37 



" John Fell," and the fry when hatched could be conveyed 

 to any selected spots on the coasts of Lancashire, Cheshire, 

 or North Wales and set free on suitable ground. 



Port Erin is probably not the only suitable spot for a 

 hatchery in the district, but it is the one where the physical 

 conditions are best known. There may be other places 

 on the coast of the Isle of Man, or in North Wales, 

 possibly even in Cumberland, which are equally suitable 

 for the establishment of a hatchery, but they have still to 

 be investigated. Port Erin and its water, the temperatures 

 and specific gravities, the fauna and flora, and all the 

 surrounding conditions are pretty well known to us. In 

 regard to the other coasts of our district, Cheshire and 

 Lancashire, the shallow waters around them although 

 apparently admirably suited as nurseries for fish in some- 

 what older stages, are so exceedingly muddy that it would 

 be a very difficult and probably expensive matter to render 

 them sufficiently free from all suspended particles as to 

 be fit for hatching purposes. The elaborate precautions 

 that have to be taken even at Dunbar in order that the 

 water may be sufficiently filtered bring forcibly before one 

 the inestimable advantage of having a pure supply of 

 water to begin with. 



We have paid some attention lately to the water around 

 Piel Island, in the Barrow Channel, as that spot has been 

 proposed as the site of a hatchery for Lancashire. On 

 two special visits, along with Mr. Dawson and others, in 

 the Fisheries Steamer, the specific gravity, temperature, 

 and living contents of the water were examined, and since 

 then some samples of water taken by the bailiff at Piel 

 have been sent to the Laboratory for examination. On 

 June 5th, 1894, the specific gravity in different parts of 

 the Channel from Barrow to Piel Island varied from 1'026 

 to 1027, the temperature of the bottom water was 54*^ F., 



