" EARL Y" AND " LA TE " SALMON RIVERS. 81 



Having thus glanced at former legislation, to show 

 what a contrast it presents to that of the present day, 

 I would call attention to the fact, that although men's 

 minds have been brought to agree to much less 

 varied limits in close and open seasons or rather to 

 concur in the opinion that a longer close season is 

 in all cases required than that before generally 

 adopted still there is much controversy and a great 

 difficulty in fixing periods which will meet with the 

 approval of all, and it is now of great importance that 

 the close and open season question should be con- 

 sidered attentively and become better understood. 

 With the view of inducing those who may be in- 

 terested in the subject to give it a more dispassionate 

 and careful investigation, it has occurred to me that 

 it may, perhaps, be of use to call attention briefly to a 

 few facts which may possibly not be generally known. 



The time then of the spawning of the salmon is to 

 a great extent uniform. In no river does it com- 

 mence before October, or continue after February ; 

 this I state broadly. A few very rare cases may be 

 found in which these limits are exceeded, and I once 

 took a salmon in June so full of far-advanced spawn, 

 that it poured out of the fish when lauded. I have 

 also heard of a few fish spawning in September. But 

 these are the exceptions that prove the rule. The fish 

 enter the rivers, however, for the purpose of spawning 

 at all seasons of the year ; and the fact should be 



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