NOTES ON BRITISH SALMONID^E 89 



grade, our law permits a preservation of big, old, late-running 

 and though big and old and late, less valuable fish, 

 acting as river-vermin, to the depletion still further of its 

 young fry and younger and healthier fish. 1 This is often 

 done in the sole interests of the time-being netsmen. 

 When they make a fortune, it will be time enough for them 

 to pose as " Upper Proprietors," and even purchase Riparian 

 Properties ! 



As I am on the subject of poaching and unnatural ways 

 of killing salmon and sea-trout; and as I am in some 

 measure only adding testimony to Mr. Grimble's work, I 

 may be allowed to refer to the poaching of sea -trout by 

 " schringing " from yachts, and by yachts' crews. To Mr. 

 Grimble's remarks, speaking of Glen Dhu in Sutherland 

 (p. 1 6 of vol. iii.), I can add the testimony that, many 

 years before he made his observation, I saw a fine large 

 yacht slowly steam down past Kylesku, flaunting her 

 " schringe-nets " openly, hung up to dry in the shrouds. 

 She came from Glen Dhu. Comment is, or ought to be, 

 unnecessary ! 



The moral appears to me to be : Yachts ought to be 

 made by law to carry their identity name painted fore and 

 aft, and club-flag flying when within a specified distance of 

 the shores, or at anchor. Private owners might do this 

 without the assistance of the law, and make it a condition 

 when letting their vessels to others, that they preserve the 

 identity of their yachts, if only for the purpose of preserving 

 their own (i.e. the owners') good names. If some such plan 

 were followed, some of these poaching yachts 2 could not 

 easily prosecute this illegal fishing without considerably 

 more risk to themselves than at present, or than might be 

 pleasant for them. 



Stones and iron hooks, no doubt, may be good and 

 effective preventatives (?) ; but that which private individuals 

 do for their own protection, ought to be carried out more 

 systematically and thoroughly by our legislators who make 

 laws. And when laws are put upon the roll, the ways and 



1 Of this we may have more to say again. In Tweed a vast mortality amongst 

 salmon took place after spawning in early January 1901. 



2 By some recent statistics (I cannot recall exactly) some 5000 yachts frequent 

 our West Coast in summer good, bad, and indifferent. 



