( 72 ) 



and small herbivorous kinds, which do not attain six 

 inches in length, and whose existence in quantities might 

 " eventually cause certain kinds to disappear altogether." 

 Now, the most valuable species spawn on the hills, and which 

 of the small predaceous fishes that do not attain six inches 

 in length are found there ? The solitary Nandus marginatum, 

 Jerdon, usually rare and only seen in certain places. In 

 the plains of Canara, are there more ? Perhaps two, Bagrus 

 3falabaricus and Belone cancila. I believe that, owing to the 

 spines in the fins of this first, and the long-toothed snout of the 

 second, they would be easily taken, when adults, in nets 

 having meshes of the size proposed. I do not know another 

 amongst these low-country predaceous fishes, able to destroy 

 many young fish that would not reach six inches in length 

 when adult. Lastly, we arrive at the small herbivorous 

 forms. Certainly, there are several, some very numerous, 

 but to accuse them of destroying the predaceous forms is 

 like the old fable of the wolf and the lamb. I now come to 

 the consideration of whether experience in India shows that 

 such a result occurs where a like minimum size of mesh as 

 .proposed has been actually tried. I will only adduce two 

 examples : others will be found in the appendix. First I 

 would point to Sind, where nets with meshes below this size 

 are not apparently in use (p. xxix, para. 47), but the due 

 proportions are maintained, fish abounding ; in fact, as the 

 smaller herbivorous forms increase, so do the predaceous, 

 which then appear to consume their neighbours instead of 

 their own young. Likewise in the North -Western Provinces 

 (pp. cxlix, cl), where, inadvertently having gone to a pro- 

 tected river, I reported how full it was stocked, a result due 

 to destruction of small fish having been prohibited, a state of 

 affairs differing from what was observed in contiguous pieces 

 of water. Which, then, is most practical — to prohibit the de- 

 struction of small fish with the certainty of increasing the 

 supply, or, fearing that if little fish were not taken, they might 

 injurously affect or starve the larger ones, to permit their 

 being freely captured ? Or if such did occur, why not per- 

 mit the capture of small fish during such months as fry are 

 not moving about ? 



LXXIV. Damming waters may be done (1) for purposes 



Damming waters for fish- of irrigation, (2) fol* irrigation COn- 

 ing purposes, jointly with fishing, or (3) solely to 

 obtain fish. Damming up waters for irrigation purposes has 



