61 



that the expression of this Society will be towards th9 

 protection of the rights of the fishermen and the in- 

 terests of the people." 



Whoever said that " Revolutions never move back- 

 ward," would never have given voice to any such senti- 

 ment had he lived in America in the year of grace. 

 1895, and been interested in fishculture. Charity for 

 the utterances of another might incline us to say, that 

 he said it with a mental reservation perhaps, or that 

 what he meant was that while revolutions never moved 

 backward, they seemed at times to do so, only to gain 

 added force with which to throw down with resistless 

 energy final and seemingly insurmountable obstacles. 

 If this qualified interpretation were not true, the fish- 

 culturists of this country, and especially of the Great 

 Lake region, might be well cast down in spirit and 

 hopelessly disheartened by an important event of the 

 past month. 



On the 24th day of May, 1895, the Department 

 of Marine and P isheries of Canada, issued a notice that 

 the order made in Council some years since, making 

 the month of November (which is the spawning 

 season of the Salmonidae) a close season for netters in 

 Canadian -waters on the great Lakes was revoked, until 

 such time as the governments on the American side 

 see the necessity of protecting the fish and are ready 

 to co-operate in the work. The effect of this order 

 meant a notice to the Canadian fishermen that until 

 further notice they could join their American fellow- 

 fishermen in working the final destruction of the com- 

 mercial fisheries of the lakes. 



The Canadian government exhibited wisdom in 

 making the original order. The reasons for its 

 promulgation were founded on the experience of years 



