THE FISHERY INTERESTS OF AUSTRIA. 621 



ances are granted, are strictly fulfilled. Should such appliances, be of 

 great benefit to navigation, agriculture, or industry, the authorities may 

 permit their use, even if they should be injurious to the fisheries, pro- 

 vided that the persons owning the fishing-privileges are properly 

 indemnified. In as far as no existing rights are infringed on, the police- 

 authorities have to prohibit every pollution of the water which, in their 

 opinion, is injurious to the fish or fisheries ; to remove all industrial or 

 other establishments whose refuse makes the water impure; and to 

 permit new establishments, whose refuse is to flow into the water, only on 

 condition that competent men shall decide that such refuse will not 

 hurt the fisheries. The authorities may, however, permit such estab- 

 lishments, if they will prove a considerable advantage to agriculture or 

 industry ; it being, of course, understood that the persons holding the 

 fishing-privileges are properly indemnified. 



Towns, villages, or other corporations holding fishing-privileges, if 

 they have not obtained a special grant to carry on the business, 

 must transfer it, either as a whole or in suitable portions, to compe- 

 tent and reliable persons. 



Fishing can only be carried on in such a manner and with such imple- 

 ments as are not injurious to the preservation and increase of the stock 

 of fish. The local authorities are entitled, and in duty bound, to enact 

 more detailed restrictions on this jjoint, in conformity with the local 

 wants. Methods of capture and fishing-implements, whose injurious char- 

 acter is universally acknowledged, are prohibited by the laws. 



According to some fishery-laws, only such implements can be em- 

 ployed as are mentioned in the respective deeds, feudal documents, 

 written agreements, &c, in so far as their use is not interdicted by the 

 existing code. 



The size of the meshes of nets is fixed by law. The authorities are, 

 however, empowered to prescribe the use of those with wider meshes for 

 certain species of fish in certain localities, and to permit the use of such 

 nets exceptionally for a period not exceeding five years in places where 

 those with narrower meshes have hitherto been employed. Some fish- 

 ing-laws prescribe in detail the methods of capture and the implements 

 allowed in certain waters, and make the use of new implements and 

 methods entirely dependent on the special permission of the government. 

 The seasons when the different kinds of fish in certain waters must 

 not be caught are specially defined by government ordinances, and fish- 

 ing during such seasons is either totally prohibited or limited according 

 to local circumstances. In later ordinances, the seasons when the dif- 

 ferent species of fish cannot be caught are defined by legal provisions, 

 and the capture and sale of spawning-fish and young fish are prohibited. 

 In fishing, the running waters must not be obstructed, and bags, station- 

 ary nets, as well as other implements, tools, and contrivances used, 

 must never occupy more than one-half the breadth of a river or stream. 

 The spawning-places of the finer kinds of fish are to be made known 

 to the fishermen in a manner to be defined by the government. Fishing- 



