64 THE ANGLER-NATURALIST. 



towards the bait-tank, the whole shoal fastened their eyes 

 upon him, following every movement, and constantly veer- 

 ing round, as if under magnetic attraction, towards which- 

 ever part of the room he turned. I should mention 

 that this occurred in the afternoon the usual time of 

 feeding being in the morning ; but by Mr. Bartlett's di- 

 rection the feeding had been on this occasion postponed 

 until my visit. It is therefore evident that these fish 

 knew where the net was kept that the keeper was going 

 to fetch it and that his doing so was a necessary preli- 

 minary to their being fed. These Perch had been five, 

 and the Pike ten years in the Zoological Gardens, having 

 increased in weight during that time a quarter of a pound, 

 and a pound and a half, respectively. 



As may be gathered from the foregoing incident, Perch 

 are by no means difficult to tame : Mr. Jesse succeeded, 

 after a few days only, in inducing them to feed from his 

 hand. Bloch mentions having watched them depositing 

 their ova in a vessel kept in his own room ; and I am in- 

 formed that the Perch of the Zoological Gardens, already 

 referred to, increase their numbers by an annual shoal of 

 young fry, which are hatched and reared under the eyes of 

 hundreds of visitors. 



A comical anecdote, turning upon this faculty of ready 

 acclimatization, is related by the author of 'Fishes and 

 Fishing/ A country gentleman was anxious to induce a 

 London friend to visit him, and knowing the latter to be a 

 very keen angler, bethought him of adding the temptation 



