10 



themselves completely entangled, and could not again get 

 into the passage out. By this highly ingenious inven- 

 tion, which at once displayed and depended upon an in- 

 timate knowledge of the habits of the Salmon, the opera- 

 tion of the net was extended to the ebb, as well as the 

 flood-tide; and its produce was, in consequence, much 

 greater than ever. 



Induced by their success at Seaside, Messrs. Little be- 

 came tacksmen of many other fisheries ; and, gradually, 

 the newly invented engine, now familiarly known as the 

 stake-net) came into general use in the Frith of Tay. 

 Upwards of seven thousand Salmon, a quantity equal to a 

 fourth or a fifth of the previous produce of the whole 

 river, was caught in one season by a single net at Sea- 

 side ; and at Birkhill, Balmerino, Mvlnefield, and other 

 places, the success was corresponding. 



All of these stations, however, are in the upper part of 

 the Frith. But, at the very mouth of the Tay, and at sta- 

 tions which most men would describe as in the ocean itself, 

 the stake-net was resorted to, with no less extraordinary 

 success. The fisheries on the north shore, belonging to the 

 Honourable Mr. Maule, became, in consequence, of very 

 great value. Before the introduction of stake-nets, they 

 were let for ^100 ; afterwards they produced 2,750. 

 The fisheries on the opposite shore, again, belonging to 

 Mr. Dalgliesh of Scotscraig, which, before the invention, 

 had produced annually only a few pounds, were now let 

 for < J 2,105 of yearly rent. In short, it may be stated, 

 as a general fact, that a corresponding increase took place 

 in the value of all the fisheries in the Frith of Tay. * 



* The full extent, however, of the value of the fisheries in the 

 Tay, was never ascertained. Some of the principal stations 



