" EARL Y" AND " LA TE " SALMON RIVERS. 83 



quantity, it has occurred only in places where there 

 is a facility afforded for arresting their upward pro- 

 gress, and it is supposed that fish of this description 

 frequent only those rivers ; but I am strongly of 

 opinion that they may be found to frequent all large 

 rivers, especially where lakes exist, and that their 

 supposed absence in some may be accounted for. In 

 Scotland they have been taken in the cruives at In- 

 vershin where no fish could pass when the cruive 

 was closed ; and on the Thurso in the same way. In 

 Ireland, at "VVaterville and Cara, with impassable 

 cruives in the tidal-water at the mouth of the Cara, 

 ami on the Lann with stake and bag-nets ; on the 

 Liffey, where the fish were stopped by the Island 

 Bridge weir ; at Rathnuthin, Murrin, Brundronst, and 

 some other places where the fish could not pass up, 

 and could not fail to be taken in the cruives. In all 

 these places lakes are in question, where the fish 

 which ascend in November, December, and January, 

 would remain and spawn in the adjacent streams, 

 but not until the following autumn. Of this fact I 

 have no doubt, from my own observations. The 

 lessees of fisheries connected with some of those 

 waters will tell you that spawning operations are all 

 over before Christmas, and that therefore January 

 may be opened without injury ; but I have found this 

 not to be the fact, as I have seen fish spawning on 

 some of them in February when I went to look for 



