CHAPTER LXXI 



THE FORTH AND THE TEITH 



The first-named is the fifth largest of the Scotch rivers, and, drain- 

 ing eight hundred and eighty square miles, it is formed at Aberfoyle 

 by the junction of the Duchray, which rises from Benlomond, and 

 the Avondhu, which flows out of the \vell-known trouting lochs of 

 Chon and Ard. From this junction to the salt water at Alloa it 

 has a remarkably t\visting run of about thirty miles. For the first 

 ten, below the confluence of the head waters down to Cardross, it 

 is fairly streamy and quick-running, and here, late in autumn, 

 there are always some salmon to be met with, though not a great 

 many. The Duke of Montrose and Major Erskine of Cardross 

 are the chief owners of this part. 



Below Cardross the river runs deep and sluggish, and for the 

 next ten mfles or so it is only fit for pike and perch, of which there 

 are plenty. Then the Teith falls in on the left bank, and between 

 this point and Stirling large numbers of fish are netted during the 

 season, and not until the nets are removed is there any angling, 

 though after that there are at times some good takes made by the 

 rod. Nevertheless, the Forth at this part is by no means an ideal 

 river to fish, being both sluggish and muddy ; yet the angler has 

 the consolation of kno^\^Ilg that he has a good chance of a fight 

 with a real big fellow, for every year the nets get fish weighing 

 over 50 lb. (58 lb. is, I believe, the heaviest), and the rods catch 

 them from 30 lb. to 45 lb. 



There is a good deal of pollution at and below Stirling, which 

 may perhaps account for disease being more prevalent than it 

 should be, for in the two spawning seasons of 1895 and 1896, 

 upwards of 2000 fish, chiefly cocks, were removed from the river. 



The shores of the Firth are very severely worked by bag- and 

 stake-nets, while the Firth itself is harried by the detestable hang- 

 nets.^ The whole of these sea fishings are let for about £3700 a 

 season, and the Fishery Board Report of 1882 puts their average 

 yield at 4000 salmon and 1200 grilse, while the rods got a total of 

 200 of both kinds ; but there must be an error in these figures, and 

 probably the take of grilse should have been put down at 12.000 

 instead of 1200 ! Of recent years the net reniers have refused to 

 make any return of their takes tu the Fishery Beard, or to anyone 

 else ; this is information which the owners of the net fishings should 



^ Now declared illeE;al. 

 268 



