STONE ON THE SACRAMENTO SALMON. 187 



of the Sacramento for two or three months after entering the mouth of 

 the McCloud and Little Sacramento. There are, therefore, seven months 

 between the first appearance of the sahuon at the mouth of the Sacra- 

 mento and their arrival at its sources four hundred miles above. They 

 leave the sources of the river hy August, the colder tributaries by Sep- 

 tember, the Sacramento proper by November or December, during which 

 latter months the new winter run is beginning to come up. 



Question 12. By what route do they leave the coast "? 



Answer. Not known. 



Question 13. Where do they spend the winter season ? 



Answer. Mostly in the ocean. There are a limited number in the 

 winter in the bay of San Francisco and tide-waters of the Sacramento. 



Question 14. When are the fish first seen or known to come near the 

 shore, and w^hen does the main body arrive ; are the first the largest ; 

 are there more schools or runs than one coming in, and at what in- 

 tervals 'i 



Answer. The salmon first appear inshore in November, (the win- 

 ter run.) The main body arrives at the head of tide- water in March 

 and April, (the spring run.) There is another large run up the river 

 in August, (the summer run.) The first are the smallest; the last 

 run, in August, are the largest. There are three annual runs of salmon 

 up the main Sacramento; the spring run, beginning in March; the sum- 

 mer run, beginning in August, and the ^vinter run, beginning in No- 

 vember. The intervals between the runs are as follows : From winter 

 run to spring run, no interval; from spring run to summer run — 

 May to August — two months, the beginning of the spring run joining 

 on to the end of the winter run. From summer run to winter run — 

 September to November — one month. 



Question 15. When do the fish leave shore, and is this done by degrees, 

 or in a body ? 



Answer. Not known. 



Question 16. Is the appearance of the fish on the coast regular and 

 certain, or do they ever fail for one or more seasons at a time, and then 

 return in greater or less abundance? If so, to what cause is this as- 

 signed 'I 



Answer. The appearance of the salmon at the mouth and at different 

 points of the river is quite regular, a variation in the runs of two weeks, 

 depending on the rains, (early and copious rains bringing early runs,) 

 being the greatest irregularity. Their appearance is also very certain, 

 the year 1806 being the only year since California was settled when the 

 salmon did not run up the river as usual. This year they were very 

 scarce. The fishermen, in their wish to represent it strongly, say, 

 "There Avere no salmon in the river in '66." They attribute the extraor- 

 dinary dearth of salmon that year to the muddy water, occasioned by the 

 mining. The rains affect the running of the salmon to a limited degree, 

 in two ways — the earlier the rains come, the earliv<^r the salmon ascend 

 the river, and the greater the rain-fall, the longer the run of fish. 



I 



