52 On Stocking. 



thousand, the present price of two-year-olds, viz. : 

 25 per thousand, leaves a larger margin of profit 

 than the price at 10 per thousand of yearlings 

 does ; but the market value of two-year-olds is 

 limited by value of three-year-olds at the fish- 

 mongers, and 25 per thousand leaves a good 

 margin of profit to any one who cares to fatten 

 two-year-olds for the market. With a little skill 

 and attention they may be fattened as yeld 

 trout for the following November, December, and 

 January, the process must not be commenced 

 too early, or the ovaries will start into activity, 

 and, instead of fat half-pound trout, a lot of 

 immature spawners will result. 



The heaviest item in the cost of two-year-olds 

 delivered is the cost of carriage. There is no 

 sense in forwarding trout with too little water to 

 save carriage ; if the trout arrive sick they will 

 partly die, and the remainder will take weeks, or 

 perhaps months, to recover from the bad effects of 

 this journey. If, on the other hand, the two-year- 

 olds have been transplanted with a generous supply 

 of water, they wdll go ahead and thrive from the 

 first or second day after their transplantation. Of 

 course, the weight of water required varies very 

 much according to the temperature of the air. 

 During the journeys in a hard frost almost any 

 liberties may be taken with impunity, but in warm 

 weather the contrary is the case, and the warmer 



