details have been collated. Finally, Sind was visited,* and 

 now the whole of these enquiries are brought together as 

 briefly as possible, in order that individual investigations may 

 be tested to the fullest possible extent by the opinions of 

 others, prior to any definite conclusions being arrived at. 



II. Respecting those who have previously worked 

 Previous workers on the sub- amongst the fresh- water fisheries of 



ject of the fishes in India. India, our literature is exceedingly 



scanty. Dr. Hamilton Buchanan in 1822 published " The 

 Eishes of the Ganges," his investigations into which com- 

 menced in 1794. He considered the question of fish as one, if 

 not the most important, which could be enquired into, and gave 

 many interesting observations bearing on the subject. 

 Dr. McClelland in 1839 drew attention to the great benefits 

 which might accrue in looking after the fresh-water fisheries. 

 Cuvier, when writing to a correspondent in India, observed 

 that he did not know a more interesting and important 

 question that could arise in the East, than an enquiry into the 

 fresh-water fisheries of Hindustan. In 1849, the late Dr. 

 Jerdon published papers upon the fresh -water fish and fisheries 

 of Southern India in the " Madras Journal of Literature and 

 Science." Mr. Blytli has given some description t of these 

 fishes in the " Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal," 1859 

 and 18GO. In the " Eishes of Malabar," published by myself in 

 1865, are a few remarks on the same subject, my attention, 

 when collecting the fresh-water fish, having been drawn to 

 the wasteful destruction then going on. (See para. 139.) 

 Mr. Grant, Collector of Malabar, about this time suggested to 

 Government the necessity of affording some protection to the 

 fishes in the waters of his collectorate from the indiscriminate 

 destruction to which he considered they were subject, but 

 nothing was attempted. Two years subsequently, the late 

 Colonel Haly revived the question, and .since that period a 

 mass of valuable information has accumulated. 



III. In 1867, some enquiries were made by the Govern- 



ment of India, the replies to which 



Enquiries made by the Govern- ,-. , L . ., . -, 



ment of ludia in 1867, and su s - may well be adverted to in this place, 

 gestious as to what information The Natural History Secretary to the 



then unavailable was required. A . . . - Z -T-, i /AI j 



Asiatic Society of .Bengal (21st 



January 1868) replied " that the Council are fully aware of the 

 great importance of the question at issue, and they consider 



* Report, March 1871. 



f There arc several authors who have written on the fresh-water fishes of India, hut 

 confined their remarks simply to descriptions with or without figures Block., Russell, Sykes, 

 Cuv. and Vol., Gray and Gunther, whilst Hardwicke only gave drawings. 



