1835.] Mountain Trout of Kemaon. 39 



meeo-vwon or magistrate, and a separation is instantaneously effected 

 on their compliance with the rules laid down for observance in such 

 cases. If the wife objects to remain any longer with her hasband, and 

 he shall be found to have repeatedly ill treated her, she is at liberty to 

 depart, receiving from him the whole of her property, as well as the 

 children (both male and female), that may have been born to her. 

 The children are, in maturer years, allowed to reside with either parent 

 as choice directs. If, on the contrary, the wife shall be found to have 

 behaved ill, she pays a certain sum of money (generally about 25 or 

 30 rupees), to her husband, who also retains possession of the 

 male children ; the wife receiving no part whatever of the property* 

 In cases where no criminality is attached to either party, and both 

 desire to be separated, a fair division of property is made, each receiv- 

 ing what he or she may have possessed before marriage, with an equal 

 share of the produce of their united labours ; the husband retaining the 

 boys, and the wife the girls. The case being investigated and decided 

 upon, a pawn is broken into two pieces, one of which is given to each 

 as the emblem of separation. This done, the divorce has been effected, 

 and they are both at liberty to contract any new alliance. 



[To be continued.] 



III. — Description of the (so called) Mountain Trout of Kemaon. By 

 Dr. J. M'Clelland, Assistant Surgeon, 30th Regt. N. I. 



From among the treasures of natural history of Kemaon that have 

 not hitherto been indicated, the following notice of a new species of 

 fish, which affords a plentiful article of food to those who reside in the 

 vicinity of small rocky streams, may not be uninteresting. From the 

 appearance of this species, it has commonly been considered by Euro- 

 peans to whom it is familiar as a common mountain trout ; a closer ex- 

 amination however, soon detects the mistake, and except that it belongs 

 to the class of abdominal fishes and inhabits fresh- water streams, there 

 is no natural connexion between this fish and the species to which it 

 was supposed to belong. The following are its distinguishing cha- 

 racters. 



Body compressed ; mouth situated under the head, lunate, retrac- 

 tile, toothless. Dorsal fin consisting of eight rays. Two ventral fina 

 situated on the centre of the abdomen, caudal fin bifid. 



The colour of the back is bluish-black, diminishing in intensity on 

 the sides, which are each marked as usual with a lateral line, and the 

 belly is pale bluish- white. The scales are so small as to be scarcely 

 perceptible, and there is a slight golden lustre or iridescence about the 

 head ; the length is from three inches to nine. 



