134 



THE AIR BREATHING 



here speaks; but, in order to put the matter beyond doubt, I re- 

 peated my experiments on a larger scale, in the presence of several 

 gentlemen who were so kind as to assist me, some of whom favour- 

 ed me with suggestions which enabled me to make my experiments 

 more satisfactory, by varying the manner in which they were made. 

 The first set of experiments was made in the presence of CP. 

 Layard, Esq., and G-. Molesworth, Esq. On that occasion the fish 

 experimented on were enclosed in glass receivers, which were sub- 

 merged in larger vessels containing other fish, which had free ac- 

 cess to the air. From some of the receivers, the fish inclosed in 

 which were so large as not to be able to make their escape through 

 the aperture, the stoppers were removed, so as to allow a free com- 

 munication between the water inside the receiver and that outside. 

 In others, in which smaller fish were inclosed, the stoppers were 

 replaced, as soon as the air had been allowed to escape but, were 

 from time to time moved up and down, so as to promote the circu- 

 lation of the water between tbe receivers and the aquarium in which 

 they were placed. The fish confined in these receivers were of 

 five different species, viz., Maddhacariya, Loolla, Talcaddia, Kawa- 

 ya, Iloonga. Messrs. Layard and Molesworth remained for about 

 an hour and a half to watch the experiment. During that time 

 two Lool las and two Talcaddias were drowned, one Talcaddia sur- 

 vived after having been kept from the air for 50 minutes; and a 

 Maddhacariya, which had been confined for more than an hour, 

 when an attempt was made to remove it, revived immediately on 

 obtaining access to the air, and swam off so vigorously that it was 

 impossible to distinguish it from other fish of the same species 

 which were in the aquarium. When Messrs. Layard and Moles- 

 worth went away, there still remained two receivers with fish in 

 them, which continued to shew signs of life. One contained a Ka- 

 waya, the other a Hoonga. These were left unobserved for about two 

 hours, when they were removed quite dead. In some of the re- 

 ceivers several Tittiyas (water breathing fish,) were confined, along 

 with the air-breathers, and did not appear to have suffered in the 

 least, when their companions were removed dead. 



