4832 Fishes. 



the marked fish which were liberated from the Stormontfield Ponds in 

 May and June last. Another specimen, we hear, was caught a week 

 before at the foot of the Willowgate. In addition to these, we noticed, 

 a fortnight ago, that a grilse was said to have been caught some days 

 previously at the mouth of the Earn, similarly marked: the truth of this 

 statement, as we remarked at the time, we have no reason to doubt, but 

 the actual specimen itself not having been preserved, we did not feel 

 warranted, upon the ground of it, to attempt to found any definite 

 conclusions in regard to the various theories which have been so 

 earnestly advocated upon this interesting and important subject. The 

 specimen caught at Dairy Island, however, having been preserved and 

 sent to Mr. Buist's office, where it was exhibited during the day to 

 hundreds of visitors, brings all controversy upon this branch of the 

 subject irrefragably to an end. There can be no doubt whatever as 

 to the genuineness of this specimen ; the dead fin had been clean cut 

 off, — the mode in which the smolts were marked on their liberation 

 from the ponds, — and the abscission was completely cicatrized, and 

 had evidently been so for some considerable time.* 



That the full bearing of this interesting result may be more com- 

 pletely seen, we shall once more trace the progress of the experiment 

 from the beginning. 



In November and December, 1853, many thousands — as nearly as 

 could be estimated 300,000 — of ova were deposited in the boxes. 



In April and May, 1854, the hatching took place. On the 15th of 

 April, little fish were first observed at large in the troughs. We may 

 remark, however, that in some more sheltered localities, where similar 

 experiments were being carried on, at the same time, in a small way, 

 by private gentlemen, the eggs were found, in one case, at least, to 

 have been hatched in sixty days from the time they were deposited. 

 In this instance they were laid under a stream of spring water just at 

 its exit from the rock. 



In June, 1854, the tiny inmates of the boxes, having generally 

 attained the size of about an inch and a half in length, were in- 

 troduced to the larger sphere of the pond, where, for twelve months, 

 they were carefully tended and fed. 



* In addition to the specimens referred to above, we saw on Tuesday, in 

 Mr. Buist's office, another beautifully grown grilse of 5 fbs. weight, which had 

 that morning been captured at Carthageua Bank, on the Seaside fishings, two miles 

 below Errol, belonging to the Glover Incorporation of Perth. In the case of this 

 lish, the dead fin was not only entirely cut off, but the scales had completely grown 

 over the part which had been cut. 



