salmon have to surmount difficult falls and tumultuous
rapids, if they must at points fight against a current that is
almost insurmountable and are held up by narrows that can
be traversed only at certain stages of water, then they are
likely to reach the spawning grounds battered and torn, and
with energy largely spent. In fact as stated above, in extreme
cases a certain percentage of the run does not succeed in sur-
mounting these natural obstacles and so never reaches the
spawning grounds or discharges its reproductive function.
Evidently then an important factor in determining the proper
policy is the character of the stream in so far as it determines
the condition of the fish and their ability to reach the spawn-
ing grounds. It is, of course, feasible to improve a given
stream by blasting away rocks or buildng artificial pools as rest-
ing places for fish at difficult falls and rapids. Such improve-
ments have been made and have proved very valuable in a
few cases but in general it is not possible to meet the expense
of making over a difficult stream.

In determining the relative value of salmon streams one

* Since this paper was prepared I have received a work by James Ritchie on
“The Influence of Man on Animal Life in Scotland’? in which these questions are
discussed and evidence presented in a remarkably vivid fashion to show the in-
fluence of river obstructions on Scottish salmon fisheries and of the river pollution
also on the same species. The discussion is illustrated by two striking maps. No
one interested in these problems should fail to consult Dr. Ritchie’s volume.

Ward.—Migration of the Sockeye Salmon 425

must consider also in addition to the foregoing certain other
factors such as the magnitude of the run, the average size of
the individuals which compose it, the color and richness of the
flesh, and similar well-recognized differences between red sal-
mon in different streams. These are too well known to need
special consideration here.

The program, then, for the permanent handling of the
problem of the Pacific salmon will involve a survey of the
territory concerned, the assignment of a definite value to each
stream and each spawning ground, and the adjustment of con-
flicting interests so that the conservation of the important
natural fishery resource is not overlooked or neglected in the
development of commercial enterprises or in the subjugation
of the wilderness to the purposes of settlers. It is of equal
importance also to guard the fish against exploitation by
fishery interests which are over-anxious for the profits of the
present and forgetful of the general public concern for the
continuance of the suply on which indeed the perpetuation
of the industry is no less clearly dependent.

PAPERS CITED
BAxgcock, JoHN P.
1914. The spawning beds of the Fraser. Report, Commissioner of
Fisheries, Province of British Columbia, for 1913, pp. 17-38.
(Also later papers in same publication.)
EVERMANN, Barton W.
1897. A report upon salmon investigations in the headwaters of the
Columbia River, in the State of Idaho, in 1895, together
with notes upon the fishes observed in that State in 1894
and 1895. Bulletin, U. S. Fish Commission, Vol. XVI,
pp. 151-202.
GILBERT, CHARLES H.
1914. Contributions to the life history of the sockeye salmon. (No. 1.)
Appendix, Report, Commissioner of Fisheries, Province of
British Columbia, for 1913, pp. 53-77. (Also later papers in
same publication.)
Jorpan, Davip Starr, and Barton W. EveRMANN.
1902. Common Atlantic salmon. Jn American Food and Game
Fishes, pp. 163-168.
1904. Preliminary report of the Alaska Salmon Commission. Fifty-
eighth Congress, 2d Session, Doc. No. 477, pp. 3-37.

426 American Fisheries Society

RuTTER, CLOUDSLEY.
1903. Natural history of the quinnat salmon. Bulletin, U. S. Fish
Commission, Vol. XXII, for 1902, pp. 65-141.
Warp, Henry B.
1920. Special investigation of Copper River salmon fishery. In
Alaska Fisheries and Fur Industries, for 1919. Appendix
IX, Report, U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries, 1919.
1920a. Atlantic and Pacific salmon. Science, n. s., 52:264-266.

LIST OF MEMBERS, 1920-1921

(Showing year of election to membership)

Honorary Members

The President of the United States............. ..WarrEN G. HARDING
The Governors of the several States: 7
PANIC AEA AMM PRS, oicic oni cl cree nietetel « Clete ciees clara) oe etzia steiele'e Tuomas F. Krispy
PURZSTE, -idoels SESS RG See Rodd UEOe CnoRE Le. EEErAnercace THomas E, CAMPBELL
INP SEOSES, 6 5 CHGS GOCE ERIE ot OC UEOE DEDEE: enn reercer Cuas. H. BroucH
(CAI STE. be GA Gna EO RCIA DOL OC OO ORC ACRnonnCOCEe WitiaM D. STEPHENS
SEC nee oy a ee ease oils wide ccd aeens ede de Ottver H. SHouP
(ePIC | ig Ace BORORIO RO 6.0 Fc10 GRICE EEE TCr TE Marcus H. Hotcoms
EE Se Ree aida ata 8 @ Sie ol eel diss idicia < a'u's sw ath"e'e JoHn G. TOWNSEND, JR.
MPT Pe cella CU Mi alee disid'e's calnaswewsasde HarpeE A. Cary
RRM s ciivciecrcrtigs sacecttbesiswad et seit sis occ eeepc HucH M. Dorsey
WEE) Sacnb CaS NEGA OARGGOS GO CHGR OGRE Er eIEEE a enero: D. W. Davis
HE oe AER Oe ee FraAnK O. LownENn
er ES rete rela ceed clviere eae Tk Dec vit ccs vad san wee es Jas. P. GoopricH
eee tere ora: ain oe State ya Dehe « opened vale i a/ete a calelele Wm. L. Harpinc
IRAN ices nds da <ocins ceneraw ass FAs Pale chest aS <Caeteme Henry J. ALLEN
RMI PI cia ole. oral ois elena erie adie s'ciale's'c oceaida'ewar Epwin P. Morrow
MISIAMA onc oe dw cle cn o's oe ee eee aie a Cia csc c'd adlaturale’ JoHN M. PARKER
RMON gerry ae ie. US Pe otcte dia ya o & owe we csea diets Cart E. MILLIKEN
| TEENTEN TT: uA Ea A gs a ey racietotars oil oeraveioerete Apert C. RITCHIE
6 SE TEA USS 20 eM eo LS CHANNING Cox
MMIC IEIOREEE fa tahie ia. clei sis cic a's be bee Pear he ewe ae ledwa ALBERT E. SLEEPER
Minnesota ..... Se alae ot eisia et wea esieielte. cee ties. <e0 «o a's%s J. A. A. BurNQuist
PRES TEST RS a le 9 er Lee M. RUvusSSELL
nee oe saa aw mig cai wae'e 6 ako a's FREDERICK D, GARDNER
BOS ee ae ... SAMUEL V, STEWART
De RR TS crane tes oc a ei wciclyehahids esina sn ees eae SAMUEL R. McKELvIE
I eer POE Pa cin ois alae wick sktueaersars ci's dices crcaessies ..»«EMMET D. BOYLE
(AR OLS Soe TT SN Rg ie a Joun H. BARTLETT
OTT Md (Ear) pa eel aE ge Ethene eae 0 rr Epwarp I, Epwarps
POW EMM Goa catic want tee cee Orne ce reds ca Ocraviano A. LARRAZOLO
PC Wis MEMIELA Race oe ei amererumeeee. SLCC lta te NatHAN L. MILLER
Worth arolna ....6cs cava (Meter take sccs cpace THomas W. BIcKETT
RIC MUPENiEd (Sc uot ode caesium ce tactic cold cokes Lynn J. FRAZIER
fr TON ERG oe RARER CY AG AG a aah Ed ee Se James M. Cox
Gis aBeie se AG coe cn crate daar ae tee ee cles. J. B. A. Ropertson
JET ETA ae REN ARR 0k 8, Le ical 3, Oh i i ar B. W. OtcottT
PPIs ARIR es Sotin g Sears Sy ened aa ATE DU 7 Wm. C. Sprout
Perotemaiand 4-2 es ac eee ate ae ces tetks fs R. Livincston BEECKMAN

SOUte ALO lina iis. jon uits onl ee ete eta oe ae Rosert A. Cooper

428 American Fisheries Society

South: Dakotta.q sas vocwaw ey oie woendeg bere Tee PeTtER NorBECK
Terintssee «yf ocretasany ester oe cae eee te he eee ALFRED TAYLOR
TORAS. sos dhe Bae ebro ee aes alles Se eae Pat M. NEFF
ital i628 oes (Sales Wise ac ewe sible aloo ou aime cee eee Simon BAMBERGER
Vermont ene soos te oh ese e eOeRees ane oe sane ae PercivAL W. CLEMENT
Virginia. nes covie ve See ee ee ae eee. WESTMORELAND DaAvIs
Washington. Ac cceicGe adie cmon poe ene cs ee en eee Louis F. Hart
West Virginia’ 2.52 tee ek eee fae © LEM hy Ca JoHN J. CoRNWELL
WUSCONSIN, | face wcidetls meee eee eo tee CERT Oe ees E. L. PHILiip
Wyoming ©6508 sce ok Ae tee bs ee a ha NIE Sara Aas ASS eee Rosert D. CAREY
708 AnNTIPA, Pror. GREGOIRE, Inspector-General of Fisheries, Bucharest,
Roumania.

706 Besana, Giuseppe, Lombardy Fisheries Society, Via Rugabello 19,
Milan, Italy.

709 Biue Rince Rop anp Gun ‘Cius, Harper’s Ferry, W. Va.

793. Boropin, NicotaAs, Petrograd, Russia.

712. CaLpErwoop, W. L., Inspector of Salmon Fisheries for Scotland,
Edinburgh, Scotland.

704. Densicu, Lorp, London, England.

’°89 ~FisH Protective ASSOCIATION OF EASTERN PENNSYLVANiA, 1020 Arch
St., Philadelphia, Pa.

406 Grimm, Dr. Oscar, Petrograd, Russia.

704 KisHinouyE, Dr. K., Imperial University, Tokyo, Japan.

708 KiraHara, Dr. Tasaku, Imperial Fisheries Bureau, Tokyo, Japan.

788. Laxe St. CLAir SHOOTING AND FISHING CLUB, Detroit, Mich.

717. Mercier, Honore, Minister of Colonization, Mines and Fisheries,
Quebec, Canada.

709 Nace, Hon. Cuas., St. Louis, Mo.

795 New York ASSOCIATION FOR THE PROTECTION OF FISH AND GAME, New

York City.

708 Norpevist, Dr. Oscar Fritjor, Superintendent of Fisheries, Lund,
Sweden.

706 PeErriER, Pror. EpMonp, Director Museum of Natural History, Paris,
France.

792 ~VIncIGUERRA, Pror. Dr. Decio, Director Royal Fish Cultural Station,
Rome, Italy.

Corresponding Members
’°84 Apostotipes, Pror. Nicoty Cur. Athens, Greece.
87. ARMISTEAD, J. J., Dumfries, Scotland.
704 Ayson, L. F., Commissioner of Fisheries, Wellington, New Zealand.
709 FreceL, CuAs., Canea, Crete.
708 Hiccinson, Epuarpo, Consul for Peru, New York City.
’84. LanpMaARK, A., Inspector of Norwegian Fresh-Water Fisheries,
Christiania, Norway.
84. Marston, R. B., Editor of the Fishing Gazette, London, England.
708 PorrEeau, CHARNLEY, Lommel, Belgium.

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List of Members 429

Raveret-WatteL, C., Director of Aquicultural Station at Nid-de-
Verdier, 20 Rue des Acacias, Paris.

Sars, Pror. G. O., Christiania, Norway.

Sotsky, Baron N. pe, Director of the Imperial Agricultural Museum,
Petrograd, Russia.

STEAD, Davin G., Fisheries Department, Sydney, New South Wales,
Australia.

Patrons

ALASKA Packers AssocraTIon, San Francisco, Calif.

ALLEN, Henry F, (Agent, Crown Mills), 210 California St., San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

AMERICAN Biscuit Co., 815 Battery St., San Francisco, Calif.

AMERICAN CAN Co., Mills Building, San Francisco, Calif.

Armour & Co., Battery and Union Sts., San Francisco, Calif.

Armssy, J. K., Company, San Francisco, Calif.

AtiLAs GAs ENGINE Co., INc., Foot of 22d Avenue, Oakland, Calif.

Batrour, GuTHRIE & Co., 350 California St., San Francisco, Calif.

BANK oF 'CALIFoRNIA, N. A., California and Sansome Sts., San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

BLoEDEL-DoNovAN LumMgeER Mitts, Bellingham, Wash.

Bonp AND Goopwin, 485 California St., San Francisco, Calif.

BurPEE AND LeEtson, Ltp., South Bellingham, Wash.

CALIFORNIA BarREL Co., 22d and Illinois Sts., San Francisco, Calif.

CALIFORNIA Door Co., 43 Main St., San Francisco, Calif.

(CALIFORNIA STEVEDORE AND BALLAstT Co., INc., 210 California St., San
Francisco, Calif.

CALIFORNIA Wire CLotH Company, San Francisco, Calif.

Caswe Lt, Gro. W., Co., Inc., 503-4 Folsom St., San Francisco, Calif.

Cincy, C. G. & Co., INnc., 144 Davis St., San Francisco, Calif.

CorFIN-REDINGTON Co., 35-45 Second St., San Francisco, Calif.

CotumBia River Packers AssocIATION Astoria, Ore.

Crane Co. (C. W. Weld, Megr.), 301 Brannan St., San Francisco,
Calif.

Dopcr, SWEENEY & Co., 36-48 Spear St., San Francisco, Calif.

First NaAtionAL BANK OF BELLINGHAM, Bellingham, Wash.

Futrer, W. P., & Co., 301 Mission St., San Francisco, Calif.

Grays Harsor CoMMERCIAL Co., Foot of 3d St., San Francisco, Calif.

Hennry, C. J., Co., 46 Clay St., San Francisco, Calif.

Jones-THIERBACH (Co., THE, Battery and Merchant Sts., San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

Knapp, THE Frep H., Co., Arcade-Maryland Casualty Building, Bal-
timore, Md.

Linen THREAD Co., THE (W. A. Barbour, Mgr.), 443 Mission St., San
Francisco, Calif.

Martttace, Cuas. F., Company, 335 Greenwich St., New York City.

Nauman, C. & Co., 501-3 Sansome St., San Francisco, Calif.

430 American Fisheries Society

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Outver SALT Co., Mt. Eden, Calif...

Morrison Mitt Co., INc., Bellingham, Wash.

Morse HaArpware Co., Inc., 1025 Elk St., Bellingham, Wash.

PaciFIc HARDWARE AND STEEL Co., 7th and Townsend Sts., San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

Paciric States Exectric Co., 575 Mission St., San Francisco, Calif.

PHILLIPS SHEET AND TIN PLaTE Co., Weirton, W. Va.

Pore AND TALBOT, Foot of 3d St., San Francisco, Calif.

Pucet Sounp Navication Co., Seattle, Wash.

Ray, W. S., MrFc. Co., Inc., 216 Market St., San Francisco, Calif.

Scumipr LirHocrApH Co., 2d and Bryants Sts., San Francisco, Calif.

SCHWABACHER-FREY STATIONERY Co., 609-11 Market St., San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

SHip Owners’ AND MERCHANTS’ Tuc Boat Co., Foot of Green St., San
Francisco, Calif.

SHERWIN-WILLIAMS Co., THE, 454 Second St., San Francisco, Calif.

SmirH CANNERY MaAcHINE Co., 2423 South First Avenue, Seattle,
Wash.

STANDARD GAs ENGINE Co., Dennison and King Sts., Oakland, Calif.

STANDARD OiL Co. or CALIForNIA, Standard Oil Building, San Fran-
cisco, Calif.

U. S. Rupper Co. or Cattrornta (W. D. Rigdon, Mgr.), 50-60 Fremont
St., San Francisco, Calif.

U. S. Steet Propucts Co., Rialto Building, San Francisco, Calif.

WELLs Farco NaTionAL BANK or SAN Francisco, Montgomery and
Market Sts., San Francisco, Calif.

WESTERN Fue. Co., 430 California St., San Francisco, Calif.

WestTEeRN Meat Co., 6th and Townsend Sts., San Francisco, Calif.

Wuire Bros., 5th and Brannan Sts., San Fancisco, Calif.

Active Members
Life Members Indicated by Asterisk (*)

ApaAMs, Pror. Cuas. C., State College of Forestry, Syracuse, N. Y.

Apams, Wo. C., Director, Division of Fisheries and Game, Boston,
Mass.

ALEXANDER, GEorGE L., Grayling, Mich.

ALEXANDER, M. L., President, Louisiana Conservation Commission,
New Orleans, La.

ANpverson, Aucust J., Box 704, Marquette, Mich.

ANDvERSON, Dr. F. E., Red Wing, Minn.

ANDERSON, J. F., 3136 Front St., San Diego, Calif.

Anpverson, T. T., Liggett and Myers Tobacco Co., St. Louis, Mo.

ANNIN, JAMES, Caledonia, N. Y.

ANNIN, HowArp, Caledonia, N. Y.

Aspury Park FisHinG Cius, John F. Seger, 703 Cookman Ave., As-
bury Park, N. J.

List of Members 431

AsHTON, Geo., 1217 Pierce Bldg., St. Louis, Mo.

Atwoop, ANTHONY, 73 Waterest St., Plymouth, Mass.

Atwoop, Irvinc M., 31 Boston Fish Pier, Boston, Mass.

Aucur, W. A., 33 Fulton St., (New York City.

Avery, CArLos, State Game and Fish Commissioner, St. Paul, Minn.

Bascock, JOHN P., Provincial Fisheries Department, Victoria, British
Columbia.

Bascock, WiLL1AM H., 520 The Rookery, Chicago, III.

Baitey, ARTHUR T., Nashua, N. H.

BatcH, Howarp K., 158 W. Austin Ave., Chicago, III.

Batpwin, O. N., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Saratoga, Wyo.

Batt, E. M., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

BALLARD, S. THRUSTON, Louisville, Ky.

Barser, Wm. E., LaCrosse, Wis.

Barsour, F. K., 96 Franklin St., New York, N. Y.

Barsour, THoMAS, Museum of Comparative Zoolcgy, Cambridge,
Mass.

*BaRNES, Earnest W., Supt., R. I. Fisheries Experiment Station,
Wickford, R. I.

Barnes, F. C., Front St., Portland, Ore.

BARNEY, Raymonp L., U. S. Fisheries Laboratory, Fairport, Iowa.

Barron, JAMES T., 1210 Yeon Bldg., Portland, Ore.

Barttett, Morr L., Commissioner of Fisheries and Game, Concord,
Ne EL

Bauer, A., 25th and Dearborn Sts., Chicago, Ill.

Baxter, A. C., Chief, Ohio Fish and Game Division, Columbus, Ohio.

BEAN, Barton A., U. S. National Museum, Washington, D. C.

BEEMAN, Henry W., New Preston, Conn.

*BELpING, Davin L., Biologist, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and
Game, Boston, Mass.

Bett, J. C., Alaska Packers Association, San Francisco, Calif.

BELLISLE, J. A., Inspector General of Fisheries and Game, Quebec,
Canada.

BELMonT, Perry, 1618 New Hampshire Ave., Washington, D. C.

*Benson, JoHN T., Director Zoological Garden, Boston, Mass.

Berc, Greorce, Indiana Fish Commission, Indianapolis, Ind.

Berkuous, Jerry R., Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Torresdale, Pa.

Bernarp, Gus., Atchafalaya, La.

Bittsoty, E. Nasu, Commissioner of Game and Inland Fisheries,
Richmond, Va.

*Brrcz, Dr. E. A., University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.

BiackForp, CHAS. Minor, M. D., Staunton, Va.

Biystap, CHESTER N., Fisheries Laboratory, Fairport, Iowa.

Botton, C. C., 404 Hickox Bldg., Cleveland, Ohio.

Bootn, Dewirr C., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Spearfish, S. D.

432 American Fisheries Society

BorDENKECHER, WILLIAM, R. R. 19, Haughville Station, Indianapolis,
Ind.

Bower, SEYMOUR, Superintendent, Michigan Fish Commission, Lans-
ing, Mich.

Bower, Warp T., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Bowers, Greorce M., Martinsburg, W. Va.

Braprorp, RarpH P., Dept. of Agriculture, Springfield, III.

Brices, A. B., Ashaway, R. I.

Brown, Deti, Bureau of Fisheries, White Sulphur Springs, W. Va.

Brown, Ernest C., 52 Vanderbilt Ave., New York City.

Brown, Ernest CLive, Box 107, Station G, New York, N. Y.

Brown, G. W. N., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Orangeburg, S. C.

BryAN, ProF, WM. Atanson, P. O. Box 38, Honolulu, H. T.

BucxkstaFr, Geo. A., 1101-1501 S. Main St., Oshkosh, Wis.

*BuLier, A. G., Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Corry, Pa.

Butter, G. W., Pleasant Mount, Pa.

*BuLLER, NATHAN R., Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Harrisburg, Pa.

Butitocu, Cuas. A., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Bullockville, Ga.

BurRKHART, Joe, Star Prairie, Wis.

BurNHAM, Cuas. W., U. S. Fisheries Station, Louisville, Ky.

BuRNHAM, JoHN B., Pres. Am. Game Protective Assn., 233 Broadway,
New York, N. Y.

CaLpWELL, F. M., 341 St. Peter St., St. Paul, Minn.

Carter, E. N., Vinta Co. Farm Bureau, Fort Bridger, Wyo.

Caster, Wm. A., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Hartsville, Mass.

*CASSELMAN, E. S., Dorset, Vt.

CattEe, EuceNns, Langdon, Kan.

Cayuca County SporTSMEN’s ASSOCIATION (JoHN L. ALNUTT, Pres.),
Auburn, N. Y.

CHAMBERLAIN, THOMAS KNIGHT, Drumlin Trout Hatchery, Barneveld,
Ny YY:

Cuampers, E. T. D., Deputy Commissioner, Colonization, Mines and
Fisheries, Quebec, Canada.

CHAPMAN, OswiLL, De Bruce, Sullivan Co., N. Y.

Cuipister, Pror. F. E., West Va. University, Morgantown, W. Va.

Curistorrers, H. J., 1217 L. C. Smith Bldg., Seattle, Wash.

CHURCHILL, WINSTON, Cornish, N. H.

Crarkx, H. Watton, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Fairport, Iowa.

*CLEVELAND, W. B., Burton, Ohio.

Cops, Espen W., Superintendent of Fisheries, State Game and Fish
Department, St. Paul, Minn.

Corn, Joun N., Director, School of Fisheries, Univ. of Washington,
Seattle, Wash.

Coker, Dr. Rozert E., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Cotes, Russet J., Danville, Va.

CoLLEGE OF FisHeErIES, Univ. of Washington, Seattle, Wash.

719
a be

List of Members 433

CoMMERFORD, WM., Booneville, N .Y.
Cook, Warp A., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Duluth, Minn.

00 *Cortiss, C. G., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Gloucester, Mass,

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Corwin, Roy S., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Homer, Minn.

COoYKENDALL, Epwarp, 22 Ferry St., Kingston, N. Y.

CRAMPTON, JoHN M., State Superintendent, Board of Fisheries and
Game, New Haven, Conn.

(CRANDALL, A. J., Ashaway, R. I.

Crasser, Huco, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, La Crosse, Wis.

Criz, H. D., Director, Sea and Shore Fisheries Commission, Rock-
land, Me.

Crosstey, H. C., Put-in Bay, Ohio.

CRUIKSHANK, J. A., The American Angler, 220 W. 42nd St., New
York City.

Cuter, C. F., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Homer, Minn.

Curran, JoHN L., Commissioner of Inland Fisheries, 602 Grosvenor
Bldg., Providence, R. I.

DANGLADE, ErNeEst, Vevay, Ind.

Daspit, A. P., New Court Bldg., New Orleans, La.

Davipson, Henry, Fish Hatchery, Bath, N. Y.

Davies, Davin, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Tupelo, Miss.

791 and 710. Dean, Pror. BASHFoRD, Columbia University, New York City.

01
19

DEAN, Herpert D., Fisheries Station, Bozeman, Mont.
DENMEAD, TALBoT, 508 Munsey Bldg., Baltimore, Md.

701 *DENysE, Wasuincton I., New York Aquarium, Battery Park, New

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05
08

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20

York City.
DeRocuer, Jas. D., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, East Orland, Me.
DePuy, Henry F., 32 W. 40th St., New York City.
Detwiter, JoHN Y., Honorary President, Florida Fish Commission,
New Smyrna, Fla.
Dimick, F. F., Boston Fish Bureau, Fish Pier, Boston, Mass.
Dinsmore, A. H., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, St. Johnsbury, Vt.
Dotan, Georce A., Fish Commissioner, Westerly, R. I.

07 *DoMINY, JEREMIAH M., South Haven, N. Y.

709

Downine, S. W., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Put-in Bay, Ohio.

DoyLe, HEeNry, Winch Bldg., Vancouver, B. C.

Dryroos, Leon, 508 State St., Erie, Pa.

DuckreEE, BENJ., Wild Rose, Wis.

Dun ap, I. H., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

DuRant, Dr. G. W., Board of Fisheries of S. C., Georgetown, S. C.

Eaton, Howarp, Sheridan Library Association, Sheridan, Wyo.

Empopy, Pror. Gro. C., 141 Ithaca Road, Ithaca, N. Y.

Erickson, C. J., 328 Washington St., Boston, Mass.

Evans, Lievut.-Cor. Ketty, Metropolitan Club, New York City.

EvERMANN, Dr. Barton W., Director of the Museum, California
Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, Calif.

434 American Fisheries Society

04

EvERMANN, J. W., First Vice-Pres., St. Louis Southwestern Railway
of Texas, Dallas, Texas.

712 *FEARING, Mrs. D. B., Newport, R. I.

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Fearnow, E. ‘C., Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Frick, JoHN A., Sandusky, Ohio.

Fercuson, JAMES A., Duluth, Minn.

Fretp, Dr. GrorcE W., 2807 18th St., N.W., Washington, D. C.

Fre.p, Pror. Irvine A., Clark College, Worcester, Mass.

FietpincG, J. B., 82 Wellington St., Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Firxins, B. G., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Northville, Mich.

FINLAYson, ALEX. C., Dominion Inspector of Hatcheries, Ottawa,
Canada.

FisHer, A. K., U. S. Biol. Surv., Washington, D. C.

FisHErR, JOHN F., Chapinville, Conn.

FITZGERALD, E. J., Fish and Game Commission, St. Paul, Minn.

FLYFISHERS’ CLus, 36 Piccadilly, W. 1, London, England.

*Foicer, J. A., Pres., J. A. Folger Co., Howard and Spencer Sts., San

Francisco, Cal.
Fottett, Ricwarp E., Detroit Club, Detroit, Mich.
Forses, R. D., New Orleans, La.
Fores, Dr. S. A., University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
ForsytH, Rogpert, 1157 Rookery, Chicago, Ill.

*ForTMANN, Henry F., 1007 Gough St., San Francisco, Calif.

Foster, FREDERICK J., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Neosho, Mo.

Founp, Wo. A., Asst. Deputy Minister of Fisheries, Ottawa, Canada.

FowLer, KENNETH, Woolworth Bldg., New York City.

FrencH, ALBert, International Agric. Corporation, 61 Broadway,
New York, N. Y.

FRIDENBERG, RoBerRT, 22 W. 56th St., New York, N. Y.

*GARDNER, Mrs. CuHares C., The Cliffs, Newport, R. I.

GarnsEY, LeicH, 451 Summit Ave., Redlands, Calif.

Gavitt, W. S., Lyons, N. Y.

Gerry, Ropert L., 258 Broadway, New York City.

Grips, C. D., Game Warden, Wilder, Minn.

Giss, H. A., Detroit, Minn.

Gipss, CuHartes E., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, East Orland, Me.

Guiover, WM. L., Edison National Bank, Orangeburg, S. C.

Goopwin, O. C., Peace Dale, R. I.

GorHam, W. B., Fisheries Station, Anaconda, Mont.

GouLp, Epwin W., State Sea Food Protective Commission, Portland,
Me.

GraHaM, E. A., Berkeley, Taunton, R. F. D., Mass.

GRAHAM, GEorGE H., 423 Main St., Springfield, Mass.

GRAMMES, H. A., care L. F. Grammes and Sons, Allentown, Pa.

GRATER, CHARLES B., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Leadville, Colo.

Gray, GeorcE M., Woods Hole, Mass.

10

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List of Members 435

Gray, STEDMAN H., 2511 W. Second Ave., Seattle, Wash.

GREEN, J. C., 4730 London Road, Duluth, Minn.

GREENE, Dr. CuaAs. W., University of Missouri, 814 Virginia Ave.,
Columbia, Mo.

GREENE, JoHN V., Assistant, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington,
BiG:

GUERIN, THEOPHILE, Treasurer, Rhode Island Commission of Fisher-
ies, Woonsocket, R. I.

GUNCKEL, Witt H., M. and C. Savings Bank, Toledo, Ohio.

*Haas, WILLIAM, Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Spruce Creek, Pa.
Haun, E. E., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Boothbay Harbor, Me.
Hatey, Cates, 14 Fulton Market, New York City.

Hancock, W. K., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Baird, Calif.

Hanp, E. R., Fairmont, Minn.

Hankinson, Pror. T. L., State College of Forestry, Syracuse, N. Y.

HANSEN, FERDINAND, Russian Caviar Co., 170 Chambers St., New
York City.

Hansen, G., Osceola, Wis.

Hare, Frank E., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Manchester, Iowa.

HARPELL, JAMES JOHN, Garden City Press, Ste. Anne de Bellevue,
Province of Quebec, Canada.

HARRIMAN, AVERILL, Arden, N. Y.

Harron, L. G., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Hart, W. O., 134 Carondelet St., New Orleans, La.

HARTMANN, PHIL, Erie, Pa.

Hawks, S. B., Supt. Hatchery, Bennington, Vt.

Hay, Pror. W. P., Kensington, Md.

Hayrorp, CHARLES O., Supt., State Fish Hatchery, Hackettstown,
Wer:

Heprick, H. S., Pierre, S. D.

Heiman, A. J., Barberton, Ohio.

Hemineway, E. D., 123 Rochelle Ave., Wissahickon, Philadelphia, Pa.

HeENSHALL, Dr. JAMeEs A., 811 Dayton St., Cincinnati, Ohio.

Herotp, R., 235 Montgomery St., San Francisco, Calif.

Herrick, Pror. Francis Hosart, Western Reserve University, Cleve-
land, Ohio.

Hewett, Frep, Route 6, Madison, Wis.

Hickman, J. R., 1426 Chemical Bldg., St. Louis, Mo.

Hiccins, Axr. S., 142 Atlantic Ave., Boston, Mass.

HitpesraAND, SAMUEL F., Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Hryricus, Henry Jr., Keystone Fish Co., Erie, Pa.

Hoxzart, T. D., Pampa, Texas.

Horrses, G. Raymonp, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Hoxzanp, R. P., Am. Game Protective Association, 233 Broadway,
New York City.

Hooven, K., Monterey, Calif.

*Hopper, Grorce L., Havre de Grace, Md.

436 American Fisheries Society

Howarp, Dr. ArtHurR D., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Fairport, Ia.

HoweELt, G. C. L., care of H. S. King & Co., 9 Pall Mall, London,
S. W., England.

Howser, W. D., Nashville, Tenn.

Hupparp, Watpo F., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Nashua, N. H.

Hunsaker, W. J., Board of State Fish Commissioners, Saginaw,
Mich.

HuntsMan, A. G., Ph. D., Asst. Prof. of Biology, University of
Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

*Huriput, H. F., 13 Iveson Ave., East Lynn, Mass.

Hussakor, Dr. Louis, American Museum of Natural History, New
York City.

Hustep, ‘JAMES D., Denver, Colo.

IRONDEQUOIT FIsH AND GAME Protective AssocIATION, (J. W.
Jounston, Cor. Sec.), Rochester, N. Y.

Jackson, R. C., 34 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, Mass.

Jennines, G. E., Fishing Gazette, 465 Central Park West, New York
City.

Jensen, Harotp, Spooner, Wis.

Jounson, A. S., 300 Exchange Bldg., Duluth, Minn.

Jounson, JAMEs G., R. I. Commission of Inland Fisheries, Riverside,
Ro

JoHNston, J. W., Box 578, Rochester, N. Y.

Jones, Cor. E. Lester, U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Washington,
Disc.

Jones, J. H., Fergus Falls, Minn.

Jones, Tuos. S., Louisville, Ky.

Jorpan, R. D., 12 Stebbins St., Springfield, Mass.

Jostyn, C. D., 200 Fifth Ave. (Suite 840), New York City.

KauFMANN, R. M., The Star, Washington, D. C.

KavANAUGH, W. P., Bay City, Mich.

KeeseEcker, A. G., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Erwin, Tenn.

Keir, W. M., Tuxedo Park, N. Y.

KeMMERICH, JosEPH, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Concrete, Wash.

KENDALL, F. P., Farling Bldg., Portland, Ore.

KENDALL, NEAL, Farling Bldg., Portland, Ore.

KENDALL, Dr. Witi1AMm C., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington,
DEG:

Kent, Epwin C., Tuxedo Club, Tuxedo Park, N. Y.

Keyes, H. W., Ranier, Minn.

Kityian, Wm. H., 572 Munsey Bldg., Baltimore, Md.

Kinney, M. J., 1005 Yeon Bldg., Portland, Ore.

KIPLINGER, WALTER C., 2234 Park Ave., Indianapolis, Ind.

KISTERBOCK, JOSIAH, JR., 3824 Spruce St., Philadelphia, Pa.

KirTrepDGE, BENJAMIN R., Carmel, N. Y.

KLEVENHUSEN, F., Altoona, Wash.

List of Members 437

Knicut, H. J., Alaska Packers Association, San Francisco, Calif.

Koriz, Dr. WALTER, Dept. Zoology, University of Michigan, Ann
Arbor, Mich.

KriprpenporF, Cart H., Sagamore and New Sts., Cincinnati, Ohio.

Lampson, G. H., Calif. Fish Commission, Sisson, Calif.

Lanory, D. J., Lake Charles, La.

Lawyer, Geo. A., U. S. Biol. Surv., Washington, D. C.

Lay, CuHarieEs, Sandusky, Ohio.

Lea, CHARLES M., West Thorpe Farm, Devon, Pa.

Leacu, G. C., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

Leavins, Linus, Fish and Game Commission, Cambridge, Vermont.

Le Compre, E. Ler, 512 Munsey Bldg., Baltimore, Md.

Lee, W. McDona tp, Irvington, Va.

Lewis, CHARLES E., Chamber of Commerce, Minneapolis, Minn.

LInDAHL, SetH H., 7732 Chauncey Ave., Chicago, III.

Linton, Dr. Epwin, University of Missouri, Columbia, Mo.

Lipinsky, M. N., Winona, Minn.

Lioyp, Joun Tuomas, College of Agriculture, Ithaca, N .Y.

LocHEr, WiLLtIAM, Kalamazoo, Mich.

Lowrance, W. J., Berwick, La.

Lupwic, Joun, Grand Isle, La.

LypetL, CLaup, Michigan Fish Commission, Hastings, Mich.

LypetLt, Dwicut, Michigan Fish Commission, Comstock Park, Mich.

Mapsir, CHaArtes H., Maywood, N. J.

MacKay, D. A., Collegiate Institute, Ottawa, Canada.

MackKENziE, Wm. H., The Linen Thread Co., 96 Franklin St., New
York, N. Y.

MacLacuian, Dr. Cuas., Pres. Game and Fish Board, New Rock-
ford, N. D.

McDona np, E. B., Liggett and Myers Tobacco Co., St. Louis, Mo.

McDovaat, J. M., Gunnison, Colo.

McKinney, Rosert E., 505 Huntington St., Boston, Mass.

McReynotps, B. B., Water Superintendent, Colorado Springs, Colo.

Manong, A. H., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Edenton, N. C.

MaAILirarp, JosEPH, 1815 Vallejo St., San Francisco, Cal.

MannFe Lp, Geo. N., 223 N. Penn. St., Indianapolis, Ind.

Manton, Dr. W. P., 32 Adams Ave. West, Detroit, Mich.

Marpen, CuAs. S., Moorehead, Minn.

MarineE, Dr. Davin, Montifiore Home and Hospital, New York City.

MarsH, M. C., Springville, N. Y.

MarsScHALK, PAuL, Warroad, Minn.

MartapcE, HENry, 335 Greenwich St., New York City.

*MEEHAN, W. E., 422 Dorset St., Mt. Airy, Philadelphia, Pa.

Merritt, ArtHuR, Wilkinsonville, Mass.

Me_rriLu, M. E., Pittsford, Vt.

MersHon, W. B., Saginaw, Mich.

Meyer, Gustav J. T., 829-831 South Delaware St., Indianapolis, Ind.

American Fisheries Society

Mites, Lee, Probate Judge, Little Rock, Ark.

Miter, ALBert P., Linlithgo, N. Y.

Mittett, ArtHuR L., Division of Fisheries and Game, State House,
Boston, Mass.

Miner, Roy W., American Museum of Natural History, New York
City.

Miscuter, C. F., Sandusky, Ohio.

*MIXxTER, SAMUEL J., M. D., 180 Marlboro St., Boston, Mass.

Mo.ian, Wo. K., Board of Fisheries and Game, Bridgeport, Conn.
Monroe, Otis D., Supt. State Fish Hatchery, Palmer, Mass.
Moore, ALFRED, 618 American Bldg., Philadelphia, Pa.

Moore, Dr. EMMELINE, Conservation Commission, Albany, N. Y.
Moores, Dr. H. F., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.
Mortey, E. C., Sodus Point, N. Y.

Morris, Dr. Ropert T., 616 Madison Ave., New York City.
Morton, W. P., 105 Sterling Ave., Providence, R. I.

Moser, CAPTAIN JEFFERSON F., 2040 Santa Clara Ave., Alameda, Calif.
Mun ty, M. G., 1012 Yeon Bldg., Portland, Ore.

Myers, I. S., 604 Norwood St., Akron, Ohio.

NEEDHAM, Pror. JAs. 'G., Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y.
Netson, Cuas. A. A., Lutsen, Minn.

NeEtson, J. O., State Fish Hatchery, Hawick, Minn.

NEVIN, JAMES, Conservation Commission, Madison, Wis.

*NEWMAN, Epwin A., President, Aquarium Fisheries Co., 4305 8th St.,

N. W., Washington, D. C.

Newark Bait AND Fly Castinc Ciup, Split Rock Lake, Boonton, N. J.

New York Pustic Lisrary, 476 Fifth Ave., New York, N. Y.

New York State Liprary, Albany, N. Y.

NICHOLS, JOHN TREADWELL, American Museum of Natural History,
New York City.

Oakes, Wm. H., 24 Union Park St., Boston, Mass.

O’BriEN, Martin, Crookston, Minn.

O’Brien, W. J., Supt. of Hatcheries, Nebraska Game and Fish Com-
mission, Gretna, Neb.

O’Hace, Dr. Justus, St. Paul, Minn.

O’Mattey, Henry, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, 1217 L. C. Smith Bldg.,
Seattle, Wash.

OPppENWEYER, JOHN W., Sorrento, La.

Orr, ArtHur, House Appropriations Committee, Capitol, Wash-
ington, D. C.
OrsINGER, Frep G., 123 S. Oakley Boulevard, Chicago, Il.

*OspurN, Pror. RayMonp C., Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.

Oris, Mito F., State Fish Hatchery, Upper Saranac, N. Y.
Otis, SPENCER, Railway Exchange, Chicago, III.
Packer, ArtHuR, 423 Plymouth Bldg., Minneapolis, Minn.

04

04
19
07
18
rik
09
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i

09
04

06
719
17
19
08

03
10
18
93
18
13
93
719
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98
18
15
16
*19
a
18

°20

"19
10
16
"14
13
05

List of Members 439

PALMER, Dr. THEopoRE S., United States Department of Agriculture,
Washington, D. C.

ParkuHurst, Hon. C, Frank, 54 Barnes St., Providence, R. I.

Parry, W. J. Croose, Laurentian Club, Lac la Peche, P. Q., Canada.

PATCHING, Frep, Loring, Alaska.

Pearse, Pror. A. S., University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.

Pett, Geo. W., 520 Sixteenth St., Denver, Colo.

PFLeuGeER, J. E., Akron, Ohio.

PINKERTON, J. A., Glenwood, Minn.

PooLe, GARDINER, Fish Pier, Boston, Mass.

POHOQUALINE FisH AssocIATION, care of C. Wetherill, 17th and Le-
high Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.

Pomeroy, GEo. E., Toledo, Ohio.

Pore, T. E. B., Curator, Public Museum of the City of Milwaukee,
Milwaukee, Wis.

Porter, RicHArp, Board of State Fish Commissioners, Paris, Mo.

Post FisH Co., Sandusky, Ohio.

Pratt, Georce D., Telephone Bldg., Albany, N. Y.

PRENSKER, Dr. G. A., 1348 Wellington Ave., Chicago, Ill.

*Prince, Pror. E. E., Dominion Commissioner of Fisheries, Ottawa,
Canada.

Race, E. E., Boothbay Harbor, Me.

*Rapcuirre, Lewis, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.
RANKIN, Epwarp P., care Miss O’Connor, San Lorenzo, Cal.
RAVENEL, W. ve C., U. S. National Museum, Washington, D. C.
Rep, Geo. C., 1007 N. George St., Rome, N. Y.

Reet, F K., Pleasant Mount, Pa.

REIGHARD, Pror. JAcoz E., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich.

RENAND, J. K., 207 New Court Bldg., New Orleans, La.

Ricu, Watter H., Bureau of Fisheries, 11 Exchange St., Portland, Me.

Ricwarps, G. H., Sears Building, Boston, Mass.

Ricuarpson, A. P., Supt. Hatchery, Canaan, Vt.

RicHarpsoN, Rozert E., Box 155, University Station, Urbana, Il.

Ritey, Marx, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, San Marcos, Texas.

Ritey, Pror. Wm. A., University Farm, St. Paul, Minn.

Ristey, A. F., Old Forge, Herkimer Co., N. Y.

RopertsoN, ALEXANDER, Dominion Hatchery, Harrison Hot Springs,
B. C., Canada.

*Ropertson, Hon. Jas. A., Skerryvore, Holmefield Ave., Cleveley’s,
Blackpool, England.

Ropp, J. A., Dept. Naval Service, Ottawa, Canada.

Rowe, Henry C., Daytona Beach, Fla.

Rowe, Wm. H., West Buxton, Me.

Russet, Geo. S., Bank of Commerce of N. A., Cleveland, Ohio.

Ryan, Catvin D., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Ketchikan, Alaska,

*Sarrorp, W. H., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Gloucester, Mass.

440 American Fisheries Society

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00
08
gk)

14
13

Scurapieck, H. E., 211 South Eighth St., Olean, N. L.

ScHRANK, J. J., Booth Fisheries Co., Sandusky, Ohio.

Scorietp, N. B., 430 Kingsley Ave., Palo Alto, Calif.

SEAGLE, Geo. A., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Wytheville, Va.

SEAGRAVE, ARNOLD, Woonsocket, R. I.

SEAMAN, FRANK, Napanoch, N. Y.

SELLERS, M. G., 1518 Sansom St., Philadelphia, Pa.

SHELLFORD, Victor E., Dept. Zool., University of Illinois, Urbana, III.

SHERWOOD, E. E., State Game and Fish Commission, Seattle, Wash.

SuHira, Austin F., Mason City, Iowa.

SH1RrAS, GEO., 3p, Stoneleigh Court, Washington, D. C.

SHOLL, C, E., Box 62, Burlington, N. J.

SINGLETON, J. ErNEst, Woonsocket, R. I.

*SLADE, GeorGE P., 309 Broadway, P. O. Box 283, New York City.

SmitH, G. A., Oklahoma City, Okla.

SmitH, Dr. HucH M., U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries, Washington,
Dic,

SmitH, Lewis H., Algona, Iowa.

Snyper, J. P., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Cape Vincent, N. Y.

SPENSLEY, CALveERT, Mineral Point, Wis.

SPORTSMEN’S REVIEW PUBLISHING Co., 15 W. Sixth St., Cincinnati, Ohio.

Spracte, L. H., Henryville, Pa.

St. JoHN, Larry, Chicago Tribune, Chicago, III.

Stack, F. Grorce, North Creek, Warren Co., N. Y.

Starr, W. J., State Board of Fish Commissioners, Eau Claire, Wis.

STEELE, G. F., Sun Life Bldg., Montreal, Canada.

STEVENS, ARTHUR F., Lodentown, R. F. D. 44-A, Suffern, N. Y.

Stivers, D. Gay, Butte Anglers’ Association, Butte, Mont.

Story, JoHN A., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Green Lake, Me.

Struven, CuHas. M., 114 S. Frederick St., Baltimore, Md.

Sturer, JAMES W., Bureau of Fish and Game, Columbus, Ohio.

Sun, Dr. F. T., President, School of Fisheries, Tientsin, China.

Sworp, C. B., New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada.

Taytor, H. F., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Washington, D. C.

TERRELL, CLtypE B., Oshkosh, Wis.

Tuayer, W. W., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Northville, Mich.

Tuomas, ApriAN, 190 E. Grand Boulevard, Detroit, Mich.

Tuompson, Cuas. H., Colonial Trust Bldg., Philadelphia, Pa.

Tuomeson, W. F., 930 E. Ocean Ave., Long Beach, Calif.

TuHompson, W. P., 123 N. Fifth St., Philadelphia, Pa.

Tuompson, W. T., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Bozeman, Mont.

Tuompson, G. H., Estes Park, Colo.

TicHENor, A. K., Secretary, Alaska Packers Assn., San Francisco,
Calif.

TILLMAN, Rogert L., Beacon Paper Co., St. Louis, Mo.

*Timson, Wmo., Vice-President, Alaska Packers Assn., San Francisco,
Calif.

92
01

20
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13

List of Members 441

Titcoms, Joun W., Conservation Commission, Albany, N. Y.

and 712 *Townsenp, Dr. Cuartes H., Director New York Aquarium,
New York, N. Y.

Travers, JoHN T., Bureau of Fish and Game, Columbus, Ohio.

TREXLER, Cot. HArry C., Allentown, Pa.

Triccs, CHas. W., Booth Fisheries Co., 22 W. Monroe St., Chicago, III.

Troyer, M., Astoria Iron Works, Seattle, Wash.

TruLy, Harry S., American Museum of Natural History, New York
City.

Tupss, Frank A., Michigan Fish Commission, Comstock Park, Mich.

TuLian, Eucene A., Box 1304, New Orleans, La.

Turner, Pror. C. L., Beloit College, Beloit, Wis.

*VALLETTE, LuctaAno H., Chief of Section of Fish Culture, 827 Riva-
davia, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Van Atta, CLyve H., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Yes Bay Hatchery,
Ketchikan, Alaska.

Van CieAveE, Pror. H. J., University of Illinois, Urbana, III.

*V ANDERGRIFT, S. H., 1728 New Hampshire Ave., Washington, D. C.

Vickers, Harrison W., Chairman, Conservation Commission, 512
Munsey Building, Baltimore, Md.

Viosca, Percy, Jr., Natural History Bldg., New Orleans, La.

Vincent, W. S., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Mammoth Springs, Ark.

Voct, JAMes H., Nevada Fish Commission, Verdi, Nevada.

Von LENGERKE, J., 200 Fifth Ave., New York City.

WapbbELL, JouN, Grand Rapids, Mich.

Wacner, JoHN, School House Lane, Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa.

WakeEFIELD, L. H., 1310 Smith Bldg., Seattle, Wash.

WaLkKer, BryAnt, Detroit, Mich.

Watker, Dr. H. T., 210 Main St., Denison, Texas.

Watxer, S. J., District Inspector of Hatcheries, Ottawa, Canada.

WALLACE, FREDERICK WILLIAM, 600 Read Bldg., 45 St. Alexander St.,
Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Watters, C. H., Cold Spring Harbor, N. Y.

Warp, Pror. H. B., University of Illinois, Urbana, III.

Warp, J. Quincy, Executive Agent, Kentucky Game and Fish Com-
mission, Frankfort, Ky.

Warp, Rosertson S., 172 Harrison St., East Orange, N. J.

Wess, W. SEwArD, 44th St. and Vanderbilt Ave., New York City.

Weeks, ANpREW Gray, 8 Congress St., Boston ,Mass.

WE ts, Wo. F., Conservation Commission, Albany, N. Y.

Wetscu, H. N., Box 4, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Wernick, Franx J., Bigrock Creek Trout Club, St. Croix Falls, Wis

WESTERFELD, CARL, 702 Postal Bldg., San Francisco, Calif.

WESTERMAN, J. H., Harrietta, Mich.

WuHueEELeEr, CuHas. E., Stratford, Conn.

WHee er, Frep M., 546 Fulton St., Chicago, IIl.

Wuite, JAs., Conservation Commission, Ottawa, Canada.

442 American Fisheries Society

WHITMAN, Epwarp C., Canso, Nova Scotia, Canada.
WaiteEsipE, R. B., 204 Sellwood Bldg., Duluth, Minn.
WuitEeway, Sotomon P., St. Johns, Newfoundland.
Wick.iFFr, Epwarp L., 1309 Atchinson St., Columbus, Ohio.
Witsur, Harry C., Commissioner, Sea and Shore Fisheries, Portland,
Me.
WituiamMs, J. A., Shell-Fish Commissioner, Tallahassee, Fla.
Witson, C. H., Glen Falls, N. Y.
WINCHESTER, GRANT E., Forest, Fish and Game Commission, Bemus
Point, .N. Y.
Winn, Dennis, U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, 1217 L. C. Smith Bldg.,
Seattle, Wash.
Wires, S. P., U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, Duluth, Minn.
*WisNeER, J. NELSon, Director, Institute de Pesca del Uruguay, Punta
del Esto, Uruguay.
*Wotters, Cuas. A., Oxford and Marvine Streets, Philadelphia, Pa.
Woop, C. C., Plymouth, Mass.
Woops, JoHN P., President, Missouri State Fish Commission, First
and Wright Sts., St. Louis, Mo.
Work, GERALD, Perkins Hill, Akron, Ohio.
WricHt, Pror. ALBERT Hazen, Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y.

Youncer, R. J., Houma, La.
ZALSMAN, P. G., Grayling, Mich.
Recapitulation
ETONOTALY wc cictaraesaretere Cveke eee telere e wieis « alars aietursinie oterevsreataoe 66
Gorpespomeise ysis ere tterasssasnie meh kee iis fo "sao = plesnkctoreo ae leisioneeieis 12
PAIEGOMS cca revevoe elaerevaletedsee oe teraietclewelennie/cvenene-owslereiene Crome enna rere 53
ANCEIVE crc e'e oentestote Vere setenefevat cle susie era\s alo’ isis: ais fonevoteyermiekere thers laters 467

CONSTITUTION
(As amended to date)

ARTICLE J
NAME AND OBJECT

The name of this Society shall be American Fisheries
Society. Its object shall be to promote the cause of fish cul-
ture; to gather and diffuse information bearing upon its prac-
tical success, and upon all matters relating to the fisheries ; the
uniting and encouraging of all interests of fish culture and the
fisheries, and the treatment of all questions regarding fish,
of a scientific and economic character.

A LIC Le IT

MEMBERSHIP

Active Members.——Any person may, upon a two-thirds
vote and the payment of two dollars, become a member of
this Society. In case members do not pay their fees, which
shall be two dollars per year after first year, and are delin-
quent for two years, they shall be notified by the treasurer, and
if the amount due is not paid within a month thereafter, they
shall be, without further notice, dropped from the roll of
membership.

Any sporting or fishing club, society, firm, or corporation,
upon two-thirds vote and the payment of an annual fee of
five dollars, may become a member of this Society and be en-
titled to all its publications. Libraries shall be admitted to
membership at two dollars a year.

Any state board or commission may, upon the payment of
an annual fee of ten dollars, become a member of this Society
and be entitled to all of its publications.

Life Members.—Any person shall, upon a two-thirds vote
and the payment of twenty-five dollars, become a life mem-
ber of this Society, and shall thereafter be exempt from all
annual dues.

444 American Fisheries Society

Patrons.—Any person, society, club, firm or corporation,
on approval by the Executive Committee and on payment of
$50.00, may become a Patron of this Society with all the
privileges of a life member, and then shall be listed as such in
all published lists of the Society. The money thus received
shall become part of the permanent funds of the Society and
the interest alone be used as the Society shall designate.

Honorary and Corresponding Members.——Any person can
be made an honorary or a corresponding member upon a two-
thirds vote of the members present at any regular meeting.

The President (by name) of the United States and the
Governors (by name) of the several states shall be honorary
members of the Society.

Election of Members Between Annual Meetings——The
President, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer of the Society
are hereby authorized, during the time intervening between
annual meetings, to act on all individual applications for mem-
bership in the Society, a majority vote of the Committee to
elect or reject such applications as may be duly made.

ARTICLE cilt
SECTIONS

On presentation of a formal written petition signed by one
hundred or more members, the Executive Committee of the
American Fisheries Society may approve the formation in
any region of a Section of the American Fisheries Society to
be known as the ———— Section.

Such a Section may organize by electing its own officers,
and by adopting such rules as are not in conflict with the
Constitution and By-Laws of the American Fisheries Society.

It may hold meetings and otherwise advance the general
interests of the Society, except that the time and place of its
annual meeting must receive the approval of the Executive
Committee of the American Fisheries Society, and that with-
out specific vote of the American Fisheries Society, the Section

Constitution 445

shall not commit itself to any expression of public policy on
fishing matters.

It may further incur indebtedness to an amount necessary
for the conduct of its work not to exceed one-half of the sum
received in annual dues from members of said section.

Such bills duly approved by the Chairman and Recorder of
the Section shall be paid on presentation to the Treasurer of
the American Fisheries Society.

ARTICLE IV
OFFICERS

The officers of this Society shall be a president and a
vice-president, who shall be ineligible for election to the same
office until a year after the expiration of their term; an exe-
cutive secretary, a recording secretary, a treasurer, and an
executive committee of seven, which, with the officers before
named, shall form a council and transact such business as may
be necessary when the Society is not in session—four to
constitute a quorum.

In addition to the officers above named there shall be
elected annually five vice-presidents who shall be in charge of
the following five divisions or sections:

1. Fish culture.

Commercial fishing.

Aquatic biology and physics.
Angling.

Protection and legislation.

Vice-presidents of sections may be called upon by the
President to present reports of the work of their sections, or
they may voluntarily present such reports when material of
particular value can be offered by a given division.

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ARTICLE. V
MEETINGS

The regular meeting of the Society shall be held once a
year, the time and place being decided upon at the previous

446 American Fisheries Society

meeting, or, in default of such action, by the executive
committee.

ARTICLE Vi
ORDER OF BUSINESS

Call to order by president.
Roll call of members.
Applications for membership.
Reports of officers.
President.
Secretary.
Treasurer.
Vice-presidents of Divisions.
Standing Committees.
5. Counmittecs appointed by the president.
a. Committee of five on nomination of officers for
ensuing year.
b. Committee of three on time and place of next
meeting.
Auditing committee of three.
Committee of three on program.
Committee of three on publication.
Committee of three on publicity.
6. Retin of papers and discussion of same.
(Note—In the reading of papers preference shall be
given to the members present. )
7. Miscellaneous business.
8. Adjournment.

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ARTICLE WII
CHANGING THE CONSTITUTION
The constitution of the Society may be amended, altered
or repealed by a two-thirds vote of the members present at

any regular meeting, provided at least fifteen members are
present at said regular meeting.

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