The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1879-07-05
SHAD MATCHING.
Close OF the Season Oh the Susquehanna
How the Work is Done,

correspondent ola prominent Baltimore
tive 10 the enterprise:
The Shad Matching operations conducted
by the United States Government and the
State of Maryland have been completed for
ne present season .e.!iss ,,.l4s!:4-4.sa. III
H. m hi TIER lahurS have been
very successful, and that this season has
beru Ont OF the most satisfactory in
their experience. The work of Matching
the shad has been done at SprSutia Island
at the mouth of the SuSuUu!tanna liver,
onl5 Il Shorr dlstinCe Irom fiayEe de Grace
The machinery used is the Invention of Mr.
/. Is. Ferguson, the head of the Maryland
Fish Commission. and assistant of Professor
Baird, of the United States Commission.
II Is scrs Siihi'lG d,lt pApehsiie. nut IL is Il
marvel Ot ingenuity and Is ST. perfectly
adapted for the purposes for which it is in
tended that less than ten per cent of the
eggs placed in it for Matching are lost ~ in
JurGd. i.Ht ,i.L !.lSt nAG tt;iL5 tnCSG opera
tons have been carried Oh III these waters,
and this year the reSultsarc becoming known
by the large numbers of Shad with which
the river and smaller streams abound This
fish Aui..t' Us tiii gavin III iuur years
from the time II is Matched. At three years
old it is large enough 10 eat, and at the age
of four the female begins 10 spawn.
The operation of Matching out the eggs
seems ltii si4lrle "a the Visitor. and yet
one cannot but admire the ingenuity of the
inventor of the appliances used, and upon
invest CATION it is found that these are HE
result of long study and many compare
tiv,tH unsuccessful experiments Tla work
is done o,, Il ScUw Which is anchored in the
river in the vicinity of the fishermen who
are drawing their nets. The works are also
provided with a steam launch AID several
small hoats. Thesp hstl,s ;.rr "Suu every
night in gathering the supply of eggs, in
which the commissioners are aided by the
fishermen. The eggs must he taken from
the fish when she is ,just about To spawn,
and it is Il comparatively S'sai, position Of
those which are caught ihal are i'll exactly
the right condition. \ fisherman when
discovering a female Shta from which TIE
eggs may h" taken signals one of the small
boats from the scow, and the man therein
takes the fish, PRESSES the eggs from her,
deposits them in suitable vessel, takes the
melt from :; male sliad, which he places on
the eggs and !.tiirl!s both fish To the fisher
man. In This Way the night is spent. and
immense numbers Of eggs are procured. Il
female shad ordinarily yielding from ~, 900
to 10000 eggs. An average night IS work
secures from so 900 to ,00, GoG eggs.
The fisherman who procurcS the female
Shad for the commissioners receives in re-
turn ticket OF order which is good for fifty
the season by the government \ lucky
man will something's make &l4 OF So in :,
season from this alone although, of course,
the average is much less. The eggs having
been procured; are ~ G,gn taken To the
Scow, and the process of Matching com
mcncc$. The eggs are at once placed in tin
cans. which are about three feet high and Il
foot and Il half in diameter. The bottom OF
the can is covered with fine gauz netting,
through which it is impossible f1r tho s;uall-
c:t fish IT. ESCAPE. The cans are hung on
wo"dcn arms over the side of the Scow, and
the arms kept constantly moving up and
down by steam, thus lowering the cans in
the water and hDiStiug Them part way out
again. The object of this is to keep the
eggs constantly i'll Il current of fresh pure
water and to nrC!o.:t ti.r.. from forming In
Il solid mass, which would destroy the
chances of Matching them out. In from
four to six days HE little fish appear: they
are lively and swim around and around their
can As if DESTROYS to get out into the larger
body of water. In ten days or two week, :
they are lAfgn ,hilgl "a iW. shipped to
river.
\ glance at the magnitude of tho work
that has been dome in this limo since its
inception in 1871 will IL. interesting and
from the records which have been kept the
tuliuWin" figures have been obtained: Over
4S,Oon,o0 of Shad eggs have been Matched,
and the h>h-di>trihutrd i'll rivers in different
parts Of the country. Some have l,ecN Srnt
~ tsF - 'tliiulTia. and ,nany or the trbu-
tari,'S OF the Mississippi have been stocked,
also the rivers of some of the eastern states.
The United States Fish Commission have,
under the auspices of Proirs Ior Baird Mir.
Ferguson and others, distributed about ~,
001,n Young Shad. They Lave also in
other sections Matched out other eggs and
distributed fish us follows: Galiinrnu. salmon
ih,'Ei;i .o;D, Maine salmon ,DDD.DDb and lake
white fish l0,00J,0DD.