152 . THE RESULT. 



be accepted as a tolerable approximation to the true average of 

 Tay fish as brought to market if they are set down individually 

 at 12 lb. The question to be decided then is this, — Given the 

 rental paid, the price of the fish and their average weight, how 

 many salmon must be captured in order to cover the sum paid 

 to the landlord, as well as the expenses of fishing and a fair 

 profit to the tacksman 1 Supposing a particular fishery to be 

 rented at £1000 for the season, it would require the capture of 

 1334 fish at 15s. each (that is, salmon of 12 lb. at Is. 3d. per 

 lb.) to pay the rent ; and as it is given out that the expenses of 

 a fishery are equal to the rent, other 1334 fish would require 

 to be taken from the water to reimburse the tenant for his out- 

 lay. Then the lessee, or, as he is called in Scotland, " the 

 .tacksman," must have his profit, and that cannot be put at less, 

 estimating that he may have some " pickings " out of the ex- 

 penses, than an additional 400 fish, or say for each £1000 of 

 rental a total of 3000 salmon, grilse, and sea-trout must annually 

 be taken from the water. Therefore, as the rental of the Tay 

 salmon-fisheries may be set down for the present season as being 

 at least £17,000 (last year [1872] the assessed rental was 

 £16,382 : 6 : 4), 51,000 fish will require to be captured to 

 yield the rental demanded by the " salmon lairds," and cover 

 the working expenses and profit of the tacksmen. 



During some years the lessees wUl bag, perhaps, twice the 

 number of fish which has been quoted ; this season the chances 

 are that all or most of the lessees on the Tay secured in the early 

 part of the year as many fish as paid their rent and other 

 expenses. But in some seasons it requires hard work to make 

 two ends meet, for the fishery is much of a lottery. On some 

 stations large profits are obtained ; on others occasional great 

 losses must be endured. Judging of rents and profits on the 

 plan laid down, and going on authentic information of the 

 number of fish taken, the following statement of the Beauly 

 salmon fisheries may prove of interest : — The average rental of 

 these fishings for the seven years from 1863 to 1869 (both 

 inclusive) was £768 : 16 : 9, and the average quantities of fish 

 caught were — 1304 salmon, 4261 grilse, and 350 trout. Taking 

 these at the price arrived at — namely. Is. 3d. per lb., and allow- 

 ing, as the grilse are numerous, the average weight of the fish to 

 be 8 lb. each, which is at the rate of 10s. for each fish, the 

 number captured woiild therefore yield at that price the sum of 

 £2957 : 10s., or a balance over the rent of £2188 : 13 : 3. On 



