THE KINLOCH 



53 



there are too many fish for the extent of the spawning ground, and 

 that where such is the case they destroy each other's beds ; also 

 that in other rivers there may be too many kelts, and in that case 

 they eat nearly all the par. 



I hope Mr. Speedie is right in being sanguine of a return of good 

 times. Certainly there is the recorded fact in his favour that in the 

 three years of 1850, 1851, and 1852, but an average of 12,859 hoxes 

 of Scotch salmon were sent to Billingsgate, whereas in 1862, 1863, 

 and 1864 this average was rather more than doubled ! 



One of the features of Tongue is the sea trout fishing in the 

 Kyle by spinning a sand ell, where some very good takes have been 

 occasionally made. 



On the 1st of June i8gi the Bishop of Sodor and Man had 

 thirteen sea trout, weighing 57 lb., or over 4 lb. each. On the 15th 

 of June 1899 but one sea trout of 3 lb. and 30 lb. of loch trout were 

 brought into the hotel, these latter being some of the pinkest and 

 best-flavoured I ever ate. This, however, was a period of drought, 

 which probably had something to do with the smallness of the take. 



