1046 OYSTERS, AND ALL ABOUT THEM. 



Before we conclude this portion of our chapter, there 

 are two points which deserve consideration, i.e., the diffi- 

 culties attending dredging at night and during moderately 

 rough weather ; these have been exaggerated, whilst the 

 difficulty of dredging during the prevalence of winds from 

 unfavourable quarters has not received its proper share of 

 recognition. 



When the Oyster Bill of 1876 was brought forward, 

 there was an outcry among dredgermen that, if the Bill 

 passed, they would only have April, September, and October 

 in which they could catch and sell deep-sea oysters, as, from 

 the beginning of November to the end of March the 

 weather would practically prevent dredging on the North 

 Sea and Channel beds. It is true that occasionally a spell 

 of very bad weather will prevent our well-found boats from 

 going out in the winter, as well as in the spring or autumn ; 

 but, if their catch will pay for the wear and tear, it would 

 have to be very bad weather indeed that would keep such 

 a boat, for instance, as a Jersey dredging cutter in port. 

 October, 1882, was an exceptionally bad month, and the 

 Channel boats could scarcely go out at all, but in November 

 there was but one gale of wind, and in January of this year 

 (1883) one Channel oyster boat alone obtained over 50,000 

 oysters ! 



These remarks do not apply to open dredging-boats or 

 to ill-found or ill-favoured smacks, but to the real Channel 

 dredging boats, that will keep the high seas in any weather. 

 The kind of craft that have in years past left Jersey, on a 

 dark winter's eve, with a falling barometer, and a south- 

 west gale blowing, sailing down to Granville on the coast 

 of France, and working all night on a dead lee shore they 

 have returned to Jersey next morning, laden with the spoil 

 poached from the French grounds ; on these occasions they 



