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Sketches of the Restigouche

The Tribune
1852

        "His Majesty's Emigration Officer at Saint John" gives a look at the Restigouche River, written by Moses Perley.

        This is one of the noblest rivers in this part of America. At its entrance into the Bay of Chaleur, it is three miles wide, and from thence to Athol House, above Campbellton, a distance of twenty miles, it maintains a great breadth, and may be considered for the whole distance, one magnificent haven, fitted for ships of the largest class.

        The Restigouche is about 220 miles in length, and it has four large tributaries, each more than 60 miles long; with its numerous affluents, it is supposed to drain more than 6000 square miles of territory. At present, this river is the dividing line between New Brunswick and Canada, and the fisheries in its waters are, therefore, under the control of each Colony, to the centre of the channel.

        When the French possessed this country, there was a town called Petite Rochelle, which contained more than two hundred houses, on the north bank of the Restigouche, at the head of the tide. This town was destroyed by a British fleet, under Captain Byron, in July 1760, a large fleet of French men of war and store ships being, at the same time, burnt and sunk in front of the town. Some years elapsed before British settlers established themselves on the banks of this river; and it is probable, that for a long period after, no river in North America, (except perhaps the Columbia) yielded so large a supply of salmon as the Restigouche. But its character, in this respect, is fast passing away; the numbers have fearfully diminished of late years; and, if the present state of things continues, very likely a brief period only will elapse, ere the salmon fishery of the Restigouche will be numbered among the things that have been.

        Robert Ferguson, Esquire, of Athol House, who has dwelt on the banks of the Restigouche more than fifty years, stated to the writer, that in the early part of this century, he himself, for many years, caught and exported 1400 barrels of salmon annually. He thought, that the whole catch on this river, the past year, would not exceed 500 barrels; but the season was an unfavourable one; the unusual drought, and the white porpoises in the bay, were both adverse to a good fishery. Mr. Ferguson attributes the great decrease of salmon to the destruction of fish on the spawning beds, in the upper parts of the river, far beyond the settlements, where thy are speared, and netted, and poached, in every mode that can be devised.

        Mr. John Duncan, a very intelligent and respectable farmer near Campbellton, stated, that he has followed salmon fishing on the Restigouche for forty years; the fishing has greatly fallen off within the last ten years. Twenty years since, according to Mr. Duncan, 3000 barrels of salmon were shipped annually from the Restigouche; in his opinion, not more than 300 barrels were taken the past season. The largest salmon taken, within Mr. Duncan's own knowledge, weighed sixty pounds; in former years, he has known eleven salmon, on the average, to make a barrel of 200lb; more recently, they averaged fifteen to the barrel; in 1848, the fish averaged seventeen to the barrel; but the past season, they were quite small, and very different from those of former years.

        In the Restigouche, salmon are taken one hundred miles above tide-water; they are also taken fifteen miles up the Quota-wam-kedgwick, one of its upper tributaries. Salmon ascend the Matapediac River, very nearly to the lake, about 60 miles; the fish in this tributary, are known as being larger and much blacker on the back. The salmon on the Restigouche are next in size to those of the Matapediac; the fish which ascend the Upsalquitch are smallest.

        Mr. Duncan stated, that drifting for salmon was practised on the Restigouche, all along the river, for eighty miles above the tide-way; a net, stretched between two canoes, is dragged down stream, and this is called "drifting". Nets are set, at night, quite across the river, where the channel is narrow; at the same time, parties are engaged with torch and spear, in taking salmon, or driving them into the nets. It was mentioned by Mr. Duncan, that two men went eighty miles up the Restigouche, on the 1st of September last, and in a few days, brought down seventy salmon, taken in this way; two Indians, who went up at the same time, also brought down twenty salmon, taken with the spear.

        At the close of the season, just before the ice makes in the Restigouche, large quantities of supplies, for the lumberers, are sent very far up the river, in large tow-boats or scows, each drawn by a number of horses. The upper part of the river is much impeded by broad, sandy shallows, and sand bars; where the water is not sufficiently deep for heavily laden scows, they are dragged across these shallows and bars, by the strength of three, and sometimes nine horses, aided by men. It unfortunately happens, and that these places are the favourite spawning grounds of the salmon, and great quantities of the spawn, alredy deposited and covered, are thus trampled up, destroyed, or washed away. Mr. Ferguson and Mr. Duncan, were both of the opinion, that some damage had been done to the salmon fishery, bye the "scowing," late in the fall, when the river happened to be in a low stage; on such occasions the spawning beds are sure to suffer. Mr. Duncan however, things that the greatest injury to the salmon fishery, arises from the salmon being speared on these spawning beds, up to the very latest moment in the season before the river closes, when the fish are quite worthless; and that the great means of improving the fishery, would be, to preserve the upper part of the river.

        Mr. Robert H. Montgomery, of Campbellton, who is well acquainted with the upper part of the Restigouche, described, very graphically, the various modes resorted to, both by Indians and white men, to entrap and destroy the salmon on the river, without reference to time or place, the great object appearing to be, to take the fish, no matter whether they were worth anything or not. The spirit of destructiveness seems to have infected every body. The largest salmon which Mr. R. H. Montgomery has seen taken, weighted 47 lbs.

        Dugald Stewart, Esquire, of Dalhousie, stated, that no gaspereaux or shad were taken in Restigouche. He took 26 barrels of salmon last season, at a fishing station owned by himself, at the entrance of the Restigouche, near the "Bon Ami Rocks." Mary ling, and large quantities of lobsters, were also taken in his salmon nets, which happened to be deeper than necessary.

        The Honorable John Montgomery stated, that salmon are destroyed on the Restigouche, by nets of great length, which are set as well from the New Brunswick as the Canadian side of the river, and overlap each other, by which the channel is closed, and the passage of the fish obstructed. These nets are kept constantly set during the season, on Sundays as well as other days. Drift nets, extending entirely across the river, are likewise used; spearing on the spawning beds, and drifting over these beds, are also practised. Mr. Montgomery said that spearing goes on at all times, when possible, without regard to season.

        Mr. Mann, of Tracadegash, described the salmon fishing of former days, in the Restigouche as something quite wonderful. At one period, there was a paid overseer on the Canadian side, when more proper manner than at present; but, a like paid overseer not being appointed on the New Brunswick side, it was found impossible to regulate the fishery from one side only, and the Canadian overseer was discontinued, since which the fishery has suffered greatly. The largest fish taken in the Restigouche by Mr. Mann weighed 54 lbs. He thinks the mesh of the salmon nets, in this river, should not be less than 6 1/2 inches.

       

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