iv INTRODUCTION. 



could be and should be. Do these laws afford the 

 greatest possible scope, encouragement, and pro- 

 tection for the rapid propagation of the fish, and 

 secure a distribution of the harvest amongst all the 

 various proprietors according to their equitable in- 

 terests ? Are there not most important facts, as yet 

 without their due, or perhaps any, influence on the 

 statutes regulating the preservation and capture of 

 salmon, that point with certainty to a greater supply 

 of fish as the result of improved legislation ? 



In calling attention to such questions as these, 

 and making my observations on them in the follow- 

 ing pages, I do so from a standpoint different from 

 that usually adopted by wTiters on the subject. 

 Much valuable information has been gained about 

 the salmon during his stay in fresh water ; but there 

 is still abundant room for contributions from the 

 practical side as well as from the scientific. 



Questions relating to the natural history of the fish 

 have been, and are, constantly engaging the attention 

 of able men of science. To that class I do not pretend 



