THE SPEY 



155 



Salmon. Grilse. Trout. 



14,103 27,528 8,118 



13,466 54,949 31,473 



30,840 35,409 15,313 



23,608 17,263 5,853 



With regard to actual numbers of fish caught by nets in the 

 river and on the coast, all at the Duke of Richmond and 

 Gordon's fishing stations, Russel of the Scotsman gives some 

 interesting figures of an early date : 1 



Year. 

 1851 

 1852 

 1853 

 1854 

 1855 



The year 1851 was the first the late Duke worked the fishings 

 in his own hand. Previous to this Mr. Hogarth was tenant of 

 the fishings for many years, and during his tenancy it was 

 remarked that the stock of sea-trout fell off very much indeed. 

 Sea-trout have, I believe, never since been numerous in the 

 Spey. 



The figures just given are sufficient to show that in the fifties 

 the stock of fish was very considerable. Older accounts go to 

 show that the stock of salmon in the Spey was " vast." 



But every one who has any interest in the Spey and its 

 salmon knows that for many years a very strong feeling 

 obtained amongst proprietors that a too heavy toll of the fish 

 was taken by net in the lower reaches, and that the proportion 

 of fish which were allowed, or which were able, to pass the nets 

 and to afford sport to the upper proprietors was unduly small. 



Certain steps had been taken in the past by the proprietor 

 of the net fisheries to benefit the district stock. In 1851 

 twenty-three bag and fly-nets were removed from the coast 

 at the mouth of the river, so as to leave an estuary of larger 

 dimensions than laid down by statute. In this way a stretch 

 of coast between 4 and 5 miles long, and containing the 

 mouth of the river, became free of fixed nets, and has remained 

 so ever since. In 1883 a cruive dyke, which used to be fished, 

 was removed. In 1888 the weekly close time at the Orton 

 water that is where the top nets were fished was increased 

 from thirty-six to forty-two hours, and in 1897 a more direct 

 mouth to the river was cut through an extensive gravel bank. 

 These measures, however, did not satisfy the other proprietors, 

 and in 1894 a lease of the Orton net was taken for six years at 

 1 The Salmon, p. 106. 



