NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 249 



least resistance, nothing but a soft touch is experienced ; but if, 

 from nervousness, as was the case in my first attempt, it is 

 in any degree jerked back, then a rasping action takes place, 

 sufficient to abrade the skin, and even to draw blood. If the 

 limpets are thrown into the water from above, a regular rush 

 takes place, and after having snatched the morsel, the winner of 

 the prize dives downwards with a jerk of his tail. If an empty 

 shell is thrown into the water, it is eagerly taken up, but is 

 again immediately ejected from the mouth, and allowed to sink 

 to the bottom. 



Having exhausted our stock of food, the old woman now went 

 through the " patting " process. Whenever she put her hand 

 close to the surface of the water, the fish came up readily, 

 balancing themselves at a sharp angle in a slanting position, and 

 allowing themselves to be patted on the head, and stroked down 

 their sides, freely ; and some individual fish, probably the older 

 inmates, allowed me to do the same, though others started away 

 frightened, before I could touch them. 



The weight of the fish is from 4 to 5 lbs., and their number from 

 25 to 30. It is necessary to have them all pretty much of the 

 same size, because, if unequal to any considerable extent, the big 

 ones would soon swallow the smaller ones; indeed, the woman 

 told me that on one occasion she had noticed one of the big ones 

 swimming about, for a day or two, with the tail of one of its 

 smaller companions, which it had swallowed, just sticking out of 

 its mouth. 



A bowl of limpets every second day seems to be sufficient food 

 for them ; but the number of fish is limited by the dimensions 

 of the pond. If crowded, they soon sicken and die. They suff'er 

 most in the heat of the summer, and when de^Drived for several 

 days in succession of a fresh supply of sea water, from the tides 

 not being high enough to reach to the level of the pond. 



Indeed, the great drawback to the pond seems to be that the 

 channel leading to it is at too high a level relative to the average 

 height of the tides, and after many experiments cod have been 

 found to be the only fish hardy enough to live and thrive in it. 

 A number of other fish, including salmon, have been tried, but 

 all, sooner or later, sickened and died. 



The whole arrangements are entirely simple and natural, 

 and when you are told, as is stated in the last edition of 



