PROCEEDINGS, SEPTEMBER. xxi 



SEPTEMBEE, 1889. 



The monthly meeting of the Royal Society was held on Monday, 

 September 9th. The PresidEiNT (His Excellency Sir Robert G. C. 

 Hamilton, K.C.B.) presided. Mr. J. Provis, of South Australia, was 

 elected a corresponding member of the Society ; Mr. Chas. Guesdon a 

 member. 



The President desired to bring a matter concerning the young 

 sabnon now at the Salmon Ponds before the Society. These were the 

 undoubted product of the ova brought out by Sir Thomas Brady, 

 which had been stripped from the male and female fish and artificially 

 fertilised, and the utmost care had been taken to keep them apart from 

 any other fish bred in the Ponds. He recently visited the Ponds, 

 accompanied by the Chairman of the Fisheries Board, the Secretary, 

 and two of the members, when they carefully examined a niimber of 

 the young salmon, among which they were surprised to find marked 

 difierences existing, not only in size, but in their characteristics. It 

 has often been held that the salmonidce caught in Tasmanian waters 

 cannot be true Salmo solar because so many of them have spots on the 

 dorsal fin, and a tinge of yellow or orange on the adipose fin, but nearly 

 half of the young salmon they examined, which had never left the 

 Ponds, had these characteristics. Again, many of them were almost 

 " bull-headed " in appearance — another characteristic which is not 

 supposed to distinguish the true Salmo solar. He would suggest to 

 the Chairman of the Fisheries Board, whom he saw present, that the 

 Secretary should be asked to make a formal report of the result of this 

 visit, and to obtain some specimens of the young fish, which could be 

 preserved in spirits, and perhaps sent to Sir Thomas Brady to be 

 submitted for the consideration and opinion of naturalists at Home. 



Mr. Allport directed attention to the desirableness of placing young 

 fish in the West Coast rivers, which were entirely free at present of 

 fish of a migratory character. 



Mr. Johnston pointed out the difficulty of transit in stocking these 

 rivers. He thought Lake Dixon would afford an excellent home for the 

 salmon, equal to any of the Scotch waters ; and as it is one of the 

 affluents of the Franklin and Gordon Rivers, the young fish would find 

 their way to the Western Ocean. 



Mr. MeRTON drew attention to a specimen of the fish referred to, one 

 that had been bred from the late shipment of ova brought out by Sir 

 Thomas Brady. The fish exhibited had no markings on the dorsal fin, 

 but, as had been stated by His Excellency, there appeared to be quite an 

 equal number in the pond with markings on the dorsal as those without. 

 He hoped the recommendations of His Excellency, that specimens of this 

 young fry should be sent to some of the leading ichthyologists in Europe 

 for their opinion would be carried out, because from the care and 

 attention bestowed on the late shipment of ova there could be no 

 question but that the ova was from the true fish, Salmo solar. 



SMUT IN GRAIN, AND DEPOSIT OF SALT. 



The Secretary (Mr. A. Morton) read the following correspondence 

 rom Mr. Joseph Barwick, relating to smut in wheat, and also to a large 

 ■deposit of salt found on the plains near Mona Vale. 



"To the President and Council of the Royal Society of Tasmania. 

 Gentlemen, — After reading the two high class, and what would seem 

 unanswerable papers upon the above subject, read at the last meeting 



