CAN FISH HEAR?

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 1349, 11 June 1907, Page 2

CAN FISH HEAR?

The London correspondent of l the Sydney Daily Telegraph writes: i— It will come as a relief to the young people of Sydney jyhd make their weekly fishing expeditions to Wqy Woy t,o know that there is no occasion for that appalling silence which has hitherto been characteristic of the keen fisherman, T remember,, when resident in New SfcHirh Wales, not many years ago, thj hanpy days I spent on those charming waters, the only drawback being that! w*3 continually in trouble for,ventui".n»4 to enter into a little conversation. , 1 Jbiavo 1 therefore watched with some iikofost the discussion that has beeji going «-n! in England upon the subject of fish be-, ing able to hear and talk. It' msty relieve! the minds of the female nsherfolk, at! least, to know that Dr., Marage, thef eminent biologist at tKe Sb'rb'orine, has; now definitely decided to the B«it"i?ac-i tion of himself j at least, thwt 1 fudr nei-! ther talk nor hear. Not satisfied with! cutting away the supposed^eaiw of fishj and finding out that they behaved pre-, cisely afterwards as they did before, l:t\ has been conducting further experiments and obtained result of 9, veryj conclusive nature. He placed his powerful talking machine' near* ah enclosed; lake close to some fish and projected al rubber tube; '&% JQfe ; eiuibf which was aj tympan. He started the machine, butj not a fish stirred-.— However, as the fish in this enclosed lake were domesticated, 1 and tßereldre' somewhat JafopormaH^ ne carried out the experimentr again in a running river, and actually succeeded in placing "the Rubber^tiibV connected with his loud t^Hiing? maohine,' rarithe midst of a school. of 'fish.' The fish were absolutely oblivpus to the, sloud ; tones,' although a man stan&ngjfo.tqe,'. water 50 yards away heard, .the. voifie ( vejfy :r distinctly. J)r. Maixage's conclusion is that fish are absolutely- deaf to the human voice, sa your keenest fishermejn may in future talk or sing to- their heart's content ! without any feaj* of frightening away their game." *