262 AGRICULTURAL REPORT; 



the scarcity of fisiiermeu, only a portion of any one lake was in use at 

 one time, but now, in order to keep uj) the supply, almost the entire area 

 is netted. Now the salmon-trout do not roam over the whole lake, but 

 any particular school of fish may almost always be found on the same 

 orouiid. So long- as only a portion of the ground was netted, some fam- 

 ilies had a fair chance to increase, and by their overflow to fill up the 

 rest. liUt now, when ail the water is fished, and gill-nets are used, and 

 the spawning-grounds become the greatest scenes of slaughter, the num- 

 ber of spixwners must decrease xevy fast. 



A little bit of personal experience will give a better idea of the above 

 facts. In the year 1837 I went to Port Hope, Canada West, (on Lake 

 Ontario,) to fisli for salmon-trout with set-lines.* This was the first fish- 

 ing for salmon-trout with set-lines ever done in any of the lakes. 1 

 used to fish out and in, not further than six miles from shore, sometimes 

 using' nine miles of set-line. The average catch the first year was one 

 hundred fish on one hundred andfift}" hooks, and the fish av^eraged eight 

 pounds in weight. The second year the average was about sixty-six 

 fish to one hundred and fifty hooks ; average weight being about the 

 same. The third year the catch was thirty-three fish to one hundred 

 and fifty hooks, and the weight began to decrease. The fourth year the 

 average catch was about fifteen fish to one hundred and fifty hooks, 

 and the average weight only four pounds. This showed that the fish 

 had been thinned out in that locality. 



In the fifth year I moved fourteen miles to another ground; and there 

 the fishing for the first year was of the same average catch and weight 

 as at Port Hope, and in succeeding years showed the same rate of de- 

 crease. If I had been the only fisherman on the lake, this moving might 

 have been repeated indefinitely, with the same result ; as the local 

 schools would have had time to grow before I got round to them again. 

 But fishermen began to multiply, and when all places were fished at 

 once, no one i)lace had any chance. These set-lines ran about ten years, 

 and then the highest average to be obtained anywhere was fifteen fish 

 to one hundred and fifty hooks ; the fish averaging four pounds in weight. 

 As this would not pay, in 1847 gill-nets came into use, and since then 

 the catch has annually decreased. 



In a natural state the salmon-trout spawn on rocky reefs in from three 

 to fiftj- feet of water. They will spawn in any place where they can find 

 such reefs; often twenty miles from shore. They yield about one thou- 

 sand eggs to the })ound of fish, being only about one-tenth as many as 

 the white-fish. The method of spawning is the same as that of the sal- 

 mon and brook trout ; a nest or hole being made for the reception of the 

 eggs. In regard to these eggs the same story must be told — most of 

 them are eaten before they are ten minutes old. It must be remembered 

 that all fish are inordinately food of fish-eggs. The salmonidte will not 

 only eat them while falling, ]mt, contrary to theh' usual habits, they will 

 poke and root in the mud of the bottom to find those whicli drop. The 

 eggs also are destroyed by wild ducks. These ducks will gather over a 

 spawning-ground as soon as the fish commence to spavvii, and vrill rt;- 

 main there till frozen out. The size of the spawniug-grouud can gen- 

 erally be told from the size of the ilock of ducks over it. It may be 

 generally supposed that as the fish spawn in deep water the ducks can- 

 not do much injury to the eggs. But the fact is that they w^ill take them 



" I would liere liumbly confess that I have clone perhaps aa much toward the deple- 

 tion of the lakes as any other lisherman; but would plead in extenuation that I was 

 like all fishermen, and wanted tbe last fish and would take it if I could. I ain now, aa 

 ai^enauce for my sins, trying to do all iuniy power to repair tlie injnrj". 



