TRANSPORTATION OF TURBOT AND SOLES. 873 



I have not the least doubt, from the appearance of the fish, but what 

 all the deaths that occurred before the 15th were from bruists occa- 

 sioned by the shingle, as, besides the congested appearance mentioned, 

 one of the turbot had the lower opercle torn and the gill injured. I 

 would not use any substance for them to bed in, notwithstanding they 

 love to bury themselves. I think that there is little danger of a sole 

 being injured by friction on the bottom, for they can stick fast there or 

 on the sides at pleasure. I have even seen them in the aquarium hold- 

 ing to the glass. Do not remember seeing turbot do this, but think 

 that possibly they can hold to the bottom as other flat fish do. I no- 

 ticed that neither of these fish have ribs protecting the abdominal cavity, 

 which is particularly exposed to injury. The majority of them dying 

 on the morning of the 11th, between the change of water at 4, and my 

 arrival at 8, at once shows something wrong in the water. The two 

 soles that were in the can with the turbot were well on the fatal morn- 

 ing, and might not have had a change ; the men were contradictor^^ on 

 this point; were put with the others that survived, making six, all of 

 which died except two, but their identity was lost, and I cannot say if 

 they were the survivors. 



However, the fact of getting two across safely proves that soles, and 

 perhaps turbot, can be brought over under more favorable circum- 

 stances, though I cannot conceive of a better ship than the Siberia for 

 fish transportation, and Captain McKay considers the Piirthia as good. 



I regard the season as not only bad for transportation, but also for 

 planting, as the fish being turned loose in midwinter had no chance to 

 gradually work into warmer water, which is at greater distance from 

 Boston than any part of England, and the sole swims slowly and appar- 

 ently laboriously. I have only seen them in aquaria where they are 

 usually on the bottom and occasionally start with a leech-like motion 

 for a short distance and settle down again, not seeming to possess the 

 power of elevating their heads and darting as the flounder does. On 

 the arrival of the tugboat I received a letter of introduction to Mr. C. 

 B. Simmons, collector of customs for the port of Boston, who had so 

 kindly offered to Professor Baird the use of the revenue-cutter to deposit 

 the fish, should they arrive ; this I, of course, did not use. The letter 

 of instructions, also received at the same time, directed the fish to be 

 planted " at some point oft" Kahant," and it is worthy of note that this 

 locality was selected some two hours before getting the letter. I would 

 much prefer soles that had been fed in captivity a month, to any re- 

 cently captured, if the attempt was again made. 



