12 THE HABITS OF THE SALMON. 



Again, where the annual close time has been 

 altered so as to begin at an earlier date the numbers 

 of early ascending salmon have unquestionably in- 

 creased. A remarkable instance of this occurs in the 

 Blackwater — a river in the south of Ireland, cele- 

 brated for its early salmon. Prior to the year 1881 

 the annual close time there commenced on the ist of 

 September, and ended on the 14th of February ; how- 

 ever in 1 88 1 it was altered, so as to set in on the 

 1 6th of August, and end on the 31st of January. At 

 that time I rented a fishery below Fermoy, and well 

 remember how great was the consternation of many of 

 the rod fishermen at the change decided upon, all of 

 them being convinced that it would be exceedingly 

 injurious to their angling prospects in the spring. But 

 what a mistake they made ; for, after the alteration 

 took place, there were far more spring fish killed by 

 the rod for the next few seasons than there had been 

 for some years previously. This increase must surely 

 be attributed to the saving of the lives of hundreds 

 of spawning fish that would have been caught if the 

 nets had been allowed to fish up to the 31st of 



