Sixth Annual Meeting. 61 



unable to say. That is a question that cannot be hastily decided 

 We should have a great many specimens of each form, and make 

 a critical and close study before any decision is made. 



The President : One word on the subject of the red spots. 

 It is a very curious fact that people do not always see what is 

 before them. We had an instance of that on the subject of the 

 Oquassac trout, that came around here some time since. The 

 question was brought up whether the Oquassac trout was a 

 salmo fontinalis out of season ; and I think every one who 

 examined them was ready to go into court and swear they had 

 red spots — carmine specks as I distinguished them — a speck 

 being very small and a spot larger ; yet everybody knows that 

 the Oquassac trout has no red spots at all ; and when the parties 

 who had so described the fish looked at them, they could not 

 believe that the spots were not there, which they thought they 

 had all seen. So with regard to these sea-trout, sometimes 

 called salmon-trout. I have taken those, and when I first glanced 

 at them I thought that there were no specks on them at all. 

 Look at those specimens, and you will see that there are no 

 carmine specks on them at all, they being exceedingly silvery ; 

 but on close examination I found in every instance carmine 

 specks there, brilliant and bright, but overshadowed by the 

 brilliancy of the white color ; so that I think on that subject 

 the gentlemen who reported that there were no spots, simply 

 examined the fish generally, and did not notice the spots on the 

 specimen at which they were looking. 



Mr. E. G. Blackford of New York : I would like to sa.y 

 with regard to trout caught in salt water that it is identical with 

 those caught in fresh water. I have received handsome trout 

 caught down in our harbor, weighing three-quarters of a pound, 

 Long Island trout, with all the markings identical, and had 



