302 Proceedings of the Boyal Physical Society. 



ceived as much sliare of attention as it deserves, I would 

 recommend the more minute and accurate recording of the 

 Distribution of Fishes around our coasts, and in our lakes and 

 streams ; and would desire to see carefully prepared lists of 

 species from each drainage system, and their final catchment 

 basins, in Scotland. Such lists, in time, could not fail to be 

 of great interest and value, scientific and economical, and 

 greatly to assist us in the future, in arriving at conclusions 

 regarding distribution and migration, as well as the life- 

 history of this important class of our Vertebrates. The 

 distribution of fish at certain seasons of the year is the only 

 firm basis on which to build up the truths of their migrations 

 from one place to another. Once these facts are ascertained, 

 other interesting discoveries are sure to follow. Even arti- 

 ficial fish-culture can hardly be said to be perfected, or to 

 reach further than its own circumscribed limits, at least in 

 an economical sense, unless these correlating and important 

 facts be also gathered. 



Fish-culture, as fish-culture alone, is still to a great degree 

 experimental. But if it were better supported by accumula- 

 tions of data and facts as regards distribution (say of other 

 inimical species), and as regards the migrations and food- 

 supply of each and all species, everything experimental 

 would give place to assured results in course of time, as is 

 the case with all such similar investigations. 



In a previous Presidential address delivered to another 

 Society some years ago, I referred at greater length to this 

 subject; but I am not aware that it resulted in any further 

 acquisition of materials by the members of that Society in the 

 direction I now indicate again. I am still, however — indeed 

 more and more — convinced of the utility of such lists, which, 

 as I have said, almost invariably prove to be the surest 

 groundwork for future more extensive generalisation and 

 discovery. I would therefore urgently recommend this 

 branch of inquiry for your work and consideration in the 

 future. 



We come now to the more direct objects and scope of this 

 address — viz., to endeavour to point out the faunal import- 



