104 THE SALMON RIVERS OF SCOTLAND 



should be sacrificed for the sake of sport, but in the North Esk 

 the commercial fishings keep the stock of breeding fish low 

 and to this extent are injurious to the best interests of the 

 river. It happens incidentally that if more fish are allowed 

 up to breed, the rods above will have the first benefit. The 

 North Esk should really be a splendid spring fishing river. 



An arrangement has recently been come to by which Middle 

 Morphie Water is not netted for the first month of the season. 

 In this first month in 1909 reports showed that Lord Dal- 

 housie and party took 75 fish. They twice got 20 fish in a 

 week, and had a day of 12 fish, on Friday, 19th March. 



The pass in the Craigo Dyke, or the goil as it is locally called, 

 was erected in 1867 under the supervision of the Court of 

 Session. On the merits of this goil I do not propose to enter. 

 Its every feature has been studied and fully described else- 

 where, and this is not intended to be a contentious treatise. 

 I may refer, however, to some interesting evidence given about 

 it before Lord Elgin's Commission, from which it appears that 

 in February 1881 the structure was broken down by floods, 

 and that it remained in this broken-down state till the summer 

 of 1882, " and during that time," says a witness representing 

 the upper interests, " we enjoyed wonderfully good fishing. 

 Personally, I caught 23 fish in seven days' fishing in a 

 bit of water 200 yards long, and I have not caught 23 

 fish altogether since." This was said in 1900. The witness 

 continues, "As a matter of fact, in that year at least 

 220 fish were killed, 100 in Millden Water, which is 6 miles 

 above the Loups, and 120 in Invermark. Mr. Shiell, who is 

 Lord Dalhousie's factor, says that there were 300 that year. 

 The usual catch is 2, 3, or 4 .... I can prove that 

 one man alone caught between 50 and 60 to his own rod 

 above the Loups when the Craigo dam was breached." This 

 evidence is not only extremely significant as to the usual effect 

 of Craigo Dyke, but also indicates what the value of the upper 

 waters might be if the fish had better chance to ascend. 



It is contended by some in the district that if the regulations 

 of the Salmon Fishery (Scotland) Act, 1868, respecting salmon 

 passes were rigidly complied with at Craigo, the dyke would 

 offer a greater obstruction to the passage of salmon than it 

 does at present. This is not flattering to the Salmon Acts, 



