OP SALMON INTO THE COLONY.

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D.—No. 2.

Tasmania, and the greatest number of rivers that may be supposed fitted to become the habitation of the salmon. Prom Southland the liberal contribution of £200 has been, received in aid of the last experiment; but she alone, of all the Provinces in that extensive Colony, has hitherto given any response to the appeal long since made to them. The Commissioners earnestly hope that your Excellency's Government will recommend to the; Parliament now sitting the appropriation of such a sum as will enable them to take immediate measures for the introduction of a further supply of salmon ova In the appendix will be found a statement of the wdiole cost of the last importation. The Commissioners have every reason to be satisfied with the manner in which their Superintendent, Mr. Ramsbottom, has discharged the important duties of his office. He has amply fulfilled the. expectations which induced them to send him back to England in 1862; and since his return to the Colony, the intelligence and devotion with which he has watched, and aided the progress of his valuable charge has merited their warmest commendation. The Commissioners, anxious not to anticipate any expenditxire that: could be postponed until the success of the undertaking should be fully established, have hitherto refrained from recommending the erection of a residence for the Superintendent in the vicinity of the ponds. That work should now no longer be delayed ; and they recommend that a comfortable weatherboarded cottage should be built with all possible despatch for the accommodation of Air. Ramsbottom and his family. The thanks of the Commissioners are due to R. Read, Esq., for his kind hospitality in receiving Mr. Ramsbottom (who must otherwise have lived in a tent) into his house at Redlands. The salary hitherto paid to Mr. Ramsbottom for his services has been very small, and is, in the opinion of the Commissioners, no longer commensurate with the duties intrusted to him. On this subject they will further address your Excellency's Government in a separate communication. R. Officer, Chairman of Commissioners.

Enclosure 3 in No. 6. Report of the Tasmanian Salmon Commissioners, 1566. To His Excellency Colonel Thomas Gore Browne, C.8., Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of the Colony of Tasmania and its Dependencies. May it please Your Excellency,— Id their Report addressed to your Excellency in the year 1804, the Commissioners expressed their unanimous opinion that, notwithstanding the considerable amount of success that had attended their recent attempt to introduce the salmon and trout into tho Colony, resulting in the hatching of several thousands of the former and 500 of the latter, they should be authorized to procure another importation of ova, which they considered still necessary for ensuring the ultimate success of the undertaking, which they could not regard as complete until crowned by the return of some of the salmon from tho sea, and with the view of accelerating the full stocking of our numerous fine rivers with these invaluable fish. To this proposition the Government and Parliament promptly and liberally assented ; and the sum of £800 having been placed at their disposal, the Commissioners lost no time in taking measures for the performance of the task assigned to them. They made immediate application to Mr. James Youl, who had so zealously and successfully conducted the previous shipment of ova, and whose co-operation they regarded as almost indispensable to success, selecting him again to afford them his valuable assistance, and not doubting his ready compliance. In this expectation, however, tho Commissioners were disappointed. Mr. Youl declined to engage again in a work which had already cost him much personal labour and anxiety; and as his reply was not received, until it was too late to make other arrangements for carrying out their object during that year, the season was thus lost to them. Under this difficulty and disappointment, the Commissioners, in concert with, the Council, of the Acclimatization Society of Victoria, who had always cordially co-operated with them in this important work-, determined to sock the aid of Mr. Edward \V ilson, then resident in England, who had always taken a warm and practical interest in our previous attempts to introduce the salmon into the rivers of Australia. Although then labouring under an almost total loss of sight, since happily in a great measure restored, Mr. Wilson did not decline the task which he was solicited to undertake. The Commissioners' had no desire that Air. Wilson should, and no expectation, that ho could, do more than appoint fitting agents to perform the work required; but even this was a labour which must have proved difficult and embarrassing to one suffering under such a privation. Happily, however, he was relieved from all embarrassment by the spontaneous offer of Mr. Youl again to undertake!, on. behalf of his friend, the whole management of another shipment of ova. The Commissioners need not assure your Excellency that they received the intelligence that Mr. Youl had thus again devoted himself to the work with much satisfaction. They felt assured that the skill and energy that had contributed so much to the success of the former enterprise would not be wanting to the reneweel undertaking; but aided by the experience acquired on that occasion, and during the interval of two years that had since passed away, would ensure a higher success than, had attended any of their previous efforts. In this expectation the Commissioners have not been disappointed. Mr. Youl's first: work was to secure proper accommodation, paying the usual rate for freight, on boarel the fine clipper ship "Lincolnshire," the property of Messrs. Money Wigram and Sons, whoso vessel, the " Norfolk," brought out the ova in 1864, which was advertised to sail for Melbourne at a date suitable lor his purpose. In the hold of this vessel an ice-house was constructed, on the same general plan as that used in the "Norfolk," but of rather larger dimensions, and with some improvements which experience led Air. Youl to adopt. The salmon and salmon-trout ova were obtained from various rivers in Great Britain, through the agency of Messrs. Ramsbottom, Johnson, and Allies, who exerted themselves most zealously to fulfil 4