The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-12 00:00:00

HER MAJESTY, do.

OSBORNE, AUG. 11.

The Queen drove out yesterday afternoon, at-
tended by the Countess of Gainsborough and LadY
Augusta Stanley.
The Hon. Mortimer Sackville 'West was in at-
tendance upon horseback.
Princess Louise, Prince Leopold, and Princess
Beatrice also went out.

Her Majesty and their Royal Highnesses PrincCß
Louise and Princess Beatrice, and the Ladies and
Gentlemen in waiting, attended Divine Service at
Whippingbam Church this morning.
The Rev. George Prothero officiated.

his Royal highness Prince Arthur, attended 11
Major Elphinstone, kit Osborne yesterday for
Greenwich Park.

The Right llon. John Wilson Patten, Chancellor
of the Duchy of Lancaster, arrived at Osborne yeg-
terday, and had the honour of dining with the Queen
and the Royal Family.

Lieut.-General the Hon. Charles and Mrs. Grey
had also the honour of being invited.

Mr. Odo Russell has left Osborne.

The Princess of Wales drove out on Saturday
afternoon, attended by the Hon. Mrs. Hardinge.
The Prince of Wales, with Captain Ellis in wait-
ing, attended Divine Service at the Chapel Royal,
St. James's, yesterday morning.

ROYAL PRINCESS'S TIIEATRE.—H is Royal High-
ness the Prince of Wales, attended by Captain Ellis,
honoured this theatre by his presence on Saturday even-
ing to witness the performance of Mr. Hermann Veziu in
the highly successful play of " The Man o' Airlie."

INDIAN MODES OF SALMON FISHING.

On the Nanimo river the Indians have a most
ingenious contrivance for taking salmon. They
construct a weir across the stream, and, instead of
placing basket traps, they pave the bottom with
white or light-coloured stones ; this pavement is
always made on the lower side of the weir, and
leads to an opening in the wicker ; a stage is erected
between or near these paved ways, so that Indians
lying on the stage can see in an instant if a
salmon attempts to ascend over the white paving.
A long spear, barbed at the end, is held poised in
readiness, and woe betide the adventurous salmon
that runs the gauntlet of this perilous pas-
sage. But the most ingenious system I have
ever seen practised is employed at Johnson's
Narrows, near the Nimkish river. Salmon readily
take a bait in salt water. The Nimkish Indians
provide a spear 70 feet in length, together with a
shorter one having a barbed trident end, about 20
feet in length ; two Indians paddle along in a canoe,
and when on favourable fishing ground moor it.
The one having the long spear is likewise provided
with a small hollow cone of wood, trimmed round
its greater circumference with feathers like a shut-
tlecock ; this cone he places on the end of the
long spear, and depresses it under water until
down the full length of the spear ; then a
skilful jerk detaches this feathered cone, and
it wriggles up through the water like a strug-
gling fish. The savage with the short spear
intently watches the deceiver—a salmon rushes at
it, when like magic, he transfixes it with the spear.
In June or July the great " run" begins, and
the number of salmon that ascend the various
streams is beyond belief to any one who has never
seen them. In some of the tributaries to the
Fraser river, the Chilukweyuk is an instance—a
perfect mountain torrent—the salmon throng up in
such myriads that it is next to impossible to
throw a stone without hitting a fish. The spring
salmon keep to the large streams, and seldom
enter the tributaries until they get a long way up
from the sea ; these spring fish reach the salmon
falls at Colville, in June, distant about 1,000 miles
from the sea. This salmon is the Salmo Quinnat of
Sir J. Rich, F.B.A. ; in Chinook, " typhe, or chid
salmon ;" Colville Indian, " Semet-leek ;" Yakima
Indian, " kwiu-na-to ;" Nisqually Indian, "satsup."
It is beyond doubt the finest salmon obtained in the
rivers and inlets of British Columbia. The colour of
the flesh is the most delicate pink, the general
appearance bright silvery and metallic, the dorsal
region having a tinge of greenish hue. Commer-
cially, it is, too, by far the most valuable salmon,
and very large quantities are salted and bar-
relled by tho Hudson's Bay Company at Fort
Langley upon the Fraser. During the season
the Indians on the Columbia, Fraser, and, in-
deed, on all the principal streams, take immense
quantities of these salmon, and prefer them
to any other species for drying and winter use.
At the cascades on the Columbia, and on the
Fraser river, the method of taking salmon 13
with scoop nets. The salmon keep close to the
shore, to avoid the more rapid current, and to take
advantage of the eddies to rest in during their
upward run. The Indian builds, or rather hangs,
a stage over the water, and lies upon it, armed with
a net like a shrimping net, about four feet in dia-
meter, fastened to the end of a long pole. lie passes
his net down the current, and allows it to be swept
on as far as his arms can reach, then he hauls it
out and plunges it in again up stream as far as pos-
sible. In this way I have seen a savage take 35 to 40
salmon an hour. They usually fish immediately
after sunrise, or late in the evening. At the north
of the Fraser river and on Puget Sound the Indian
employs long poles, with sharp gaff-hooks at the end
of them, then paddling about in canoes, thus hook
in large numbers of salmon. Higher up the streams,
at the salmon falls or leaps, the Indians use huge
wicker baskets, flat on one side, and bellied out
on the other ; these they hang in places where
they well know the salmon leap ; usually
against the face of a rock, the flat side
of the basket being towards the rock. These
baskets are hung before the river begins to flood
from the melting snow, for the Columbia rises at
least 351 t. above its autumn and winter level. As
soon as the water has risen sufficiently for the fish
to leap the falls, at it they go, and in leaping often
fall back into the baskets. I have seen from 250 to
300 salmon taken from out one basket two or three
times a day. I have likewise seen over 100 salmon
in the air at one time, and often six or eight tum-
ble into a basket together. Two Indians go naked
into this huge pannier, each carrying in his hand
a heavy wooden club, and, utterly reckless of the
water dashing over them, and scrambling about
amongst the struggling fish, they seize one after
another by the gills, give each salmon a crack on
the head with a club, then fling it out upon the
rocks, whereon the squaws are waiting ; the women
pounce upon the stunned fish, lug them away, cut
off their heads, split them open, take out the back-
bones, and then hang them upon long poles to dry,
keeping a small fire always smouldering underneath
the poles to partially smoke the drying fish. Salmon
cured in this way I have known to keep two years
perfectly fresh.—A Home in the TVilderness.

THE HARVEST IN THE EAST.—The harvest may
now be said to be becoming general in the eastern district.
In the neighbourhood of Newmarket the corn crops of
every sort aro heavy, and they are expected to yield a full
average. About Godmanchester the corn crops are pro-
mising, and all that is now required is fine and seasonable
weather. Recent heavy rains have beaten down many
fields of grain, but if fine weather follows it is thought
that no serious damage will result. Reaping machines
cannot, however, be so extensively used as on former occa-
sions owing to the corn having been knocked down so
much. Near Debenham (Suffolk) wheat is considered to
be quite equal, if not superior, to an average ; some pieces
which in the spring were thought to be thin and inferior
have now improved. Barley in this district cannot b.)
called a good average crop. Peas aro in many cases cut
and carted, and will prove a fair yield. Beans, if not equal
to last year, must be called a gocd crop. Wheat has been
cut in several places about Woodbridge (Suffolk); it ap-
pears to be barely an average crop in this neighbourhood ;
but recent rains, although they have retarded harvest
operations considerably, have proved of great benefit•
Barleys on poor badly-farmed lands reflect the adverse in-
fluence of the severe spring, but on kindly well-cultivated
soils they look better.
As many as 3,500 of the schoolmasters of France
are to visit the Exhibition during tir3 vacation. They Will
be
194'4 in thg CtglegegandPOW ficil99l4 V# Paris.