CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 267 



every year, as trout growing has become better under- 

 stood, and I believe the time is near at hand when 

 Mr. Ainsworth's figures may be realized on a reduced 

 scale, with not more than 50% deducted from the 

 profits to cover the items of risk. 



It may occur to some to inquire what makes the 

 item of risk so large. I will reply that it is because 

 the business is new, and but little understood, the 

 subject-matter is of a peculiarly hazardous sort, and, 

 perhaps more than all, fish-breeders will not take pains 

 to insure the security which is absolutely necessary to 

 success, and which has been dwelt upon so emphati- 

 cally in earlier portions of this treatise. These things 

 have made the risk very great, and account for the 

 very significant fact, that, in the five years since Mr. 

 Ainsworth's table was published, no one has made 

 a fortune by raising trout for the table, or even to my 

 knowledge derived any very extraordinary income from 

 this source alone. 



I think, however, the next five years will tell a dif- 

 ferent story, and I am very much mistaken if some of 

 the trout ponds now under way do not yield within 

 that time some very handsome returns from their mar- 

 keted trout. 



Thus far we have considered the business of trout 

 growing in only one of its branches of profit, namely, 

 raising marketable trout. There are, as is well known, 

 two other sources of revenue : — 



1. The sale of spawn. 



2. The sale of young stock. 



The first branch can hardly be considered a legiti- 



