SPECIES OF THE SALMON. 47 



arm ; a trout is a fish that no one can mistake. 

 But if the peal breed, is it not wonderful and un- 

 accountable that their spawn were never seen, 

 when we can see, and are well acquainted with, the 

 spawn of the very smallest of other fish ? I think 

 then that such roe in the peal is not even pre- 

 sumptive of a separate species, but that it increases 

 and grows with the fish until it is fit to be shed in 

 a state of maturity at a future time. A great deal 

 more might be said upon this point, but it is not 

 necessary after the positive facts before stated. 



I answer to the second argument, that the peal 

 have teeth in the roof of the mouth, that so have sea- 

 trout; but I have a very long and satisfactory paper 

 also from Carlisle, proving that when the fish get to 

 three or four pounds' weight, they all lose their 

 teeth. In general salmon have them not. I examined 

 one this day which had no such teeth, but the head 

 of another fine salmon was brought to me a few days 

 since which had such teeth ; so there is then no 

 other conclusion to be drawn from this circum- 

 stance, than that generally when they are young 

 they have such teeth, and when they get older 

 they shed them ; but the instance I have just 

 mentioned proves that there are exceptions. 



In answer to the third argument, supposing it to 

 be true, that the salmon-peal never increase in size 

 in the rivers, it proves nothing either one way or the 

 other. But how does it appear to be true ? No one 

 has ever proved this to be the fact, nor is it to be 

 proved, unless the fish be marked and identified ; 



