1 82 BRITISH FRESH-WATER FISHES 



bull-trout ? — fish that it requires only a moderate amount of 

 experience to enable one to distinguish from each other. 



On the other hand, the proposition of a common descent 

 has received remarkable support in recent years from what has 

 taken place in the Southern Hemisphere. Repeated attempts to 

 estiblish the true salmon [Salmo salar) in Australasian waters 

 have ended in uniform failure ; but the common British brook 

 trout [Salmo fario) has found a congenial home in Tasmania and 

 New Zealand, and attains a size which may well excite the envy 

 of anglers in the old country. While writing these lines, I 

 happened to take up the Field newspaper for July 26th, 1902, 

 and extract therefrom the following as an instance in point : — 



*' Sport in New Zealand. — Early in the season I had 

 the pleasure of a few days' fishing with Mr. R. R. Patrick, of 

 Beith, Ayrshire, at the Kakanui River, some sixty miles north 

 of Dunedin. My biggest catch there for a day was twenty-six 

 fish, the largest about 3 lb. About a month later my two boys 

 and myself spent ten days at the same river. We caught just 

 over four hundred fish, which averaged about a pound or a 

 little over ; I only obtained one fish over 6 lb., but they are 

 very game, and give lots of sport. After fishing several of 

 the northern rivers without any blank days, I tried some of the 

 southern ones, and had capital sport, as my note-book shows : 

 Owaka River, fourteen fish, 22 lb., for a half-day ; following 

 day, seven fish, 16 lb., one a nice one of 5 lb. Makarewa 

 River, eleven fish, 18 lb. ; six fish, 1 1 lb. ; nine fish, 17 lb. 

 Waikiwi River, two fish, one 7 lb., one 2 lb. These were 

 caught in about two hours' fishing just before dusk. Having 

 noticed a big one rising on the wrong side of the river for 

 me, 1 told a friend of mine about him. He drove out next 

 morning a distance of six miles, and was home in time for 

 breakfast at nine with two pictures of big brown trout ; they 

 weighed 7 lb. each, and might have been brothers. My friend 

 told me he caught one just where I had described noticing the 



