58 THE SALMON RIVERS OF SCOTLAND 



hang net, and the sweep net, and the last-named style was carried 

 on right up the river, and even in the upper tributaries where the 

 water was suitable. It is of some interest to know what was then 

 netted in the Tay, and through the kindness of the Hon. Morton 

 Stewart Gray, who has a detailed return of catches at Kinfauns 

 Castle for the period between 1830 and 1846, I am able to give the 

 following totals, representing the produce of thirty-four netted 

 fisheries from the mouth of the estuary up to well above Dunkeld, 

 thus including all the important waters of the river. The return 

 distinguishes between salmon and grilse, and I have added the 

 quinquennial averages after adding the salmon and grilse of each 

 year together : 



Year. Salmon. Grilse. 5-Year Averages. 



1830 - - 27,658 53,249 "j 



1831 - - 19,827 38,754 



1832 - .- 25,898 53,085 } 73,030 



1833 - > 20,556 50,612 



1834 - - 28,045 47,469 j 



1835 - - 32,964 60,953 \ 



1836 - -. 27,623 32,572 



1837 - - 23,871 54,069 } 68,243 



1838 - - 21,492 41,936 



1839 - - 23,981 21,754 J 



1840 - - 12,650 30,162 ^ 



1841 - - 24,373 39,563 



1842 - - 26,779 80,539 V 71,095 



1843 - - 35,126 43,617 



1844 - - 31,213 31,353 , 



1845 - - 21,316 44,541 



1846 - - 33,807 28,954 



The year 1842 is the record in this series, the total catch being 

 no fewer than 107,318 fish; but for this wonderful run of grilse the 

 last quinquennial average would have shown a considerable decline. 

 If, for instance, one or other of the two last years had been in place 

 of the 1842 figures, the average would have been 62,762 or 62,163. 



As is noted in the case of early figures given for the Tweed 

 District, there is more fluctuation in the grilse than in the salmon 

 column ; but the grilse return here given for the Tay does not show 

 that violent fluctuation which the Tweed does at, however, a rather 

 later period. It is not possible, at the present day, to compare 

 modern returns with those given, even if one had full returns from 

 the Tay Salmon Fisheries Company, because the amount of netting 

 is now so completely altered : but one thing is very certain, viz. that 

 grilse never now come in such numbers as are represented in the 

 above column. The growth of bag net fishing in the sea must be 



