INDIAN FISH AND FISHING. 37 



in safety for any considerable distance. He proposed 

 placing the eggs of pond-fish in mud, similar to that 

 existing in the locality from whence the eggs were pro- 

 cured, and he believed that when the mass had dried, they 

 could be thus removed without injury, from one pond to 

 another. His proposal was based upon the theory that 

 frequently on dried-up ponds being refilled with water, 

 young fish appear, and which could only be due to the 

 eggs having been present in the mud, but with their germi- 

 nation suspended. In India, as ponds dry up, some of the 

 fish contained therein descend into the mud, where they 

 ^estivate until the next year's rains set in. As these com- 

 mence, and the mud liquefies, fish are perceived diverging 

 in all directions, up every watercourse, no matter how 

 small, or how lately it may have been dry, while in a few 

 days fry are distributed everywhere. Where the eggs 

 come from which have produced these fry is a very in- 

 teresting subject for investigation. Have they remained 

 inside the mother fish, and did she deposit them as soon as 

 the rains set her free ? I cannot accept this theory, because 

 I have witnessed fish removed alive from the mud, but 

 they had no ova ; and secondly, because the fry are so 

 soon hatched after the setting in of the rains, while none 

 of these fish are ovi-viviparous. It seems more reasonable 

 to suppose that the fertilised eggs are embedded in the 

 mud, and, as soon as the rains occur, they become hatched 

 out, and this would give us reason for attempting to ascer- 

 tain whether ova of pond fishes imbedded in mud could be 

 successfully transported long distances. 



We know that germination of fish eggs can be retarded 

 by cold. In fact, by the use of ice, those of trout and 

 salmon have been safely conveyed to Tasmania and else- 

 where, and from America and Canada to Europe. 



