34 DESCEIPTION, CLASSIFICATION, AND 



The fact noted by Mr. Atkins, that the eggs of the 

 fresh-water salmon are much larger than .those of the 

 sea-salmon, attracted my notice some years ago, and I 

 have endeavored, but unsuccessfully, to establish area- 

 son therefor. Professor Ramsay Wright, of the Bio- 

 logical Department of the University of Toronto, to 

 whose notice I brought the matter, suggested that, in 

 some cases, the larger size of the egg probably means 

 delayed hatching from climatic conditions. 



It is strange that this difference has not been seized 

 upon as an argument against the identity of the sal- 

 mon and the ouananiche, so absurd have been most 

 of the reasons in support of such contention by those 

 who uphold it. 



Of the attempts that have been made to introduce 

 the ouananiche into English waters, some, at least, 

 have proved unsuccessful. F. A. W. Whitmore, writ- 

 ing in the London Field of November 23, 1895, on the 

 proposal to plant so-called landlocked salmon-fry in 

 the upper portions of the Severn, recalls the fact that 

 three years previously, the Eev. H. B. W. Whitmore 

 obtained a quantitj^ of ova from the United States, 

 successfully hatched nearly all the eggs, and turned 

 out the fry into the highest of five large pools, of 

 which the overflow is into the Severn. When the 

 water was drained off in a subsequent season only 

 one of the fish was found, the others, in the opinion 

 of the writer, having gone to the sea as samlets. 

 " If he can follow his instincts," continues Mr. Whit- 

 more, in speaking of the ouananiche, "he is not 

 disposed to abide in one place, and will, I think, 



