The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1896-05-22
SHAD FISHERY.
Row the Roes Are made to Prop
agate the Species
Uncle Sam the Greatest Egg
Hatcher In the World.

Uncle Sam ia tho greatest galhoror
aud hatcher Of oggsin the world. The
eggs in which he deals are mostly
shad eggs, aud his busy season is in
the spring. During the annual run
Of shad the work Of selecting tho eggs
OF these lah is conducted with great
activity Of the important stations Of
the United States fish commissions on
the Delaware, Potomac and Susque-
hanna rivers As fast as they are Sc
cured they are put into the glass
Matching jars from which the young
and vigorous shadlings presently
emerge.
The government experts go out with
the fishermen in their boats They
watch the drawing Of the nets, select
ing from the catch as many robust
and well-grown mother fishes as can
be handled to advantage. BY passing
the hand in a deft manner over the
body Of each female shad the roe is
squeezed out into a glass jar, wherein
1t is Immediately fertilized by "milt'
that is got from the male in the same
fashion. This is accomplished very
rapidly, IN average female yielding
about %, 900 eggs
Many Of the shad fishermen have
learned how to take the eggs and fer.
tilizer them in this way. They sell
the eggs ready fsrtilized to the agents
of the fish commission, receiving for
them $50 q million. The eggs are
reckoned by measurement More
than one-half OF oil the shad eggs util-
lied for Matching are purchased in
this manner, On being delivered they
are placed in a glass receptacle,
through which a stream of water runs,
so that oil bad eggs and refuse are
foated off The residue is paid for in
cash.
The process of Matching the eggs is
extremely simple They are put into
glass jars, through which stream of
water continually runs, and thus are
kept agitated all the time, 50 that they
enjoy an overfowing bath of fresh
water and escape contact with all
foulness that might iniure them. They
are somewhat bigger than buckshot,
white, and quite translucent. They
are Matched ont in from four to ten
days. As fast as they emerge they
find their way out of the jar with the
running water and into a large tank.
from which they may be scooped with
gauze nets whenever they are wanted.
This work was first begun on large
scale in 1881. At that time the annual
catch of shad in tue rivers of the
United States was only $4,000, 900
pounds, and fears were entertained
lest the fishery was destined to be de.
stroyed by everlasting. No results
could be expected until 1885, When the
artifcally Matched fishes attained ma
turity and returned to the streams to
spawn. BY the simple method de-
scribed wonders have already been
achieved, and this season the catch will
be over 40, 900, 900 pounds. Indeed
the shad fishery in future need have
no limit, save such as is set intention
ally by man.
In order literally to crowd thu
streams with shad every year, it il
merely necessary to hatch sufficient
number of eggs and put the young
fry into the water. The shad live il
the sea, only ascending the rivers an
nually for breeding purposes. The
sea will support any number of them
They feed on ocean bottoms, wher,
they find unlimited proyender. A
spawning time they fetch the crops o
these bottoms, otherwise Inaccessible
to man into the streams and deliver
them up in the shape Of toothsom
meat and roe New York Journal.