CHAP. VIII.] PISCICULTURE. 81 



of fish may be hatched at a cost and trouble almost nominal, for I do not 

 think that I lost 5 per cent, this year of good eggs subjected to the process. 

 Much however has still to be learnt with respect to the treatment of the 

 young fry, for it is still a debatable question whether we should place them 

 in small streams full of weeds and animalcules, their natural food, or cram 

 them, as the French recommend, with the flesh of frogs or powdered bullock's 

 liver. I adopt the former plan, but am not so confident as to its superiority 

 to consider it the sole good treatment of these delicate juveniles. The 

 great liberality and kindness of the French Government in gratuitously 

 aiding English pisciculturists is beyond all praise, but the time has surely 

 arrived when all English society might imitate the works of the French 

 State and stock our rivers with salmon, trout, and grayling. The breeding 

 boxes which I have had made in England far surpass in excellence those 

 sold in France, and had M. Coumer's unqualified approbation on his 

 visit to England last summer. One of these may now be seen at the ' Field ' 

 office in the Strand ; and until a piscicultural society on a large scale is 

 formed, I shall be happy to hatch and distribute to the Thames any number 

 of thousands of salmon ova which our northern proprietors may send me. 



I remain, Sir, 

 7, FINSBURY CIRCUS, Tour obedient servant, 



April 24th. . ALFRED SMEE. 



The first fish he hatched according to this system were young 

 salmon. In 1861 he sent salmon ova to Hampton to Mr. Ponder, 

 chairman of the Sub-committee on Pisciculture. My father was 

 continually being asked for information on this subject, not only 

 from various persons in this country, but also from America. 

 And he was constantly sending ova or young fish to stock different 

 rivers. His own fish-breeding house, which he conducted on a 

 large scale at his garden at Wallington, was highly interesting, 

 and during the early spring months many came there specially 

 to see it. For a fuller account of pisciculture, see ' My Garden,' 

 page 497. 



My father was not only a complete angler and lover of pisci- 

 culture, but was also during parts of his life fond of shooting. 

 From 1863 to 1866 he rented with a select party some pheasant- 

 shooting of considerable extent in Hertfordshire, where he used 

 to spend one day a week, and from which he always returned in 

 raptures with the beautiful woods and the country. In 1867 he 

 held with others some shooting at Tunbridge Wells, but this he 

 did not enjoy so much as his Hertfordshire shooting. He had, 

 besides, many pleasant days of sport at different times with friends 

 on their estates and at their shooting-boxes. After 1867, with 

 the exception of a few hours on the moors at Whitby, he shot 

 no more. 



Besides being a sportsman, he was very fond of yachting, 



a 



