Printed by R. Clark, Edinburgh.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] On this part of the piscicultural question I had the following conversation with a pêcheur who has a little place in the suburbs of Strasbourg, on the road to the Bridge of Boats:—
“By your system you collect the eggs of fish in the rivers of Switzerland and Germany, either from the spawning-beds, or direct from the parents, which are then barbarously killed and sold, as we were told at Huningue, and the eggs may be sent off to enrich some private speculator in the north of France. Now, will not the rivers from whence the spawn is taken be impoverished in their turn?”
“Oh, no; it is considered by the piscicultural system that we only obtain that portion of the spawn that would otherwise be lost.”
“What do you think is the proportion of young salmon that arrives at marketable size under the ordinary conditions of growth?”
“It is very small. An eighteen-pound fish will yield eighteen thousand eggs. Well, one-third of these will in all probability escape the fecundating principle of the milt, another third most likely will never come to life—the eggs will either be destroyed from natural causes or be eaten up by other fish; so that you see only six thousand, or one-third of the whole eggs, will ever come to life.”
“Well, that is so far good; but you do not protect the infant fish at all, you only insure the transmission of the eggs from Huningue.”
“Yes; but the eggs are more than half the battle. Out of eighteen thousand salmon-ova you will, by giving protection, hatch at least fifteen thousand fish; and then these won’t be sent into the water till they are well able to take care of themselves, and fight the battle of life.”
“Supposing it to be as you say, and that you can rear the fish in remunerative quantities, will not an extension of the piscicultural system ultimately injure the breed?”