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Appendices to Second Annual Report 



The Bladenoch. 



The Bladenoch rises in Loch Maberry, not far from the Ayrshire 

 march, and, after a course of 20 miles, falls into the west side of 

 Wigtown Bay, near the burgh of Wigto wn. Its principal tributary is 

 the Tarff. Besides Loch Maberry, there are several lochs connected 

 with the head- waters of both these rivers, which afford good trouting. 

 There are four weirs on the Bladenoch, but none of them, except 

 that at New Mills, act as obstructions to the passage of salmon. 

 The dam at New Mills is by no means watertight, and though the 

 river was in flood when I inspected it, scarcely any water was 

 coming over the dam. It was soaking through it instead. Had 

 the dam been faced with concrete so as to be watertight, a foot of 

 water would have been coming over the crest, and fish would have 

 been able to get up by the ladder in the centre, which would have 

 been full. I could see no hecks at the intake or tail-lades of this 

 mill or at those of any of the other mills on the Bladenoch. But 

 as there is no District Board this is not to be wondered at; 

 although, as has been already shown, the existence of a District 

 Board does not always afford an absolute guarantee for the strict 

 enforcement of the bye-law framed by the Commissioners under 

 the Salmon Fisheries Act of 1862. There are two mill-dams on 

 the Tarff, but they form no obstruction when the river is in such 

 a state as to induce fish to run. The salmon on the Bladenoch are 

 handsome fish, short, thick, and with small heads. It is a late 

 river. It is not a good trouting stream, and, like the Cree, is much 

 infested with pike. The first spring fish run about the end of April ; 

 and the grilse begin to run about the 10th of June. It occasionally 

 affords good angling ; and one proprietor in the district told me 

 that, fishing constantly, he had killed 78 salmon in his best year, 

 the heaviest 18 lbs. 



The Luce. 



For its size, the Luce is one of the best rivers both for sea-trout 

 and salmon on the Solway. There are no fixed nets nearer its 

 mouth than 650 yards on the one side and 1300 yards on the other, 

 and no pollutions or obstructions, except a waterfall about 13 miles 

 up the river. It is strictly reserved for angling. The sea-trout 

 are numerous and large, fish of 3 lbs. and 4 lbs. being not uncom- 

 mon. It is - a very late river, few clean salmon making their 

 appearance until the month of July. Very large salmon for so 

 small a river — 30 lbs. and upwards — are occasionally captured in 

 the Luce. It falls into Luce Bay, a broad and deep inlet of the 

 Irish Sea, which divides that part of the south-west coast of Scot- 

 land into two peninsulas, terminating in the Mull of Galloway on 

 the west and Barrow Head on the east. The Luce is composed of 

 two branches which unite at New Luce, about 7 miles from the sea. 

 It has a course of nearly 20 miles, and a drainage area of 73 square 

 miles. There is no District Board. 



With regard to the decisions of the Special Commissioners acting 

 under the ' Solway Salmon Fisheries Commissioners (Scotland) Act, 



