608 AiMERICAN ANGLER'S BOOK. 



Crown Lands Department, or one of Bayfield's charts. He will 

 see from either of these that the north shore of the St. Lawrence, 

 from the Saguenay, trends nearly north-east to the Bay of Seven 

 Islands. From thence that it stretches (river and gulf), in an almost 

 straight easterly course, to the sixtieth degree of longitude, and then 

 north-east to Labrador. The line of coast in all its sinuosities and 

 indentations extending over nine hundred miles, or from west to east 

 thirteen degrees. 



The regions of the Salmon are now almost entirely east of the 

 Saguenay. Between this river and the Bay of Seven Islands are 

 the larger Salmon rivers ; their sources far back in the cold barren 

 wilderness. From thence to the Mingan, though as frequent, they 

 are smaller; and from the Mingan they are fewer, but increase in 

 size as the coast extends towards Blanc Sablon. 



The privilege of fishing any of these rivers for Salmon, with the rod, 

 as stated elsewhere, is leased by the Canadian Government, to the 

 highest bidder, for terms of from one to five years ; the price 

 varying from one to five hundred dollars, according to the accessibility 

 of the river, or the abundance of its Salmon. The best rivers west 

 of the Great Natashquan are generally taken by British officers, or 

 by Canadian anglers. Salmon-fishers from the States, however, 

 who are not fortunate enough to lease, may frequently have opportu- 

 nities of buying the right of one or two rods for a river for a single 

 season. If the applicant has no friend at Quebec to attend to it, he 

 could, no doubt, effect a satisfactory arrangement through Mr. 

 Whitcher of that city. 



East of the Great Natashquan the fish are not so persistently netted 

 at the mouths of the rivers, or speared in the upper waters ; and the 

 streams, with few or no exceptions, have never been fished with the 

 rod. The angler, therefore, who explores them would likely cast his 

 flies over virgin waters. To reach these, it would doubtless be better 

 to go to St. John, New Brunswick, and take the steamer for Gaspe, 

 and there charter a schooner and get canoes and boatmen. 



