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EDINBURGH. " seen statements in the newspapers with reference to salmon disease in the 

 " Tweed and other rivers. I cannot say that ever I saw any diseased salmon 

 " either in the Tay district, while I was there, or in the Forth district, — that is to 

 " say, disease of the kind referred to. The kelts, especially in the spring 

 " months, are generally in a very poor condition, quite soft and flabby, and dark 

 " in colour. I have seen numbers of them with scabs and sores on their 

 " heads and other parts of their bodies, but this is nothing uncommon for fish 

 " in the spawning season which have been a long time in fresh water. They 

 " continue in this condition until they reach the stage of what is called ' well- 

 " mended kelts,' when they are proceeding down to the sea. I have no doubt 

 " that they fully recover themselves while in the sea, and afterwards return 

 " to the rivers as clean salmon and in good condition. 



" I decidedly object to the rivers being netted during the close season for the 

 " purpose of taking out the sickly, or so-called diseased, salmon, and destroying 

 " them, as I believe strongly that the greater portion of the clean salmon 

 " which are caught during the fishing season were or may have been at some 

 " time numbered amongst those so-called diseased salmon. 



" The pollutions that are now so largely run into some of our fine breeding 

 " rivers must be very injurious to the produce of salmon, as the young, while in 

 " the smolt stage, are often destroyed in large numbers when passing through 

 " polluted waters while on their way to the sea, an instance of which is seen 

 " yearly in the river Devon, a tributary of the river Forth, which at one time 

 " was famed for the purity of its water, but is now very much polluted, and 

 " rendered unfit for the use of either man or beast. I myself have taken 

 " hundreds of young fry out of that river between Glenochil and Cambus 

 " during the spring and summer months which had been killed by the 

 " polluted water. 



" During the spring months large numbers of large dead salmon are found 

 " yearly in the rivers in the Forth district, and on the banks, but I do not 

 " consider pollution the cause of this. The greater portion of those dead fish 

 " are males, in the proportion, say, of 10 or 12 to one female. I have often, on 

 " finding dead fish, cut them up, and found them unspawned, the milt of the 

 " males being generally hard, and of a dirty yellow and bluish colour, having 

 " all the appearance as if mortification had set in before death. 



" I consider that all dead fish should be immediately taken from the river 

 " and buried'; the water would thereby be kept free from contamination, and a 

 " source of temptation would also be removed from the poacher and river 

 " prowler. Since I have been superintendent of the Forth district I have given 

 " instructions each year to the river watchers to remove all dead fish from the 

 " river and banks, and to bury the same, and these instructions are fully 

 " carried out by them. The death of these fish is certainly a loss not only to 

 " the fishery proprietors, but also to the general public. 



" I think if the net fishing season were extended,'say from eight to ten days, 

 " when the fish are still in good condition, it might remedy this to a certain 

 " extent. This would tend to reduce the number of breeders, but I believe 

 " there would still be a sufficient number left for all breeding purposes, and 

 " it would also tend to increase the food supply during these eight or ten 

 *' days, and reduce the number of dead fish in the spring. 



" I have seen cuts and scars on numbers of clean fish during the open 

 " season, but I believe that these have been caused by seals at the mouths of 

 " rivers. 



" I never saw any sores or diseased spots on clean fish. 



" The salmon caught at the opening of a season are generally large fish, 

 " averaging about 20 lbs. each, which I have no doubt' are fish which have 

 " been preserved kelts in former years. If netting the river were allowed in 

 " the close season for the purpose of destroying kelts, there would be com- 

 " paratively speaking a small number of salmon caught at the opening of the 

 " season, as the young fish or spring salmon, ranging from 8 lbs. to 12 lbs. 

 " each, do not, as a rule, come up the river until the middle or end of March." 



Has heard Mr. Anderson's evidence. Knows Largo. The statement as to 

 diseased salmon there is new to him. Does not think a diseased fish would 

 come up from the sea. The sea would help to cure it. Never saw any fish 

 from the sea with the slightest appearance of disease. The fish from the sea 



