HERRING FISHERY.] FISHERIES 201 grout captures of tin- trawler, vlio, woikin., wiih lo<s capital and with a more productive kind of labour, is able to undersell tlic drift fishermen, and to derange the market for the curcrs. " It happened that in I860, the last year of trawling before its com plete suppression, the fishing in Loch Fyne was the largest ever known there ; in 1801 it fell of} , but in 18(52 it was again very large, and that was followed by fluctuations as before, although the drift fishermen then had it all their own way. The recommendations of the two commissions were embodied in an Act (30 ond 31 Viet. e. 52) passed in 18b 7, by which any kind of herring net with what was then the legal mesh was permitted, and trawls so constructed again came into use. By the Sea Fisheries Act, 1868, all restric tions as to the size of mesh were done away, but as that Act only applies to iishing beyond the three mile limit, the Act of 1S67 still regulates the fishing In Loch Fyne. It chanced that from 1868 to 1874 the produce of this loch gradually fell oil from 46,810 barrels to 6934 barrels; the herrings did not go to the upper waters of the loch in the same numbers as before, and we need hardly say that the drift fishermen accounted for it mainly by the fact that trawling had again been permitted. The drift fishermen had little belief in the two commissions which had reported that trawling had done no harm ; but in 1874, when matters were at their worst, three Scotch gentlemen of position, who were likely to command the confi dence of the fishermen, formed themselves into a private committee to inquire into the causes of the failure in Loch Fync. The re sult as regards the effects of trawling in keeping away the herrings may be best given in their own words : "The fact cannot be ex plained away that the fish seem to be at present disinclined to enter other narrow waters where trawling is unknown." 1 The idea, how ever, that the opinions of tho.se gentlemen would be received with respect has proved to be a mistaken one; and the fact that three inquiries had resulted in the same conclusions seemed only to make these fishermen the more determined to clamour against trawling. In 1877 a fourth commission was appointed ; its object was to ex amine into the condition of the Scotch herring fisheries generally, and the state of the Loch Fyne fisheries was therefore once more investigated. Yet, notwithstanding that the produce of this loch had increased from 6934 barrels in 1874 to 15,097 in 1875, and to 34,471 in 1876, with a further increase in 1877, so far as the returns had been made up at the time, all the old statements were again brought forward by the drift men. But the facts against them appear to have been too strong, and this last commission, like the three previous ones, has declined to recommend that trawling should be suppressed. verage There is abundant evidence in the records for a great number of reduce years that the annual produce of Loch Fyne has been subject to large Loch fluctuations. But if we compare successive periods of ten years each yue. we shall find that not only are the average total catches in recent years far in excess of those in earlier times, but the average for each boat has very largely increased. The following official record for periods of ten years is very instructive : Period. Average Xo. of Boata. Average No. of Barrels. 1827-1836 300 3,469 1837-1846 350 7,388 1847-1856 396 19,949 1857-1866 1867-1876 558 479 33,096 25,561 The average for the ten years 1S57-1866 was much raised by the enormous catch of 79,893 barrels in 1862, whilst the small number of 6934 barrels only being taken in 1874 has materially lowered the average for the last ten years. If we now look at the produce of the fishery on the whole west coast of Scotland for the last thirty years, taking the average in periods of ten years as before, we find the following : Years. Average Catch. Highest Catch i Lowest Catch. 1847-1856 1857-1866 1867-1876 85,837 122,154 156,988 109,806 173,827 226,037 56,206 83,218 83,892 The quantities here given are in barrels, as usual ; and the figures in this and the preceding return are taken from the statistics care fully prepared by Mr George lleiach, assistant inspector under the Board of Fisheries, and furnished by him to the commission in 1877. He had been 27 years in the service of the board, and for the last 14 years the whole of the west coast fisheries had been under his inspection. There is nothing that enables us better to understand the actual condition of a fluctuating industry like our sea fisheries than accurate records of its annual produce. In this respect Scotland, owing to 1 The Report of these gentlemen is given : in full and ably discussed in the Irmual Report for 1875 of the Hoard of I isheries. the careful labours of her Board of Fisheries, is in n far more for tunate position than cither England or Ireland ; and the following tables taken from the last report of the Fishery Board will readily show, by the comparison of any two selected series of years, tho gradually increasing importance of the Scotch herring fishery, notwithstanding the fluctuations arising from unfavourable weather and other natural causes. "Vc may add that considerable quantities of herrings which are sold in the local markets and consumed whilst quite fresh, do not appear in the board s returns, but those which arc slightly salted for transit by ship to the great markets are so included. The quantities are in barrels, as before. ABSTRACT showing the total quantity of White Herrings cured, branded, and exported, year by year, in so fur (is brought viulcr cognizance of Fishery Officers, from the 1st of June 1809 to the 31st of December 1877 ; distinguishing the export to Ireland, to the Continent, and to places out of Europe. The periods for which each Return is made end on the 5th of April down to 1844 ; from that year to 1852, on the 5th of January ; and after wards on the 31st of December ; hence two returns were pub lished in 1852. There were no returns for England after Jan uary 1850, or for the Isle of Man after January 18G9. Exported eriods. Tof ;il Cured. Total Branded. To To the Out of Tntnl Exported. Ireland. Continent. Europe. 1S10 90,18. , 34,701 28,014 7,834 35,848 1811 91.827 55,662 28,212 9,921 38,133 1812 111,519 58,430 30,417 4,730 27,672 62,820 1813 153,488 70,027 57,980 11,046 40,699 109,725 1814 110542 38.184 43,061 23,943 51,399 118,403 1815 160,139 83,376 49,635 35,891 5--),778 141,305 1S1G 102,651 116,436 29,456 15,563 62,668 107,688 1817 192,343 140,018 36,341 44,432 57,855 138,628 1818 227,691 183,089 63,386 43,896 65,057 162,339 181!) 340,894 270,022 89,704 52,333 85,125 227,162 1820 382,491 309,700 101,109 64,302 88.104 253,516 1821 442,195 j 363.872 125,445 89,524 79,836 294,805 1822 316,524 2i!:i.205 102,719 34,752 77,485 214,956 1823 248,869 203,110 56,528 38,002 75,914 170,445 1824 392,190 299,631 116,747 40,231 82,652 239,630 1825 347,665 270,844 96,409 35,029 70.577 202,016 1826 379,233 294,422 121,386 28,167 67,519 217,073 1827 288,495 223,606 78,735 16,701 70,970 166,406 1828 399,778 279,317 109,108 24,489 78,061 211,659 1829 355,979 234,827 107,651 28,280 69,944 205,875 1830 329,557 218,418 89,680 24,302 67.672 181.654 1831 439,370 237,085 130,300 61,655 72,947 264,903 1832 362,660 157,839 128,458 31,100 57,941 217,499 1833 416,964 168,359 114,137 47,556 58,991 220,684 1834 451,531 178,000 149,254 55,852 66,987 272,093 1835 277,317 85,079 73,960 34,050 50.795 158,805 1836 497,614 192,317 168,960 48,451 55,982 273,393 1837 397,829 114,192 102,968 46,777 39,520 189,265 1838 507,774 141,552 139.095 57,388 38,674 235,158 1839 555,559 153,659 149,926 64,870 24,934 239,730 1840 543,945 152,231 157,359 82,515 12,647 253,522 1841 557,262 154,189 150,517 90,951 8,668 250,137 1842 667,245 190,922 187,953 91,069 5,713 284,736 1843 623,419 162,713 165,327 120,136 6,336 291,800 1844 665,359 182,988 127,770 181,953 3,793 313,516 1845 526,032 140,632 120,293 143,754 2,326 266.373 1846 532,646 142,473 127,027 113.678 2,488 243,194 1847 607.451 156,278 102,585 148,363 4,765 255,714 1848 562,743 146,500 102,690 142,532 4,959 250,181 1849 644,368 153,944 78,262 168,049 3,682 249,994 1850 770,69S . ! !.2S6 78,889 257,108 4,258 340.256 1851 544,009 172,024 66,138 198,403 2,367 266,908 1852 594,031 201,636 81,340 182,659 205 264,204 1852 498,787 160,159 60,414 221,979 1,133 283,526 1853 778,039 248,136 95,339 242,853 4,438 342,630 1854 636,562 211,844 121,883 237,893 1,919 361,696 1855 766,703 280,581 97,377 344,029 858 442,264 1856 609,988 223,281 89,670 256,741 1,199 347,611 1857 580,813 218,992 58.534 307,275 1,351 367,160 1858 636,124 233,374 79,054 269.819 1,331 350,204 1859 491,487 158,676 68,882 203,349 748 272,979 1860 681,193 231,913 86,413 291,401 156 377,970 1861 668,828 265,347 81,595 308,334 384 390,313 1862 830,904 364,712 70,879 423,182 847 494,910 1863 654,816 276,880 72,074 333,074 2,612 407,761 1864 643,650 217,392 55,420 307,282 1,805 364,507 1865 621,763 216,785 42,063 309,626 1,012 352,701 1866 658,146 249,510 47,319 328,272 4,474 380,066 1867 825,589 317,421 42,364 432,994 3,345 478.704 1868 051,433 209,462 43,414 323,479 1,850 368,744 1869 675,143 244,522 82,342 346,793 2,197 381,333 1870 833,160 299,381 41,624 486,064 2.970 530,558 1871 825,475 346,633 46;347 502,534 2,724 551,605 1872 773,859 422,731 24.147 523,540 1,943 549,631 1873 939.233 435,274 32,465 633,681 1,861 668,008 1874 1,000,561 517,558 28,1:17 706.967 2,203 737,314 1875 942,980 523,789 33,434 624.137 3,399 660,970 1876 598.197 252,979 20,333 378.740 1,350 400,423 1877 847,718 397 795 16,085 543,908 1,992 561,985 -V.& Tn the six years ending 5th April 1815 the bounty on herrings cured gutted was two shillings per barrel, while there was a bounty lit the same time of two shillings and eightpence per barrel, payable by the excise, on the expor tation of herring-!, whether cured gutted or ungutted, but which ceased on the 1st June 1815; in the eleven years ending 5th April 1826 the bounty on herrings cured gutted was four shillings per barrel; in the four succeeding years tho bounty was reduced one shilling per barrel each year till the 5th of April I83(fc when it ceiscd altogether, and has not since been renewed.
