70 



The Irish Naturalist. 



March, 



I remember a well-knowu seedsman telling me of a salvage case in 

 which a large quantity of seeds were saturated with sea-water in a 

 damaged or sunken ship. They were in sacks, and when the sacks were 

 brought to the surface the seeds next the canvas sides all sprouted 

 through the sacks, but those in the centre though equally wet never 

 sprouted at all, but dried without sprouting, and I think he said did not 

 lose their vitality, but of this I am not quite sure. My impression is that 

 a great deal has been written on this subject from time to time, though 

 Mr. Adams may be right in saying that there is a paucity of authentic 

 observation. 



Richard M. Barrington. 



Fassaroe, Bray. 



ZOOLOGY. 



Great Run of Herrings in Killala Bay and the Moy Estuary. 



The Herrings appeared in the bay about the middle of September, 

 and a few days after entered the estuary and tidal parts of the river, 

 where they were taken in thousands— some boats taking five and six 

 thousand for their night's fishing. But the most remarkable feature of 

 this run of fish was, that from the time of their entry into the estuary 

 on the 26th of September, they apparently never left, or those taken 

 were replaced by other schools coming in from the bay up to the 21st of 

 November, when, after the severe storm, they quite cleared out cf 

 both river and estuary. Still some schools lingered on in the baj-, 

 especially on the Killala side, where some herrings were taken cn the 

 I2th and 13th December. They were taken night after night, even in the 

 upper reaches of the river, and as the weather was fine and calm every 

 sort of boat was out, from the full-sized yawl with its train of six nets, 

 to the small punt or dingy, with its one or two nets. On some evenings 

 a fleet of twenty boats might be seen scattered over a mile of the 

 estuary. The takes on some evenings were very large, but one day a 

 most extraordinary haul was made inside the training walls of the 

 channel, for during high tide the Herrings passed over the walls from 

 the channel, and remaining until the ebb tide— the water having fallen — 

 were unable to repass over the walls, and their only egress was through 

 the open gaps at the end of the walls, which were closed by the fisher- 

 men placing nets across, and thus retained the fish until they were left 

 by the falling tide high and dry on the land, where the me^i gathered 

 them at their leisure. On the Castlecomer side over twenty-one thousand 

 were picked uj), while on the Carrakelly side fifteen thousand were 

 secured. This great run of herrings remaining for such a long time in 

 the river and estuary was a great boon to the fishermen, some of whose 

 earnings were very large. One man, the owner of a first-class yawl, 

 assured me that he received for the fish taken by his boat, from the 26th 

 of September up to the 21st of November, £12^. 



Robert Warren, 



Moyview, Ballina. 



