46 Salmon at the Antipodes. 



far as to say that he was sorry that the 

 Califorrrian fish had been introduced at aU, as 

 it was so much inferior, for sport and for the 

 table, to the English salmon. I have made 

 careful inquiries on this point, and the result 

 has been quite satisfactory. Three different 

 gentlemen from Victoria who had good oppor- 

 tunities of comparing the two, gave it as their 

 opinion that the Californian salmon was quite 

 equal in flavour to the English species. 



It has also been maintained by several good 

 authorities that the former will not rise to the 

 fly, but the information furnished by Dr. 

 Hector, from the reports of the United States 

 Eisheries Commission, from which I have ob- 

 tained some of the facts mentioned, expressly 

 states that the Californian salmon gives good 

 sport with the artificial fly. I can at any 

 time, at my salmon ponds, show any one 

 curious in the matter how readily they will 

 rise to flies which are put on the surface of 

 the water. It is probable that an abundance 

 of other food will prevent both salmon and 

 trout from rising readily to the fly, and until 

 the rivers are well- stocked with fish, fly- 

 fishing may not prove very successful ; but, 



