2So THE SALMON RIVERS OF SCOTLAND 



that ; while the best week on record was made by Colonel Murray 

 of Polmaise, on the reserved water at Kenmore, with thirty-one 

 fish weighing 600 lb. 



The following are the charges for the fishing : from the 15th of 

 January to the 15th of April, for those residing in the hotels, 

 25s. a day, or £5 for the week, if taken by the week ; after the 

 15th of April, 20s. a day, or £3 a week. 



Gentlemen residing in the county of Perth, but not staying 

 in the hotels, pay 5s. a day in excess of these charges. 



When the applications for boats exceed the number that are 

 available, two gentlemen may occupy one boat and use one rod 

 each at a charge of 15s. each per day. 



Anglers keep all clean fish, which are usually gaffed, although 

 every boat is provided with a landing net for taking out kelts. A 

 charge of 3s. 8d. per day is made for each boatman. Anglers are 

 not obliged to provide luncheon for them, but nevertheless they 

 all do so, and are only cautioned against making the " allooance " 

 of whisky too large. Each angler may use two rods, but he must 

 fish for himself, keepers or servants not being allowed to do so. 

 Thus a week's trolling in Loch Tay, with the hotel bill, will come 

 to about £15.^ 



I once tried a week of it, having been frozen off the Dee in the 

 middle of one February. Had it not been for the solicitations of 

 a young friend whom I had taken up to Deeside to kill his first 

 fish, I should have gone south to wait for better angling weather. 

 However, he was bent on killing a fish somehow, and begged me 

 to go to Loch Tay. In my six days I got only two fish, while he, 

 a no\ace, who had never landed one, got nineteen, of which the 

 heaviest was 33 lb. ! Of course, a real good day of eight or ten 

 fish would be exciting enough for anybody ; but to sit cramped 

 up in a boat in bitter cold weather day after day for nothing did 

 not appeal to my ideas of sport. 



Certainly the first rush of a Loch Tay fish is something very 

 grand, and unlike anything that takes place when one is hooked 

 from the bank. There are already some fifty yards of line out, 

 when away goes, perhaps, another fifty with one uncheckable 

 rush — a result brought about by a double action, the fish running 

 away from the boat and the boat running away from the fish, for 

 in nine instances out of ten the minnow is seized when the boat 

 is being pulled down wind, the minnow spinning more steadily 

 than when the boat is being rowed against a stiff breeze. As 

 soon, however, as the boat can be reserved and brought to follow 

 the fish, there should be no doubt as to the result, for a phantom 

 has so many hooks, while triangles take such a tight grip, that if 

 things go wrong after once getting on terms with the captive it 

 may almost always be put down to bad management. 



' In January 1902 some of the hotels ceased to make any charge 

 for anghng on condition that the angler paid a sovereign for each fish he 

 caught, and I believe these terms still prevail — the angler keeps his fish. 



