THE SOLWAY DEE 415 



bourhood might set pike trimmers with advantage. Other base 

 fishes such as perch and eels also abound. 



The river only very gradually emerges from the loch-like 

 condition, and for several miles has a tendency to revert to it. 

 Wide bends frequently occur, and several islands of some size 

 are formed as the channel winds onwards. There are many 

 beautiful reaches, and the river is now of large breadth, with 

 rather dark-coloured water, as the name Dee seems to imply. 

 At Agrennan House the waters become more concentrated, and 

 presently the river makes a long straight run to Tongueland. 

 Here a natural barrier of rock has been taken advantage of to 

 construct a series of fish-traps called Doachs (pronounced 

 Dochs). The natural barrier extends almost across the river 

 from the right bank, and the irregularities of this were filled 

 in so that a dyke was formed, which supplied water to the 

 Tongueland Mill. 



There are three openings in this dyke which were, in the 

 past, used as fish-traps. They are named the Little Doach, 

 the Priory Doach, and the Big Doach. The Little Doach is 

 commonly left open, and the Priory Doach is sparred up, but 

 the Big Doach was employed as a cruive till some years ago. A 

 fishing-box was fitted in the gap having, during legal fishing 

 time, a heck across the upstream end, and inscales for the 

 trapping of fish which found their way barred. The passage 

 left by the open Little Doach was of small avail, as under all 

 ordinary levels of water it stands too high above the pool 

 below to enable fish to ascend. It becomes of service only in 

 flooded conditions. 



These Doachs are very old structures, and one or two singular 

 practices have pertained to them. Speaking of the Solway 

 Dee, in or about the year 1684, one Andrew Symson in his 

 description of Galloway 1 says : " This River is abundantly 

 plenished with excellent salmon. Towards the mouth, whereof 

 Thomas Lidderdail of Isle hath a large fishyard wherein he gets 

 abundance of salmon and many other fish. Two miles above 

 the said town of Kirkcudbright, at the Abbacy of Tongueland, 

 just where a rivulet called the water of Tarfe empties itself 

 into the river of Dee, are great Rocks and Craigs, that in a 



1 Geographical Collections, etc., made by Walter Macfarlane. Edited 

 for the Scottish Historical Society by Sir Arthur Mitchell. Vol. ii., 1 907. 



