184 MARVELS OF FISH LIFE 
must have been tho oughly uncomfortable, this devoted 
parent never deserted the eggs. 
To test this parental instinct the fish was removed 
a couple of yards, but at once wriggled back to the 
former position, with its snout almost touching the 
stone to which the eggs were attached. 
To return to the question of procuring specimens for 
photography. I find my friends do not always choose the 
most convenient time for bringing them to me. For 
example, an angling friend of mine was cleaning out a 
ditch near the banks of the Orwell, and saw a large fish 
moving in the mud; being an enthusiast, he at once 
jumped in and seized it. Orwell mud is black, sticky, 
and odoriferous, and there was quite a crowd of little 
boys when my friend presented himself at my consult- 
ing rooms, dripping wet, covered with black mud, and 
carrying a small wooden bucket, in which he was 
endeavouring to keep a huge lamprey. 
On a few occasions I have photographed fish that 
have been sent to the taxidermist to be set up. For 
example, the tench shown on the plate facing p. 30 was 
one of two fish taken out of the mud while a pond (not 
many miles from Ipswich) was being cleaned. These fish 
were wrapped in a damp cloth, and sent by carrier to the 
taxidermist. Here they soon recovered in a tub of 
water, and next morning I got some excellent photo- 
graphs. The two tench were exceptionally fine speci- 
mens, weighing over three pounds apiece; and I am 
patiently waiting for the day when the owner of the 
