208 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS [voL. 48 
as may seem to be affirmed by Sir Richard Baker, in whose Chron- 
icle you may find these verses: 
- Hops and turkies, carps and beer, 
Came into England all in a year. 
The distich has no foundation in fact; the earliest known refer- 
ence to the carp occurs in Dame Berners’ “ Boke,” published in 
1406. 
The first successful introduction of the carp into America was 
made in 1877 when Rudolph Hessel brought three hundred and 
forty-five fishes for the United States Fish Commission. These 
were released into breeding ponds and in 1879 distribution of their 
young was made and continued for many years afterwards. Now 
the species is thoroughly naturalized and widely distributed through- 
out the United States. It has become a regular market fish and 
is by many held in considerable esteem, but there is also much 
prejudice against it. Expressions of opinion as to the merits of the 
fish were collected by the United States Fish Commission a few 
years after its introduction and published in its Annual Report 
for 1884 (pp. 659-890). The range of opinion among the two hun- 
dred and forty-two answering was not less remarkable than some 
of the modes of expression. 
A belief that male frogs and toads, driven by urgent sexual pas- 
sion, will leap upon a carp’s head and remain there for some time 
has been long entertained. Izaak Walton was told of a pond being 
drawn and that every carp left in it had “a frog sticking so fast 
on the head of the said carps, that the frog would not get off without 
extreme force or killing.”” The excellent Walton was overcredulous 
and such a statement (which has been ridiculed) would not deserve 
consideration if it rested on his belief only, but a very eminent 
naturalist has lent his own high authority to an analogous state- 
ment. Smitt, in his magnificent work on Scandinavian fishes, also 
tells that “ carp are often troubled by the male frogs, which under 
the influence of sexual excitement attach themselves firmly to the 
head of the sluggish carp, and with their forefeet press the eyes of 
the fish so hard as to produce blindness.” 
Incredible as the frequent occurrence of such assaults may appear, 
Smitt had sufficient reason for his statement in data published by 
reputable eye witnesses. In 1870 (April 11), M. Duchemin pre- 
sented to the Academy of Sciences of France a report on some cases 
that he and M. Deroche had observed. In a large pond numerous 
carp live and thrive except in early spring when, every year, “an 
extraordinary mortality occurs among them.” Every dead fish was 
