App. E. Fry in rice fields. 287 



being thus completely cut off, is diverted entirely into 

 an irrigation channel. As it is the instinct of the grown 

 fish to ascend the rivers to spawn, so is it the instinct of 

 the fry, as they grow, to allow themselves to drop down- 

 The fry of the follow- wards with the stream to deeper wider 

 ing sorts have been waters. Down they glide therefore, 



identified. How many day by day ft jj^ my ^ feeding as 

 more there may be that 



enter the rioe fields ihe J S<>, and unconscious that they 

 cannot be as yet said, are already in an irrigation channel 

 Numbers 7, 8, 9, io, w hich can end only in a rice field; 

 .'','.' . ' ' and thus it is that the channel-fed 

 list of fishes in Ap- rice fields swarm with fry of appa- 

 pendix G. rently all descriptions. 



34. This would he no misfortune if even here the fry 

 were left to themselves. The rice grows in fields which 

 have been carefully levelled by man, and partitioned with 

 narrow and shallow embankments, so as to economise the 

 water, and spread it over the largest possible area. From 

 See plan of Thodikkn. a piscicultural point of view the whole 



Appendix E. stretch of rice fields has the appear- 



ance of a vast and admirably constructed nursery. A 

 whole river or rivulet has been turned on, a river too 

 which has been stocked with ova, the water has been eco- 

 nomized to the utmost, the depth regulated exactly to 

 suit the fry, large predatory fish thoroughly excluded, 



C] the whole manured, ploughed, and 

 Frogs, however, find 



their way in, in great planted, so as to provide the maxi- 

 numbers and are des- mum of insect life, with, the desired 

 truetive. See para. 81. modicum f varying shade under the 



