48 THE FOES OF SALMON 



pursues his recreation in the limited space left unfrozen. 

 The space would be still more limited but for the 

 exertions of the gillies, who break and lever away the 

 floes with heavy poles, and fish may be tempted to 

 look up at a big fly after the water has been rested 

 for half an hour. But there are not many clean fish 

 in the only pools to which access may be had through 

 the snow, though kelts are numerous and greedy in 

 these. We have only got two clean fish in ten days. 



XXII 



Few living creatures have more numerous or persist- 

 ent foes than the salmon. The sea, the rivers, the air, 

 The foea of are full f creatures looking out for a succu- 



saimon j ent mea i Were it not that the salmon is 

 a physical masterpiece, not only perfectly adapted for 

 an active career and capable of laying up such store 

 of condensed nutriment in its muscles as enables it 

 to undergo long periods of privation, but also endowed 

 with enormous reproductive powers, the race must have 

 succumbed long ago to adverse influences, and have 

 ceased to exist. Even now, when but few places re- 

 main unfrozen in the river, gloomy gluttonous cor- 

 morants ply their nefarious trade among the young 

 fish. One morning lately, two of our men were sent 

 to break the ice on the pond connected with the 

 hatchery, where the yearling parr are kept, till the 

 silver spreading over their jackets shows that the time 

 has come for their release on their seaward journey. 

 Hardly had the men turned their backs, when a 



