Anniversary Address. 45 



previous season they must have been in a different condition 

 from all the other salmon and grilses that were caught at that 

 time. If they have spawned during the winter, then, since it 

 does not appear to have taken place in the river, it must have 

 been in the sea, but this, I believe, is generally denied to be 

 the case by those who profess to have studied the subject, and 

 it is said that should they even do so, the spawn will not come 

 to life. It may be noticed also, that at the commencement of 

 every fishing season, a great portion of the salmon that are to 

 be caught during that season must, necessarily, be in the sea, 

 for after the net and rod fishing begms, very few of the 

 salmon that are in the river are allowed to escape. It 

 would, therefore, appear that there must be an immense shoal 

 of salmon congregated somewhere in the deep sea, from which 

 detached portions seem gradually to approach towards the 

 shore as the season advances. It is another fact that when- 

 ever there is a ' Spate,' salmon are drawn towards the river, and 

 that those which have no roe in them, and, therefore, cannot 

 be supposed to be coming into the river for the purpose of 

 depositing their spawn, are just as ready to do so in the spring 

 and summer months, as those which are full of roe, and are 

 ascending the river for spawning purposes at the close of the 

 year. 



'* I confess that I find all these facts difficult to be reconciled 

 with the general belief that salmon do and can only spawn in 

 rivers, or if they should spawn in the sea, that the ova must 

 be lost. It may be so, and I am not prepared to offer any 

 other theory upon the subject, but to me it appears doubtful, 

 and I should be very glad to see a reasonable and satisfactory 

 explanation of the circumstances I have referred to." 



Again he writes, " With regard to the salmon fry, the ova 

 are generally deposited in the spawning beds in the months of 

 November and December, sometimes later, and come to life 

 about April following. They continue in the river for twelve 

 months longer, growing gradually into what are called ' Parr,' 

 and are found of various sizes, from two to four inches in 

 length. In April and May of the second year they assume 

 the smolt appearance and make their way towards the sea, 



