of close spars, or wattled work, must, of course, have to- 

 tally interrupted the navigation of the river. But it must 

 also have prevented the transit of the fish, and been ut- 

 terly inconsistent with the propagation of the species and 

 destructive to the brood, not of the Salmon only, but 

 of all kinds of fish frequenting the river. 



Cruives were adapted for fishing in any river not of 

 too great magnitude for such an erection, whether the 

 station was above or below the influence of the tide. 

 There was another species of engine, however, termed a 

 i/air, which in many respects resembled the cruive, but 

 was used only within the influence of the tide. Its na- 

 ture and formation is not precisely known ; but, like the 

 cruive, it appears to have been possessed of most injuri- 

 ous qualities; destroying the brood, and preventing the 

 transit of the spawning fish. One important part of the 

 apparatus, seems to have consisted of mounds of wood, 

 stones, wattled work, or other materials, forming, as in 

 the cruive, a very extensive inclosure. And it may, per- 

 haps, convey some idea of its nature, to notice, that, 

 in statutes regarding yairs, mill-dams are mentioned also; 

 and, as of the same class, that, in some charters, yairs are 

 denominated jishing-stanks. 



These cruives and yairs, attracted, at an early period, 

 the anxious attention of the Scots Legislature. There 

 is a statute extant, so early as the time of Alexander II, 

 subjecting them to certain restrictions, remarkable for 

 their rustic and ludicrous simplicity ;* and there is sub- 



* This curious production is entitled ' Lex Aquarum,' and 

 is in the following terms.' Haec est assisa Regis Alexandri, 

 f facta apud Perth, die Jovis, ante festum Margaretac, per 

 ' Comites, Barones, et Judices Scotia), quod filum aquae seu 



