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of fishing are chiefly these : 1. That it is injurious to the 

 breed of the Salmon, by capturing the spawning fish and 

 the fry ; and, 2. That, by means of it, such immense 

 numbers of Salmon are caught in the sea and in the friths, 

 that eventually the species itself may be annihilated. 



1. The first objection, that the use of stake-nets is 

 injurious to the breed, is deserving of much attention. 



But s in the first place, so long as the fishery is allowed 

 to be carried on at a period of the year when the spawn- 

 ing fish and the fry are exposed to capture, all modes 

 of fishing, more particularly in the rivers, must more or less 

 affect the breed. It is in this view, accordingly, that we 

 have already pointed out the necessity of some alteration 

 in the existing law as to the fishing and close seasons. 

 But if these were properly regulated, the spawning fish 

 and the fry would be protected, whatever the nature of 

 the fishing apparatus. It is, therefore, an absurd and 

 narrow policy to prohibit any mode of fishing, in other 

 respects beneficial, merely because, under the existing 

 regulations, it affects the breed of the fish. Instead of 

 prohibiting this or that engine, the Legislature ought to 

 direct their attention to the time of fishing ; and if the 

 regulations, in that respect, were once made suitable, the 

 nature of the engine, so far, at least, as respects the breed, 

 would comparatively be of little importance. 



It is unnecessary, however, to shelter the stake-nets, 

 under any general argument of this nature. The charge, 

 that the breed is injured by this mode of fishing, is alto- 

 gether unfounded. 



This point was set at rest in the Tay case. Two careful, 

 intelligent, and impartial persons were in 1809, employed to 

 make a survey of the Tay ; and were furnished with writ- 

 ten instructions, prepared and signed by the present Lord 



