172 



On East Indian Isinglass. 



age specimens of an investment of 2235 lbs., which was sold 

 at a loss, because it was said to smell. 



Dr. Royle next describes the samples which we sent 

 through the Government to the India House, which he says, 

 " are from six to twenty-four inches long, and about three 

 or four inches broad, and from l-6th to l-10th of an inch 

 thick, w 7 hite in colour, rough in some places, apparently 

 from adhering portions of membrane stripped off ; smooth 

 and translucent in others, and occasionally nearly trans- 

 parent in some, &c." One would suppose this to be quite a 

 different article from that which was presented by Messrs. 

 Cantor and Rogers from our first year's manufacture, but 

 its peculiarities depend on the oval substance (or air-blad- 

 der) having been divided and drawn out, when soft, be- 

 tween rollers, and subsequently dusted over on the surface 

 with lime, a mode of preparation which we did not employ in 

 the samples presented by Messrs. Cantor and Rogers. 



Having now explained what has been done in the manu- 

 facture of Isinglass, particularly by ourselves, we turn with 

 more satisfaction to what has been accomplished by others, 

 as far as we are in possession of information on this impor- 

 tant subject. J. G. Malcolmson, Esq. of the firm of Forbes 

 and Co., Bombay, in a note to our address dated 25th March 

 1841, states, " I have already prepared Isinglass here of 

 course from your (meaning the Calcutta) " Polynemus," and 

 from a fish with large scales." Soon after the receipt of 

 Mr. Malcolmson's note, we were favoured by Sir James 

 Carnac on his departure from Bombay, with information 

 collected there by Dr. Heddle at the request of Lord 

 Auckland. The substance of which is, that the article 

 known in commerce as Fish Maws, is the swimming blad- 

 der of a species of fish, which attains 2| to 3 feet in length, 

 and is very common, at certain seasons, all along the coast. 



This fish, of which Dr. Heddle has been kind enough to 

 send a specimen, proves to be the same as our Bengal spe- 



