EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION xi 



down to the sea. The next evil and it is hardly less 

 serious is the fact that in the estuaries or lower 

 reaches of many rivers which still hold salmon there 

 is so much netting that an undue proportion of the 

 stock is killed off year by year, leaving too few for the 

 reproduction of the species to the extent designed by 

 nature. This netting takes special toll of the most 

 valuable classes of salmon, those which run into 

 fresh water in the early months of the year, and in 

 too many cases leaves no chance to any except the 

 late autumn class which runs after the netting 

 season is over. Some rivers are said to be getting 

 " later and later/' which is merely a euphemism 

 for " over-fished." Too many of them suffer from 

 pollution and this over-fishing as well, and as a 

 logical result they probably are afflicted also by 

 undue poaching. The mere fact that the fish are 

 scarce and late is an incentive to the countryside 

 to take toll of them quocunque modo, as Scrope 

 phrased it. Doubtless there is also operating 

 adversely the better drainage of mountain areas, on 

 which Scrope commented, with its result in a less 

 equable waterflow in the rivers. Summer droughts 

 and winter spates are now both more marked in 

 character than they were in 1842, so things in that 

 respect may be considered worse than ever. Alto- 

 gether the situation in regard to salmon seems very 

 bad, for the tendency as the stock grows less is for 

 men to increase their efforts to catch what fish there 

 are and so to gain a temporary benefit at the expense 

 of the future. 



Against all this, however, there is something to be 



