Part HI. — Eleventh Annual Report 



the lish-supply should be extended to Scotland ; and with this 

 object in view, a sea-fish hatchery was erected at Dunbar, the 

 whole of the expenditure being met from the ordinary votes for 

 scientific investigations. The hatching-house consists of a sub- 

 stantial double-walled wooden building, 35 feet long by 25 feet 

 broad, with interior space for sixteen hatching-boxes, which can 

 accommodate at one time 80,000,000 eggs. The concrete spawning- 

 pond, in which the ripe fish are placed at the spawning time, has 

 a capacity of 60,750 gallons, and the pumping apparatus consists of 

 two Worthington direct-acting steam-pumps, each capable of 

 throwing over 3000 gallons of sea-water per hour, and which are 

 supplied by an 8-horse-power locomotive steel boiler. The water 

 is pumped from the mouth of the harbour, where it is singularly 

 pure. 



As has been pointed out in previous reports, an indispensable 

 condition for the successful hatching of sea fish is the possession of 

 tidal creeks or enclosures adjacent to the hatching-buildings, in 

 which the ' spawners ' may be collected and kept, and the fry 

 reared to a certain size. Such creeks exist at Dunbar, and have 

 been, with part of the ground adjacent, placed at the disposal of 

 the Board for the purpose, by the War Office and the Magistrates 

 and Council of the burgh. Messrs Strain, Robertson, and Thomson, 

 O.E., who have surveyed the creeks, and drawn up plans for their 

 enclosure, report as follows : — 



' We have examined and surveyed the natural sea-creeks at 

 ' Dunbar in connection with the hatchery and tank at present 

 ' in course of construction there, and beg to report that, if 

 ' these creeks were enclosed by concrete walls as proposed, 

 ' and for which we prepared plans, the total superficial area 

 ' within those walls would be 13,545 square feet at high-water 

 ' of ordinary spring tides. 



' The area of the West creek is about 5,800 square feet, 

 ' and that of the East creek about 7,655 square feet. 



' When filled by ordinary spring tides, these creeks would 

 ' contain about 560,000 gallons of water at high-water, and 

 ' would have a maximum depth of 14 feet in the West creek, 

 ' and 16 feet in the East creek.' 



It has been found impossible to undertake the closure of these 

 creeks from the ordinary vote for scientific investigations — which 

 was insufficient to complete the fitting up of the hatchery before 

 last spawning season — and renewed application was made to the 

 Government for a comparatively small sum of money (£1500) for 

 this purpose. This application was strongly supported by the 

 Secretary for Scotland, but the Lords of the Treasury again 

 declined to sanction its appearance on the Estimates to be sub- 

 mitted to Parliament for the current financial year ; and the Board 

 have to express their regret that they have in consequence been 

 unable to proceed with this work. 



It may be pointed out that both scientific fishery authorities 

 and those engaged in the practical part of the industry are agreed 

 as to the necessity of establishing sea-fish hatcheries for the 



