254 DUKE OF Beaufort's sturgeon. 



fisli for my museum. I confess at first I hesitated, as 

 tlie expense of casting such a huge fish would he very 

 considerahle. Mr. Charles, however, settled the diffi- 

 culty hy kindly offering to pay the expenses. For this 

 act of kindness I am really most obliged. 



At the time this sturgeon arrived I was not well 

 enough to attend the casting, which was done by Mr. 

 Searle at the stabling of Mr. Charles's ice-houses at 

 Cheyne Walk, Chelsea, where the mould still remains, 

 as the casting of such an immense fish requires much 

 time and preparation which as yet I have never been 

 able to give it. I have, however, in the museum the 

 cast of the head of another very large broad-nosed 

 sturgeon, a grand specimen. 



"When inspecting the salmon fisheries on the Wye 

 in June, 1877, I was fortunate to arrive at the house 

 of Mr. A. Miller, the lessee of the Duke of Beaufort's 

 fishery at Chepstow, just at the same time that a cart 

 arrived at the door containing a very large sturgeon 

 that had been caught in the salmon draft net at 

 Llandogo a few miles above Chepstow. 



This noble fish measured 9ft. Gin. and 3ft. lin. in 

 girth. His weight was 3^cwt. 



Mr. Miller was about to deliver over this sturgeon 

 to his Grace the Duke of Beaufort, as lord of the 

 manor, the duke also claiming all wreckage, jetsam 

 and flotsam. By a great piece of good luck the duke 

 happened to come into the yard, and gave me leave 

 to make a j^ost mortem, at which work it is needless to 

 say I went with a will. I found the fish was a female, 

 containing two immense masses of caviare, or eggs. 

 These we turned out into a basket and found that they 

 weighed about 27lbs. 



As regards the duke's claiming the stui'geon, a friend 



