ccv 



across the streams not rented as fisheries" is necessary, it is difficult 

 to see why permitting their entirely blocking rented streams can be 

 anything but injurious, especially as they only allow water to pass, 

 stopping every fish. Likewise at present fixed traps, nets, &c., 

 prevent migrating breeding-fish from freely obtaining ingress to, or 

 egress from, the inundated plains, and the mesh is so small that the 

 most minute fry are entrapped ; surely these ought to be prohibited or 

 subject to some regulation as to the size of the mesh which is employed. 

 This mode of fishing is entirely illegal in Great Britain.] The Deputy 

 Commissioner, Amherst District (July llth, 1872) replies that the answers 

 of four of his most experienced native officials (myo-okes) are unanimous 

 in saying that the supply of fish brought to the bazars is not equal to the 

 demand. Breeding-fish and fry are destroyed to a very great extent 

 in the district, most so " at the commencement of the rains, when 

 breeding-fishes migrate to spawn : in this condition the fish are said 

 by the Burmans to be utterly reckless as regards capture, and passively 

 allow themselves to be taken in very great numbers. Those fish which 

 escape this critical period spawn in shallow water, from which, generally 

 speaking, the small fry have little chance of returning to the larger 

 streams. Another cause of wholesale destruction is the practice of 

 unrestricted" fishing, that is to say, the indiscriminate use of traps, 

 nets, and dams, by which fish of every kind are caught, with 

 regard only to present wants rather than the probability of future 

 scarcity." The smallest mesh of nets used is i an inch between 

 each knot ; the difficulty in regulating it would depend upon the 

 nature of the regulations themselves. Any sudden restriction upon 

 the present means of supply would cause great inconvenience, and 

 temporary misery, perhaps, to the poorer classes, because the staple food 

 of a whole people would for a time be sensibly diminished, and the 

 revenues would temporarily deteriorate ; the smaller kinds of fish in tanks, 

 jkils, and paddy-fields would become a prey to birds instead of food for 

 man. [This, of course, only refers to -those pieces of water which are not 

 perennial, in which, after all communication between them and the rivers 

 has ceased, they gradually dry up, and the fish, unless taken by man, 

 would die or be eaten by the lower animals]. The supply in the bazars 

 now is unequal to the demand j regulations would decrease the present 

 supply, although they would eventually increase it. If possible, would 

 prohibit the capture of the fry of those species which grow to a large size, 

 especially of the "Nga-yans" [Ophiocephalus striatus"^ ; and if their posses- 

 sion or sale under a certain weight and size were declared penal, some 

 stop might be put to its indiscriminate capture, and the result would be 

 a great increase in the present food-supply." [This course I do not think 

 jould be carried out ; it is true that this is a most valuable fish and 

 ittains 3 feet or more in length, whilst the young are killed in 

 mmbers as small fry, but the practical difficulty would be as follows : 

 There are several species of Ophiocephalus , termed thus, with one or two 

 words added to show which is meant. Generally "Nga-yan" was the large 

 Ophiocephalus striatus, but near Henzada it was termed "Nga-yan-pa-nan." 

 The Ophiocephalus punctatus, which closely resembles the last species, 

 excepting that, though very broad, it rarely, if ever, exceeds a foot in 

 length, at. this place was termed " Nga-yan-thin-ohn," whilst the perhaps 



