ARTIFICIAL HATCHING OF SPAWN. 61 



held,, fish are more or less able to struggle, which 

 they will do, at times, violently. The better plan, 

 therefore, is as follows : 



Place the tin dish before you, take hold of the fish 

 by the head and shoulders, with the left hand, pre- 

 cisely as described above ; hold it up tail downwards 

 so as to allow the spawn to drop down towards the 

 vent, then take hold of the fish with the right hand 

 just below the vent so that the back shall be com- 

 pressed by the fingers and the palm of the hand, 

 leaving the thumb free to manipulate the belly of the 

 fish ; slightly bend, or crook the fish, in order that the 

 spawn which has dropped down towards the vent may 

 be kept against the vent and not allowed to fall 

 back from it when the fish is placed in a horizontal 

 position ; press the belly of the fish into the 

 water to the bottom of the tin dish ; the dish by this 

 means greatly assists the grasp in holding the fish ; 

 now rub the side of the thumb (the inside, not the 

 ball) against the belly of the fish, just above the vent, 

 pressing out the ova gently as in the first direction. 1 

 The ova in the neighbourhood of the vent will flow 

 out freely, and when it ceases, hold up the fish again, 

 tail downwards, to allow the rest of the ova to fall 

 down to the neighbourhood of the vent, and so con- 

 1 See fig. 3 in the Frontispiece. 



