138 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



other food ; ! an opinion which has recently been more fully developed 

 by G. 0. Sars. 2 



Begarding the causes of the "old" herring's disappearance from the 

 coast of Bohus-lan there has been a great variety of opinion, and the 

 dispute has often waxed hot. At a very early period of the "old" 

 fisheries it was expected that they would some time come to an end, 3 

 and people, therefore, discussed the question of the possible causes of 

 such an event, and the means which should be used to prevent such a 

 national calamity, and laws were passed with a view to such a contin- 

 gency. 4 Passing over the more mythical causes of the disappear- 

 ance of the herring, which were given from time to time, and which, 

 doubtless, found the greatest favor among the common people, the fol- 

 lowing may be assigned as the chief causes of such an event: 



1. That tJie herrings were gradually destroyed, so that the schools be- 

 came smaller and smaller toward the end of the fishing-period 5 — by 

 " excessive fishing ;" 6 by catching the young herring in nets with narrow 

 meshes j 7 by preventing the herring from reaching the most conven- 

 ient spawning-places ; 8 and by the consequent destruction of the roe ; 9 

 and by unfavorable weather, " an unusual appearance of fish of prey, 

 birds of prey," " want of food," &c, &c; " and other influences inju- 

 rious to the roe, the young, and the full-grown fish." 10 



2. Tliat the lierrings were "slowly and persistently driven away ;" n — by 

 noise; 13 by the excessive number of fishermen ; 13 'by the use of injurious 



J R. St. Fiskeri-Deputations Handlingar, 1760-1772. — Enl. Cedersirom, Fiskodling ock 

 Sveriges Fiskerier, p. 141. 

 2 Indberetning for Aaret, 1873, p. 58. 



3 R. St. Fiskeri-Deputations beriittel.se om fiskeriernas tillstand i Riket gifven vid 

 Riksdagen d. 18Maj 1772. — Eul. Cedersirom., Fiskodling ock Sveriges Fiskerier, p. 192. 



4 Trangramsacten, pp. 151, 152, 108. 

 6 HandL ror. Sillf., p. 98, fr. 8. 



6 Nilsson, Fornyad rmderdanig beriittelse om Fiskerierna i Bonus Liin. Stockholm, 

 1828, pp.22, 29.— Handl. ror.Sillf., p. 47.— Skandinavisk Fauna, iv, pp.505, 514.— Widegrcn, 

 Handlingar ock upplysningar rorande Sveriges Fiskerier, i, p. 51 ; iv, pp. 12, 36. — Nya 

 Handl. ror. Sillf., pp. 32, 33, 38, 39. 



7 Nilsson, Skaudinav. Fauna, iv, pp. 507,514. — Wright, TV. von, Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 

 174. See also, Krfyyer, H., Danmarks Fiske, iii, p. 164. 



8 Nilsson, Fornyad underdanig beriittelse om Fiskerierna i Bohus Liin. Stockholm, 

 1328, p. 30. 



9 Trangramsacten, pp. 163-164, 171. — Nilsson, Skandinav. Fauna, iv, p. 515. — For- 

 nyad underd. beriittelse. Stockh. 1828, p. 30. 



10 Cederstrb'm, G. C, Fiskodling och Sveriges Fiskerier, pp. 208, 213, anm., 216.— 

 Krcpyer, Danmarks Fiske, iii, pp. 162, 163. 



"Nilsson, Handl. ror. Sillf., pp. 17, 73-74, 138.— Sundevall, Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 152, 

 154. — Love'n, Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 163. 



li NiUson, Handl. ror. Sillf., pp. 17, 18,41, 138.— Skandinav. Fauna, iv, p. 505. — Lund- 

 beck, Antekningar, pp. 34-38.— Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 87 fr. 16, p. 99 fr. 10.— Sundevall, 

 Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 152.— Wright, TV. von, Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 172. 



13 Nilsson, Fornyad underd. beriittelse, Stockh. 1828, p. 23, anm— Handl. ror. Sillf., 

 p. 17.— Skandinav. Fauna, iv, p. 505.— Widegren, Nya Handl. ror. Sillf., p. 33.— Boeclc, 

 Om Silden og Sildefiskerierne, p. 85. 



