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your own native place, in'the whole range of its Natural History. I would merely 

 further say that we should recognize the broad principles of independence and 

 liberality ; I mean, that your Museum, essentially local in character, should be 

 kept distinct — unfettered by association with any other — else would it in a great 

 measure lose its characteristic. It should be on a Uberal basis too. Nothing 

 whatever of selfishness should taint the course of education and science ; there- 

 fore should freedom of access, at all reasonable hours, be secured to the public ; 

 otherways would its usefulness be " cribbed, cabined, and confined." 



As a stranger, I ought, perhaps, to apologise for urging this subject ; but as 

 one of the Committee, I deemed it my duty. It is moreover the cause of know- 

 ledge in general, though sought to be efiected by local means. 



In consequence of the favour you did me in publishing a paper on the Ich- 

 thyology of Herefordshure, I may be allowed an observation or two on that topic. 

 1 have been told Sir William Jardine had remarked that, in consequence of sub- 

 sequent discoveries, I must greatly modify my own views on the natural history 

 of the Sadmon. I had the pleasure, a short time ago, of receiving from Sir William 

 his paper on the subject ; and I must freely confess, that if I were not absolutely 

 wrong in toto, I was only partly right. The experiments recorded by Sir WUliam, 

 as carried on at Stormontfield, with the greatest care, shew the remarkable fact, 

 that part of a brood of Salmon goes down to the sea for the first time, the spring 

 after they are hatched — that is to say, a little more tham a year old — while the 

 remainder of the same hatch neither assume their migratory dress nor exhibit 

 migratory inclinations till the second spring ; whereas I asserted, generally, that 

 the young did not leave their native rivers till the second spring. Having 

 noticed multitudes thus acting, I concluded — jind now it appears rashly — that 

 all were influenced by the causes which operated on about the half of them. 



Why this should be so is at present merely conjectural. It is clear that age 

 has nothing to do with it ; since parts of the same brood seek the sea at very 

 different ages. It might be attributable to sex ; for the male we know to be 

 perfect (for all purposes connected with impregnation) long before the female, 

 and might consequently be fitted for his sea-destination before her. But we 

 meet with both males and females travelling together down the rivers ; it may 

 be, however, that the females were those which were hatched two ycEirs before, 

 and the males only one year. The question can be very easily settled at Stor- 

 montfield by noticing whether males only migrate the first year. An experiment, 

 1 believe, is also going to be tried there, with reference to the effect of feeding ; 

 whether, by furnishing the young with as much food as they can consume, all 

 cannot be advanced to the migratory stage the first year. Should this be the 

 result, it will go far toward clearing up the present embarrassment ; for we might 

 thence naturally conclude that the earliest migrators from their native streams 

 were those who had obtained the larger amount of food, either from their being 

 stronger than their brethren, or from any other cause. That fish, especially fish 

 of prey, can be very rapidly increased in size by an unlimited supply from the 

 commissariat department, is certain ; but I am inclined to look to some fixed 

 law influencing the instinct of migration, rather than to any precarious source. 



