THE HISTORY OF DUTCH SEA FISHERIES. 151 



at the time under obligation to take licences from the 

 College of the Grand Fishery is evident from a clause of 

 this Resolution, by which the said College is ordered to 

 yearly state the number of boats sailed from the coast under 

 their supervision. 



The differences about the right to cure herring are, as 

 has been shown, the main subject of the smoked-herring 

 trade's history under the Republic. A very different point 

 of working legislation has been contested between those 

 concerned in the " fresh-fishery ; ' viz., the nature of the 

 nets to be used by them. 



It would appear to be still a point at issue between 

 technical writers on sea-fishery, whether the sea can be 

 exhaiisted. Whatever views may at present prevail upon 

 this question among experts, the provincial legislators of 



Holland under the Dutch Republic held it possible to 







extinguish fish-life under their shores ; and they ac- 

 cordingly at one time took steps to prevent its destruc- 

 tion by enacting penalties against the use of such nets as 

 either sweep the bottom of the sea, and thereby are said to 

 extirpate spawn and fry of certain fish residing on the 

 ground, or destroy fry of fish by their undersized meshes. 



Fresh-fishery of the North Sea coast, commonly called 

 " the side ' : in former times, appears at an early period to 

 have been of some importance, as a Resolution of the States 

 of Holland dated December /th, 1585,* proves that fresh 

 fish from Scheveningen was at the time sold in the London 

 market. Still the profits of the trade were small, and 

 fishermen " of the fresh ' are throughout the Republic's 

 time styled " the poor, or miserable (schamele) fishers of the 

 side." In 1595 they were allowed, on account of their 



* Res. Holl. 1585, p. 808. 



