118 



SALMON-FISHEKY OF SCOTLAND. 









point the adage, " Out of sight, out of mind," might be applied 

 to him ; but the Doctor makes the length of his residence in a 

 river to depend upon the strength of his MEMOEY. What ex- 

 cellent memories salmon must therefore have ; for Mr Stephen 

 has furnished proof that, after they enter rivers, they never 

 leave them till they have spawned. We do not know if the 

 Doctor is a phrenologist. Perhaps he has paid particular 

 attention to the bump that denotes memory upon the nobs of 

 the salmon, for we cannot conceive by what other means he 

 could have made the discovery. We know not what foes per- 

 secute them at the heads of friths. Now and then a solitary 

 seal appears there, but their principal foes in those parts are the 

 fishermen. In another part the Doctor has told us that salmon 

 enter rivers in the early part of the season from a " premature 

 exercise of their instincts." Perhaps there are no foes, at that 

 time, at the heads of the friths to drive them into the rivers, or 

 the one cause may have produced the other the terror occa- 

 sioning the premature exercise of the instinctive functions. 

 Medical men say that terror frequently produces premature or 

 abortive effects. It seems to be when the rivers are in flood 

 that the foes of the salmon, from the seals to the sea-lice, are 

 busiest, for they then drive them into the rivers without ceas- 

 ing. Which of all these reasons viz. the premature exercise 

 of their instinctive functions, the quality of the water, sea-lice, 

 or terror, is the true cause of the salmon entering the rivers, 

 naturalists only can determine, but we think the whole may be 

 justly termed the Hodge-Podge System. 

 The Doctor continues : 



" When a fish has advanced a considerable distance into the fresh- 

 water stream, instigated by its own natural instincts^ I should be in- 

 clined to think it would proceed to the place of its destination with- 

 out again returning till it had spaivned" 



The Doctor first tells us that the length a salmon will go into 

 a river depends upon the degree of terror he experiences : and 

 then he informs us, that after he has got a considerable way into 



it, " INSTIGATED BY HIS OWN NATURAL INSTINCTS," he proceeds 



to the place of his DESTINATION. But why should he suppose 



