88 



COLMONELL. They were all kelts with a woolly growth on the fins. This was last year— 

 — in November 1879. _ . 



The fish spawn early there. They were just the same as the nsh in the 



Stinchar. ■ , ,. 



J. Galloway {recalled).— Wishes to speak as to the bag nets at the 

 moiith of the river. They are within 300 yards of the river. They are very 

 destructive, and the fishing is very valuable. There is one set of nets with a 

 second set beyond them. They are all bag nets. 



They should be three quarters of a mile from the mouth of the river. 

 Perhaps Lord Stair would not agree to this. No fishing with net and coble 

 inside the river should be allowed. A boat fishes a pool below the bridge at 



Ballantrae. „ , 



The kelts sometimes do not get down till May. There are few clean nsh 



till then. It is June or July before any clean fish come up. 

 Has never seen salmon, but has seen trout, before May. 



Galloway Arms Hotel, Newton Stewart, Thursday, 

 April 22nd, 1880. 



Present : 

 Spencer Walpole and Archibald Young, Esquires. 



William Milligan, gamekeeper to Lord Galloway. — Knows the Cree as 

 far up as Loch Moan. Has been keeper 21 years; but has only been con- 

 nected with salmon fishing in the Cree and Minnock since 27th May 1879. 



Has not seen fish so badly spotted as those represented in the photographs, 

 but has seen them marked between the eyes with white marks. When he 

 examined it, they were like sores on the skin, near the head and tail, but not 

 many on the body. Never saw the disease before last year. Plenty were taken 

 out dead. Saw some in the water. Cut one fish through above the tail fin. The 

 flesh was natural, and the wound was only skin deep. This was in November, 

 just about spawning time. The fish had mostly spawned. Is quite sure of 

 this, the salmon coming in October. The Cree is a late river. 



Never saw the spots on clean-run fish. Some of the fish were unspawned. 

 Has kept no account of the number he saw, but has seen at least 100. Saw 

 some dead fish not marked at all. Perhaps they were merely exhausted by 

 spawning. They seemed in good condition. 



Thinks the cause is the wet seasons of 1877 and 18/9. Last year was very 

 wet, and so was 1877. 1878 was dry and cold. 



So much water coming down in 1879 filled up dirty places near the banks, 

 and made the whole river dirty. The Cree is not as pure as the Minnock. 

 Many sheep drains run into it. 



Is nearly sure that the disease originates from sheep dipping. It poisons the 

 water to some extent. 



The Cree does not rise so quickly as the Minnock, but keeps up longer after 

 a flood. The Minnock is purer than the Cree. 



There are 10 fish in the Minnock for every one in the Cree. 



The Lins should be put down. They keep the fish in one place, and the 

 fish can only go up when the river is rising and falling before and after a flood. 

 The Lins of Cree could be improved by blasting, at little cost. The obstruc- 

 tion at the Lin of Cree is worse than it used to be, but fish do get up. 



Has seen dead fish on the banks of the river in November. Believes these 

 were the fish that were spawned by Lord Ailsa's men for artificial breeding. Saw 

 the operation of catching and spawning the fish. Cannot say if the fish were 

 squeezed. The ova would run out. This was October. Has seen fish spawning 

 in the middle of October. The fish that he saw dead were spawned fish, mostly 

 she fish, without disease. 



Saw also diseased fish dead, both male and female. Has only had one 

 year's experience. Never heard any one say it was a new disease. Has 

 heard it said that it was on the trout in the small burns. 



