IV. 



The department of the Vosges is traversed by the 

 Moselle, possesses many of the tributaries of that beauti- 

 ful river, together with several streams and some lakes. 

 The fine clear waters of all these, made them the most 

 famous resort of trout in all France ; and the production 

 of that fish was so considerable, that it formed a large 

 portion of the food of the population. 



Several years ago, however, the yield was observed to 

 decline, and it continued year after year to diminish. 

 Messrs. Gehin and Remy made it their business to 

 attempt to discover if any, and if so, what means could 

 be devised for checking the evil. After studying night 

 and day for a long time the habits of the trout, they 

 came to the conclusion that it would be easy to preserve 

 the eggs and to fecundate them by means of the milt of 

 the male. Having watched the proceedings of the male 

 and female at spawning time (it is in the month of No- 

 vember in the Vosges), they soon saw how they were to 

 act. Their first experiment was crowned with extraor- 

 dinary success. This was in 1841. In 1842, 1843, and 

 1844, they again repeated their experiments, and in each 

 case in the most triumphant manner. In the latter year, 

 to encourage them, the Societe d'Emulation des Vosges 

 gave them a bronze medal, and granted them a sum of 

 money. They were subsequently employed to exercise 

 their system in the different rivers and streams of the 

 department, and in those of the adjacent departments. 

 In the course of a short time they succeeded in stocking 

 these waters with millions of trout. 



It is to be observed, that although the fecundation of 

 the eggs of fish by the means employed by Gehin and 



A 3 



