644 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XVII. 



of this latter tract are, to a large extent, destroying the fish food of the 

 millions in the plains beyond. Many of the principal edible fishes ascend the 

 rivers for spawning purposes, and it is -within the hills, or in the country 

 immediately at their feet, that the greater part of the damage to fresh water 

 fisheries is done. A thousand fry wantonly slaughtered here for the sake of 

 a copper or two or a few handfuls of rice means the loss of many thousands 

 of potential full-sized fis-h to the netsmen in the plains below. It is not sought 

 to in any way restrict or curtail the supply of fish to the people of India, but 

 rather to enormously increase it by taking a few obvious precautions. By 

 slightly curb ng the very savage and primitive method of the fisb slaughterer 

 within the hills it will be possible to increase the eventual yield of the nets 

 in the plains below a thousandfold Fish is a very favourite article of food 

 with the natives of India. It is, indeed, of perhaps more widespread use in 

 that country than any other substance. The staple foods of the people vary 

 greatly. In one part rice is universally used, in another wheat flour, in a 

 third millets or pulses. But fish is everywhere eaten when it can be obtained. 



Consequently, any measures which seem to hold out even a promise of 

 increasing this very important food supply surely deserve the fullest con- 

 sideration. Hitherto in this paper the rivers of Northern India have been 

 chiefly referred to. But there is a great opening for future fish supplies in 

 the intelligent stocking of the numerous storage tanks which have been 

 constructed of late years as famine relief work.-. In a very interesting 

 account Mr. Thomas has shown what, extraordinarily favourable results may 

 be obtained from even small stocking schemes, such is the reproductiveress 

 and quickness in arriving at maturity of certain species of Indian fish. By 

 judiciously stocking some of the mor^ promising of these tanks a very large 

 stock of fish might be created. But to carry out work of this sort intelligent- 

 ly and systematically some special machinery and some uniformity of plan is 

 required. It is a task which might well be undertaken by an Indian in- 

 spector of fisheries. 



It has sometimes been said that the cry for the better protection of Indian 

 fisheries is a mere selfish cry raised by, and in the interests of, a limited 

 number of English anglers. There could not be a greater error. The interests 

 of the angler and of the legitimate netsman are identical. The recreation 

 of the one and the livelihood of the other are both being seriously affected 

 by the wholesale fish slaughter going on continually in the hill streams — 

 the nurseries and breeding grounds of many species. The sporting point of 

 view may be ignored, for it is insignificant when compared with the economic 

 aspect of the question, an aspect which has hardly as yet been afforded serious 

 consideration by Government. Meanwhile, every year sees the general con- 

 dition of Indian rivers growing worse, and it is earnestly to be hoped that 

 the question will be thoroughly gone into before Lord Ourzon's term of 

 office expires. 



W. M. 



