XV 



30. The Commissioner of Jalandar observed in 1870 — "I would 



remark that there is the most wanton de- 

 Jalandar Divmon.-Anmen stmct j on f ns h j n some f our jhils, which 

 of European officials ot Jataii- . . . T ,. . , , . , . J „ ' _. 



dar, Phillur, Hushiarpur. should I think be put a stop to. The De- 



puty Commissioner , the same year, stated — 

 u I inspected some nets now in use : one was brought to me used for 

 fishing in ponds, nine of whose meshes went to a square inch/'' The 

 Extra Assistant Commissioner, Phillur, reports that breeding and very- 

 young fish are not destroyed ' wantonly' in this district to any extent ; 

 if they are at all, it must be in the rainy season, or a short time before, 

 and then only by being caught in common with other fish ; 1^ inches 

 between knot and knot of the meshes is the smallest size employed, and 

 there is no difficulty in regulating this or any other minimum size. 

 "When a chowkeydar sees a man fishing, he looks at his license and ex- 

 amines his net. Would propose that only large-meshed nets are per- 

 mitted during the breeding season, but in the early spring when ' chilwa* 

 fishing is carried on, would permit one inch between knot and knot. 

 Respecting prohibiting the sale of the fry of fish in the bazar, he remarks — ■ 

 " Considered merely as an article of food, there is no objection to the 

 fry of fish being sold in the bazar ; but I think it would tend to an in- 

 crease of the supply of large fish in the markets if the fry were not 

 allowed to be sold." The Deputy Commissioner of Hushiarpur observes 

 that his replies must be accepted in a general way, and are not intended 

 as touching upon the customs of his district alone, but the result of 

 experience obtained in several. In the ponds and jhils left in the course 

 of the Bizu river through the Jalandar district, and in similar 

 places in other districts, there is a great destruction of young fish by 

 netting with sheets, &c. Prior to the issue of the circular in 1870 regulat- 

 ing the minimum size of the mesh at 1£ inches between knot and knot, 

 great destruction with fine-meshed nets was personally witnessed. The 

 only difficulties in regulating the size of the mesh of the nets are such as 

 are general in preventing smuggling and poaching. The sale of the 

 fry of fish is so small that it is hardly worth interfering with ; its capture 

 is generally effected for home consumption ; what was sad to witness, was 

 the huge numbers of very small fish dragged up with the weeds, &c, and 

 left to perish as useless. In all out-lying villages fish are caught by 

 men who require to eat them, not as a luxury, but as a necessary article 

 of food; and if deprived of this, other means of subsistence should be 

 provided for them, which would be no easy matter, if at all practicable. 

 Attempts should be confined to the remedy of great evils rather than to 

 an interference with small ones, which could be done by making it crimi- 

 nal to use nets with meshes smaller than prescribed. The Deputy Commis- 

 sioner of Kangra reports, that he believes that young fish used to be caught 

 and breeding checked until the new rules about licenses and limiting" 

 the size of the mesh were introduced. Doubtless, the Jeewun and 

 Kahar castes catch fish by stealth all over the district, as there are no 

 means of preventing this. The places in which they used to be most 

 destroyed, were in those streams which become very shallow during 

 the dry months, leaving, however, some deep pools in which the fish 

 take shelter as the floods decline, and where they are easily netted. 

 By way of testing the quantity and breeds of fish in one of these pools 



