42 



were essential to its existence as a practical body formed 

 specially for the promotion of Fish Culture. If, however, 

 it was found that the constitution of this Society could be 

 made the basis on which a larger Society with a wider 

 scope — partaking more of the nature of the Deutscher 

 Fischerei Verein, which had done such good work in Ger- 

 many — could be established, he should be only too glad to 

 see if he could do what Mr. Marston had suggested and 

 assist in extending its scope. He had the very opposite 

 of any intention to ignore or to conflict with that Society, 

 and he thought that, if his much larger scheme were carried 

 into effect, the Fish Culture Association would find in it, 

 not a rival, but an ally, from which it might derive as- 

 sistance in the particular work which it was taking up. 

 Several points, which had been referred to by Dr. Day 

 and others, he had omitted, fearing that the Paper would 

 run to too great a length. As to the question of fish- 

 breeding, which Mr. Wilmot suggested he had omitted, 

 he might state that one of his first paragraphs, and almost 

 the last, referred to the " desirability or otherwise of taking 

 direct measures for their multiplication." Possibly that 

 was a roundabout way o( saying that artificial fish-culture 

 should be one of the objects of the Society, but that was 

 certainly the meaning of it ; and later on he also suggested 

 that " modes of increasing fish " should amongst other 

 things engage the attention of the Society. As to the 

 points which Dr. Day had referred to, he was perfectly 

 aware of the interesting fact of herrings being caught 

 farther away from the coast ; and it was because they had no 

 means of explaining it — and he did not think Dr. Day him- 

 self would venture to explain, fully, the whole of the reasons 

 which led to herrings being caught further away from the 

 shore, — that he proposed the Society should take up the 



