FISHES AND FISHING. 41 



to the pool, and brought with her a large male com- 

 mon river trout, when the poacher leistered, i. e. 

 speared, both of them. So that this fish had a dispo- 

 sition to have a hybrid progeny ; but the poacher 

 being, no doubt, a man oi great moral rectitude, would 

 not allow of any such disgraceful proceedings, and so 

 took the lady away from the temptation of doing so 

 again. It is a matter of speculation for the naturalist 

 how fish communicate with each other, and how this 

 female salmon seduced nine salmon to their ruin. 

 Examples of a similar kind are too often to be found 

 amongst the human race. 



It appears from the evidence, that the eggs remain 

 covered with the loose gravel for several weeks, and 

 they first show signs of life by a very slight fin, at- 

 tached to the %%^, appearing above the gravel ; the 

 ^g^ has considerable motion by means of that fin, 

 and so probably becomes emancipated from the place 

 where it was deposited, unless, as I have suggested, 

 the female returns to assist in the work. 



The evidence of Messrs. Little and Halliday go to 

 prove that they have detected something like amorous 

 passions in the salmo genus ; and if Oppian is to be 

 credited, and he was a very acute observer, many fish 

 have a predilection for a particular mate of the oppo- 

 site sex, some are constant to that one, others keep a 

 complete seraglio, and guard it with most jealous 



