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[Verso]

Newcastle January 22/87

Mr Tilton Esq
Deputy Minister of Fisheries
Ottawa

Sir

Referring to your letter
of 19 [Imed?] relating to a request
made by the Secty of the National
Fish Culture Association of London
England to know whether salmon
ova and other eggs of Canadian fishes
could be obtained with the view
to their introduction into English
waters: I beg to state for the information
of your Department that ova which
arrived at a certain stage of incubation
might be transported to England
with a reasonable degree of safety
provided necessary care were given
to the eggs during transmission by
railway and by steamer.

It has always been found
that in order to insure safe transport
of eggs, a messenger should specially
accompany them—when that
is not done, it has usually turned
out to be almost a lottery, whilst [end of Left page]

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129

securing a lengthened overland route
and warranting a greater likelyhood
of reaching England safely.

I cannot pass this opportunity
of informing your department that
with the unexampled success which
attended the transmission of salmon
ova to England in 1883, from the Bedford
Hatchery their hatching out and
after growth to pass in the troughs
at the I.F.E.; and obtaining the
Gold medal as against all other
competitions from various parts of the
world; the envy of many English
fish grocers coupled with the prejudice
of English naturalists declared our
salmon not to be the genuine Salmo
Salar. This absurd and ignorant
view entertained by some of the
English public at that time would
not give such pleasing encourage-
ment for shipping ova of fish
“Superior Canadian [Salmo?] eggs?”
to England.

I am Sir
Yours Obedly
Samuel Wilmot
Esq F.C.