THE SILURUS GLANIS IN ENGLAND.

Press, Volume VII, Issue 691, 16 January 1865, Page 5

THE SILURUS GLANIS IN ENGLAND.

i As it seems allowed on all hands that the acclimatizers of England have accomplished a very meritorious feat successfully in in- . troducing in the country the new fish Silurus Glanis, the following account of how it was managed may not be unacceptable. It is from the Field, and, if we are not much ; mistaken, from the pen of Mr. Francis Buckland: — That much desired fish, the Silurus, has at last been brought alive to this country, after various failures. The success is entirely due to the intelligent enterprise and perseverance of Sir Stephen B. Lakeman, who himself accompanied the fish all the way from Bucharest, a distance of 1800 miles; and on Thursday night I had the pleasure of assisting Mr. Francis Francis in placing fourteen lively little baby-siluri in a pond not far from the fish-hatching apparatus belonging, to the Acclimatisation Society on Mr. Francis's grounds at Twickenham. When I state that Sir S. Lakeman had to change railway carriages more than thirty times during the journey, not to mention other vehicles, such as horse-carriages and steamers; that he stai'ted on the 23rd of August, and arrived in London with the fish on the evening of the 15th of September, and that during all that long journey he had to wage perpetual battle with the indifference and stupidity of officials, from stationmasters down to porters, most of whom seemed to regard the fact, of his travelling with a strange fish as rather a misdemeanor than otherwise, the reader will have some notion of the difficulties which have been overcome. The fourteen little siluri, or siluruses, which have arrived are what remain of thirtysix of the same species, which started from Kopacheni, where Sir S. Lakeinan's estate is situated. This place is on the banks of the Argisch, a tributary of the Danube, and is about ten miles from Bucharest. The Argisch abounds in silurus, and in all the other curious and almost unknown fish which swarm in the Danube, some of which, thanks to Sir S. Lakeman, we hope, at no very distant day, to re-introduce to their old friends, the siluri, in Mr. Francis' pond. By way of preparation for the journey, the siluri were placed in a water cask, covered with a net, and placed in a large pond or lake of about 30 acres, belonging to Sir S. Lakeman; which pond abounds with fish, and yields silurus weighing up to 301b and 401b,,which maybe caught with the line. The contrivance which Sir S. Lakeman adopted for the transport of the fish, and the simplicity of the arrangement whereby he managed to aerate the water, is worthy of great commendation. Of the thirty-six fish which started from Kopacheni, some were comparatively large, weighing up to 41b, and some of them were mere fry. They were separated according to sizes, and placed in three barrels of about the capacity of quarter casks, twelve in a barrel. The lids of the barrels were perforated, and inside the lid was a perforated inner lid, with a hole in the centre large enough to allow the fish, or a man's arm, to pass. One important service rendered by this shelf was to break the fall of the water when poured in. The barrels were mounted upon rockers, like those of a child's cradle, and being kept about three parts full of water, tbe motion of tbe vehicles in which they travelled (whether drawn .by 1 horses or driven by steam) rocked-them * about and kept up a constant splashing, and, » consequently, a constant aeration of the 1 water. Sir S. Lakeman observed that so ■ long as the barrels were in motion the fish > remained lively, and it was only during stoppages at stations, &c., that they exhibited r signs of distress. A servant was directed , to remain by the barrels throughout the > journey, and at intervals of two or three r hours to pour in a bottle of fresh water. > Sir S. Lakeman started, as I have stated, * from Kopacheni on August 23. He brought i the fish, by Bucharest, to Giurgevo, a dis-: -> tance of fifty miles; thence by steamer to b Basias, in Transylvania, and so on by raili way to Pesth, Vienna, Nuremburg, Cologne, r Brussels, and Boulogne. The larger fish 3 died first, all but the six-pounder, which en- - dured to Vienna .* and he only died there, it t is supposed, because the servant in charge 2 put his barrel into a stable, and it is likely * that the ammoniacal atmosphere of tbe place 7 disagreed with him. It should be noticed i that during the lifetime of this gentleman t some of the smaller fish which had been - drafted into his barrel disappeared very * mysteriously, and a large number of specimens of the "tiger eel" of the Danube, •. which were assigned to him as travelling - companions; were also «o» est.

? The difficulties which bad to be contended - with were infinite ; but tbe worst accident I happened at Boulogne, where the stupid railway porter hoisted upon his back the - solitary barrel which continued the survivors fust as* if it had been a bale of goods, and, - tin ding the water running over bis head and . down his neck, flung it down, scattering fish j and water all about the station. Happily, > they were almost all recovered without 5 damage, and that they should have survived j such a mishap is certainly a remarkable' - proof of their hardiness and tenacity of » life. On arriving at Folkestone there were fourteen survivors of the thirty-six which i started from Kopacheni, and I am happy to i say that everyone of these reached Mr. i Francis in the most lively and promising i state—somewhxit thin, it is true—for they ; had been kept upon short commons all . through the journey, but, apparently, as full of life and voracity'as such little creatures could possibly be. Immediately on his arrival in London, Sir Stephen Lakeman, with most praiseworthy public spirit, thought more of the fish than of himself; for without even driving to an hotel, he made his Avay to the Field office; and I need not describe with what delight he and his charge were welcomed. In a very short time we were on our way to Twickenham, having, as we thought, deposited the siluri safely in the guard's van. Alas! the troubles of the little fellows were not yet over. When the train drew up at Vauxhall the guard rushed to our carriage with consternation upon his face " Oh! pray gentlemen, come to the van! I hadn't turned my head half a minute before a fool of a porter shoved in a package, and turned over your barrel offish, and nearly all the water has run out." This was said news —to weather this long journey of nearly two thousand miles successively, and then to be shipwrecked between Waterloo-bridge and Twickenham ! Out we rushed, and into the van. The guard's report was too true ; but I at once ascertained that some crater was left in the barrel. " Water! water !" I shouted, louder than Coleridge's Ancient Mariner did, and fortunately a porter had time to fetch ust one bucket from the pump, which we managed to get into the barrel. The rest of the journey "Sir S. Lakeman and I performed in the van, determined to leave our precious charge no more to the care of either guards or porters. I must do this particular guard the credit to say that the accident was no fault of his; that he did all that laid inliis power to remedy it as soon as he discovered it, and that he manifested great concern at the occurrence and interest in the welfare of our charges. So we got them safely down to Mr. Francis', and on the brink of the pond turned then* into a trough—fourteen little siluri, all alive and kicking, and as spry and frisky as possible. Their size varied from an ounce and a-half to two ounces, for they are not more than three months old ; but Sir S. Lakeman, who is well acquainted with the fish, declares that in a few weeks, when they have had the benefit of fresh water and plenty of food, their increase will be rapid and astonishing. When put into the water, they dived down to the bottom at once, with any easy vigorous movement, and waving their long barbels about quite if they knew their way about the pond which they then saw for the first time. From their flourishing condition, there is every reason to hope that they will increase and multiply. Indeed, I have very little doubt that with ordinary luck this country has now acquired the Silurus Giants. This is, so far as I am aware, the first time that this valuable fish has been brought to our shores; and the gratitude not only of the Acclimatisation Society, but of the country, is due to Sir Stephen B. Lakeman for the admirable manner in which he has effected the task which he unselfishly, and let mc say patriotically imposed upon himself. That the silurus is a most valuable fish there is no reason to doubt. Its extraordinary rapacity and the enormous size to which it grows will require that it shall have lakes and ponds specially allotted to its use ; but all witnesses concur in pronouncing it to be one of the most delicious fishes that exist.