NO W235) (THE TEGG OF AMIA AND TIS CLEAVAGE. 311 
steal away, under cover of plants, so quietly as to escape obser- 
vation. If suddenly surprised they dash off with such speed 
that one may get no distinct image of the fish, and see only a 
streak of muddy water marking its path. A few fish escaping 
in this way often leave the water of a small bay so cloudy that 
the search for eggs has to be abandoned until the mud settles. 
The difficulties of the search for these eggs were, then, not a 
few, even in Pewaukee Lake, which is undoubtedly one of the 
most favorable localities, and thus far the only one where they 
have been found in abundance. In lakes where the water is 
constantly cloudy, as in the small lakes south of Chicago, the 
difficulties are so great that, with all our experience in collect- 
ing these eggs, we have not yet succeeded in finding a single 
nest, after looking for them for two seasons. There must be 
breeding-grounds somewhere in these lakes, for Amia is abun- 
dant, both young and old. 
After collecting for several seasons at Pewaukee, and after 
much searching in the rivers and other lakes of Wisconsin and 
Illinois, we are not greatly surprised that the eggs of Amia 
escaped early discovery. But how did it happen that the dis- 
covery once made was not forthwith announced, and followed 
up with the usual haste to secure priority? Although the fact 
was not announced in print, no secret was made of it, and it 
soon became known to many American and European natural- 
ists. As to “priority,” no apology need be offered for indif- 
ference. ‘Priority’? weighs less and less as investigation 
weighs more, and, so far as the egg of Amia is concerned, 
there appears to be little reason to envy either the methods or 
the results of priority-seekers. 
To those who have known where these much coveted eggs 
could be found in abundance, and who have courteously re- 
frained from helping themselves, out of respect for first claims, 
a word of explanation is due for the failure to bring forth 
results at an earlier date. 
When Mr. Allis started his Lake Laboratory at Milwaukee, 
under the direction of Mr. Whitman, it was suggested by the 
latter that the eggs of Amia and Necturus would be two as 
interesting subjects for embryological research as could be 
