THE LUCE 389 



the straight and rather shallow stretch of water from the sea first 

 rest or are checked. There is a weir at the head of the pool, placed 

 there, no doubt, in order to preserve the foundations of the viaduct, 

 but also utilised for the purpose of carrying water to a neighbouring 

 farm mill. The weir is about 3| feet high, but has an easy slope on 

 its down- stream face (which is covered with wood). The weir is 

 constructed with an angle towards the left bank, and in this angular 

 section a small, and, in my opinion, perfectly useless, salmon pass 

 exists. 



Great quantities of sea-trout frequently congregate in the pool 

 waiting till such time as the rise in water-level will enable them to 

 surmount the face of the weir. Occasionally a salmon is seen moving 

 about amongst his smaller relatives, and for the size of the river the 

 salmon, as well as the sea-trout, are heavy. Fish up to 35 Ib. have 

 been killed, and fish over 20 Ib. are by no means uncommon. In the 

 night's catch of 100 trout already referred to, there were 30 fish 

 over 2J Ib., and the largest was 6 Ib. 



The salmon are not as free risers as the trout, and it may be that 

 the great crowd of the latter tend to put the larger fish off the rise. 

 Only some 30 to 35 salmon are, I understand, expected in these 

 lower waters, and perhaps 5 or 10 in Lord Stair's water above. 

 There is a second dam dyke about half-a-mile above the viaduct. 

 It is about 3 feet high, with a down-stream face of about 12 feet, 

 giving, therefore, a gradient of 1 in 4. There is a small sort of 

 drain close to the right bank, which, I presume, is supposed to repre- 

 sent a pass. Under ordinary conditions of level no water goes down 

 it, and there can be no pretence of its conforming to the regulations. 

 Indeed, unless the weir is carefully examined, the thing would not 

 be noticed. The lead up for fish is at the opposite side of the river. 

 The lade which passes off from this weir takes a good deal of water, 

 and is unsluiced. A bye -wash, which comes from it to the river 

 some 500 yards, or thereby, below the weir, forms the only pass by 

 which sea-trout are enabled to ascend when the dyke is dry. In 

 justice to the upper waters, and for the proper distribution of 

 fish over the spawning ground, there should be a proper pass 

 towards the left bank. The lade could then be sluiced and hecked, 

 and a deal of water saved to the river which at present simply 

 runs to waste. 



