SALMON LEGISLA TION IN SCOTLAND. 499 



any case) from any part of the kingdom. The same system 

 exists in Ireland as in England, also with success. The 

 reasons for this difference are to be found in the fact that 

 the districts are all easily workable, while the powers of the 

 Boards of Conservators are sufficiently ample to enable 

 them to deal effectively with the questions arising, and to 

 carry out the spirit as well as the letter of the law, among 

 their powers being the very important one (with regard to 

 England at least) of making bye-laws themselves for the 

 better regulation of the fishings within their districts. 

 Funds, both in England and Ireland, are raised not by 

 assessment on the fisheries as in Scotland, but by licence 

 duties, according to graduated scales, ranging from i or 

 less to ^"30, and thus one item which contributes to the 

 apathy of proprietors in Scotland is removed. Another 

 very important difference in England is that tacksmen of 

 fishings have a right to one seat on the Board of Con- 

 servators for every 50 of license duty paid, the effect of 

 which is to secure the co-operation and assistance in carrying 

 out the law of the whole body of fishing tenants in the 

 district. 



It must also not be forgotten that both England and 

 Ireland have for twenty-two and twenty years respectively 

 possessed paid inspectors of salmon fishings, the importance 

 of whose office it is impossible to over-rate. They have 

 acted as a central authority to the Boards of Conservators, 

 from whom they receive annual reports of the state of the 

 fishings in the respective districts, and whom they confer 

 with and support in the numerous questions which must 

 always arise. In addition to these Reports from the Con- 

 servators, they themselves are charged with the duty of 

 annually visiting all the districts in the country, and ascer- 

 taining in person the state of the fishings and the manner 



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