226 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 
brass label, elliptical in shape, and measuring 
16x11 mm. It was moulded so as to present convex 
and concave faces. A small hole was punched through 
the centre, and the concave face of the label bore the 
letters L, or LL, or LA, and the numbers 1 to 1,000. 
The silver wire used was 0°38 mm. in diameter. It was 
cut in lengths of 1 inch, and each piece had a loop of 
15 mm. at one end, the loop being bent at right angles 
to the length of the wire. The bone buttons used were 
16 mm. in diameter, flat on one side and convex on the 
other. Each had a hole drilled through the centre, and 
a small recess on the convex side to receive the loop of 
the wire. Each wire was, previously to making the 
experiment, threaded on a button, and arranged in a 
tray. A number of brass labels were threaded on a piece 
of wire. 
Three workers were required for the experiment. 
One measured the fish and handed them to the operator ; 
another noted the length of the fish and the number of 
the label, and then handed the latter to the operator. 
The fish was pierced through the fleshy part of the body 
by a steel needle, about half-way between the head and 
tail and about 1 cm. below the base of the dorsal fin, 
and the wire, bearing the bone button at one end, was 
then pushed through the fish, when the label was put on 
and another small loop made by means of round-nosed 
phers and turned down on the label. The latter was on 
the ocular side of the body of the fish. Working in this 
way it is easy to mark 50 fish in less than half an hour. 
After seeing many examples of fish marked by other 
methods, I am convinced that the one described above is 
the best hitherto suggested. 
It was generally necessary to make the experiments 
as quickly as possible so that the time of the vessel might 
