History and Habits 5 



the novice who seeks instruction as to salmon 

 from his library may be deceived. Indeed, it is 

 not only the archaic authors whose information 

 and advice are misleading — many of modern times 

 show almost equal indisposition or incapacity to 

 refrain from unwarranted statements as to the 

 habits and disposition of this noble fish. 



The sum total of our actual knowledge of sal- 

 mon is small. Mr. Cholmondeley Pennell happily 

 stated it in his excellent book, perhaps the best 

 of his many angling works, " The Sporting Fish 

 of Great Britain," 1886, in a few paragraphs called 

 " Proved Facts in the History of the Salmon," and 

 it is doubtful if anything material has been added 

 to them since. Here they are : — 



I. Salmon and grilse invariably spawn in fresh water if pos- 

 sible, both the eggs and the young fry while in the parr state 

 being destroyed by contact with the salt water. 



II. The eggs are usually deposited on gravelly shallows, where 

 they hatch in from 80 to 140 days according to the temperature 

 of the water — eggs remaining unhatched beyond the latter 

 period will seldom hatch at all, possibly from having been de- 

 stroyed by the low temperature. 



III. The eggs deposited by the female will not hatch under 

 any circumstances unless vivified after exclusion by the milt of 

 the male and, at least up to the period of migration, there is no 

 difference whatever in fry bred between salmon only, between 



