26 



their food. In some instances only some of the big fish were 

 found in the net. Dead fish are also floating about in the sea 

 and the bay." 



Mr. Wadner adds that " the cause of this extraordinary 

 occurrence is difficult to tell. A cold mist has enveloped the 

 bay and extended far out to sea on several occasions lately. I 

 am told that that indicates icebergs not far away, and I should 

 not wonder if a cold current originating from these has killed 

 off a number of fish and driven the remainder to find warmer 

 waters. Strange enough, the soles do not seem to suffer, but 

 it may be that the current has swept above them." 



Mr. McFarlane, at Hermanus, reported that " no dead fish 

 have ever been cast up on our shores, nor have we seen dead 

 fish floating about here at any time." 



Mr. Avenell, of Somerset Strand, reported that no such 

 occurrence was known at that place. 



No fish was reported to have been cast up on the beach 

 either at False Bay or Table Bay at this time. 



Mr. Anderson, at Hoetjes Bay, writes : " No dead fish were 

 cast up on our shore during September, but such a thing has 

 happened previously, and I think the cause must have been at 

 that time phosphorus water, a red thick water." (This refers 

 apparently to the occurrence already described on page i8.) 



The Fishery Officer at Steenberg's Cove states that " no 

 dead fish were cast up on this part of the coast during September 

 nor has there been since " (i8th February, 1904). 



The Fishery Officer at Paternoster also states that nothing 

 was known of such an occurrence, and adds " this is a thing 

 quite new to us. Long ago some few hundred Harders (Mullet) 

 washed up on our beach ; since then nothing of the kind has 

 occurred." 



Mr. M'Lachlan, at Stumpnose Bay, also states (23rd Febru- 

 ary, 1914) that nothing of the kind occurred there lately. 

 After giving the two instances already mentioned he proceeds 

 to state : — " Another instance was brought to my notice on 

 the 20th March, 1901, by the local fishermen. While out 

 snoeking about four miles off Schell Bay reef, they came across 

 tons of dead Sardines floating in the sea, and hundreds of dead 

 Sea Duikers were seen floating about at the same time. There 

 were two currents that met together extending north and 

 south. On the western side the water was blue, and on the 

 eastern side the water was of a thick muddy colour, in which 

 the dead Sardines were drifting, and my opinion is that when 

 the sea water at some places becomes in such a morbid state, 



