THE HABITS OF THE SALMON. 37 



rally well stocked with clean fish early in the year. 

 Again, there is the Mill weir at Clondulane, which 

 is about twelve miles distant from the tideway, 

 and also the famous w^eir at Fermoy, some four 

 miles beyond it, both of which are obstructions of 

 a formidable character ; still I have seen hundreds 

 of salmon early in the year pass over the fall at 

 Fermoy, which must have reached there by first 

 getting over the weir at Clondulane. Many of these 

 fish find their way to the upper waters, even 

 as high as Mallow — a town at least thirty-six 

 miles from the tideway at Lismore. There are 

 salmon ladders erected on both weirs, but the fish 

 never appear to make use of them. In the year 

 18S2 far more spring fish were killed in the upper 

 than the lower waters, except at Careysville ; but 

 the winter and early spring had been exceptionally 

 mild, and that accounted for the upper waters being 

 stocked in such unusual numbers so early in the sea- 

 son. Taking an average, however, although a fair 

 number of fish are found in the upper waters very 



