Transactions. 143 



sheet of water. Next year 22,000 were turned in; in 1877— 

 70,000; in 1878—45,000. Then a disagreement arose, and the 

 hatching was given up for three years. In 1882, 50,000 fry were 

 turned in. Next year, again, nothing was done. What were the 

 results 1 Before 1875 the yiekls were gradually getting less. Loch 

 Leven was a favourite resort of anglers, and heavily fished ; and 

 the fishing had been getting worse and worse year by year until 

 1875, when the catch fell to 5093 in number, and in weight to 

 5668 lbs. ; so that the fish averaged a little over a pound. In 



1876 only 3086 were reported to be taken, and the weight was 

 3370 lbs. In 1877 the catch jumped up to 6()92, but the weight 

 was only 5385 lbs., being an average of less tlian a pound. Of 

 course allowance must be made for atmospheric influences ; and it 

 might be that 1876 was an unfavourable year ; but the catch of 



1877 was a good deal larger even than that of 1875. The fry of 

 1875 had not had time to grow to any size. They would not 

 average, probably, more than a quarter of a pound ; and it was 

 probably a number of these which swelled the take, but reduced 

 the average weight. In 1878 the catch was doubled, being 13,319 ; 

 and again the weight was less in proportion, being only 8919 lbs. 

 In 1879, 21,045 fish were taken, and the weight Avas 16,192 l])s. 

 Four times as many fish were taken from the loch than was the 

 case before the stocking began. In 1880 the number taken was 

 19,405; weight, 18,552 lbs. In 1881 there was a marked foiling 

 off"— from 19,000 to 16,000 ; and the next year only 9000 were 

 taken. That was the result of giving up fish culture. In 1882 a 

 spurt was made, and 50,000 fry were turned in. This addition 

 could not tell on the year 1883 ; but they had that year a great 

 jump, from 9000 to 14,000. This was accounted for by the fact 

 that the conservators of the loch, finding they had neglected their 

 business, tried to atone for the error by turning in 3000 two-year- 

 old fish. The average weight that year again approached a pound 

 —12,742 lbs. for 16,062 fish. This table shewed clearly the benefit 

 accruing from fish culture when properly carried on, and how a 

 fishery suflered from neglect of it. In our salmon rivers, where 

 fishing was carried on year by year, by methods which were being 

 continually improved and rendered more destructive, the stock of 

 fish must be constantly diminished, unless fish culture were resorted 

 to or we had a very much longer close time. Another benefit 

 which arose from the cultivation of trout was that we could [^vow 

 or produce very much larger fish than were produced naturally. 



