2 ACCLIMATISATION OF THE SALMONID.E IN TASMANIA. 



practicable if it could be accomplished during the time between 

 extracting the eggs and their hatching ; but unless that could 

 be done, I tear the delicate state of the new-hatched fish could 

 not endure the fatigues of a long voyage." Mr. Young's plan 

 was to erect boxes or tanks about 18ft. long by 4ft. deep and 

 broad, in which salmon smolts were to be placed, and regularly 

 and slowly supplied with water from the sea, and fed with 

 salted liver, boiled, and coarse flour bread, broken up small. 

 A paper on Mr. Burnett's visit to Mr. Young, written by 

 Captain C. E. Stanley, RE., with the correspondence, was 

 read before the Royal Society of Tasmania on 12tli September, 

 1849, and is recorded in its proceedings, Vol. 1, p. 135. AVith 

 reference to Mr. Young, Mr. Morton Allport, in his " Brief 

 History of the Introduction of Salmon to Tasmania," says : — 

 *' Mr Young gave the preference to the latter method (young 

 fish), which is the more remarkable, as from the account of one 

 of his experiments it is clear that he had accidentally been 

 upon the verge of discovering the very method which, after 

 many years, led to success. In the experiment alluded to Mr. 

 Young caused the fecundated ova packed in baskets of gravel 

 to be hung in a running stream at different distances from the 

 shore. During a severe frost one or two of the baskets nearest 

 the bank, and those which were in comparatively still water 

 were frozen hard on the surface, and Mr. Young supposed 

 that the vitality of the eggs was destroyed ; but lie let them 

 remain, and discovered that the only eftect of the reduced 

 temperature was to delay the hatching of the ova for several 

 days." 



The result of Mr. Burnett's enquiries was, that the then 

 Lieut. -Governor of Tasmania, Sir William Deuison, whose 

 name is associated with so many important undertakings in 

 the colony during the term of his goveniorahij), and who had 

 already evinced the greatest interest in the salmon (juestion, 

 wrote to the Secretary of State to allow of tanks constructed 

 for the purpose, and supplied with salmon fry or smolts taken 

 at the right season, being placed on board some of the convict 

 vessels, and brouglit out under the immediate care and super- 

 vision of the surgeon-superintendent. 



Some such efforts must already have been made, for on llJth 

 August, 1849, Sir William Denison, writing to Earl Grey on 

 he subject of the introduction of salmon, says: — " Sevt-ral 

 attempts have been made to bring out the spawn, but they 

 have all failed ;" but there is no record of such e.\j)eriment8. 

 A long correspondence between Sir "W. Denison, the Homo 

 autliontifs, and iMr. A. Young, appears in the " I'roceediiiga 

 of the licjyal Society of Tasmania," Vol. 2, j). 40, wherein tlio 

 employment of a welled fishing smack to convey adult salmon 

 and smolts to the colony was advocated, and it is closed by a 



