122 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
took 140 salmon, which was the best season in his experience; since then the fish have 
been decreasing until 1396. He thinks very few fish get to their spawning-grounds, 
owing to dams and other obstructions in the river above Bangor, and has no doubt 
the small fish which were so conspicuous in 1896 were from the Government hatchery. 
Mr. William F. Abbott, of Verona, who has two weirs on Whitmore Island, caught 
41 salmon in 1895, and 80 in 1896.’ He makes the following statement: 
In my opinion, there would not enough salmon come into the river to pay for building weirs if 
there had been no salmon artificially hatched ; and I hope the Government will continue to keep the 
salmou fishing up, so it will pay to build our weirs. No person that knows anything about it can 
doubt that it is a good thing for the fishermen. 
Mr. Harvey Heath, of Verona, has two weirs on the eastern side of the southern 
end of Whitmore Island. He caught 62 salmon in 1895, and 100 in 1896. He thinks 
that the removal of obstructions to the passage of fish to their spawning-grounds 
would be all that is necessary to secure a good run of fish in the river, but believes 
that under present conditions the salmon-cultural work of the Government is very 
useful in sustaining the fishery. 
Three weirs of Mr. E. A. Bowden, located on the eastern side of Whitmore Island, 
above those of Mr. Heath, took 31 salmon in 1895, and 85 in 1896. Mr. Bowden says : 
I think that if it was not for the hatchery we would not have any salmon to speak of, for all 
the school we have is in June. April, May, and July salmon are very scarce. 
Mr. Charles G. Atkins, superintendent of the government salmon hatchery in 
Orland, Me., informs the writer that he has been inclined to believe that each year a 
great many salmon succeed in reaching their spawning-grounds; but recent observa- 
tions have caused him to change his mind, and he is now of the opinion that only 
relatively few salmon elude the traps, weirs, and gill nets, surmount the dams and 
fishways, escape the poachers, and succeed in depositing'their eggs under conditions 
favorable to their development. The dam at Bangor, while certainly a formidable 
obstruction to the passage of fish, is probably passable at high water. It is provided 
with a fishway, and some fish are known to surmount the dam by this means. Above 
Bangor, in the main river, there are dams at Great Works and Montague, the dam at 
Montague being an especially serious obstruction, although it is provided with a good 
fishway. Below the dam at Bangor there is little poaching, but below the other 
dams— especially at Montague — comparatively large numbers of salmon are sacrificed 
by the illegal use of the spear and drift net. In 1896 all the salmon below Montague 
were at the mercy of poachers after July 15, when all wardens on the river were laid off. 
The supply of spawning fish was thus greatly reduced. The people above Bangor 
have no interest in preserving the salmon supply of the river, as they receive none of 
the benefits from fishing which are enjoyed by fishermen of the lower river. 
This year Mr. Atkins, having this matter under consideration, visited the east 
branch of the Penobscot River. A certain tributary of the east branch, which was 
said to be one of the best spawning-grounds for salmon in the Penobscot basin, was 
obstructed by a dam in the spawning region. The dam was impassable to fish in 
July, and had been so during the previous months. In a deep pool below the dam, 
which was reported to be a favorite resort for salmon each season, no salmon were 
found. In other words, if the salmon had reached this stream they could not have 
gotten above the dam, and would undoubtedly have congregated in the pool mentioned 
and been noticed, but no fish had ascended even that far. 
