THE STOCK OF PLAICE 45 



at all ; and that the shortage of young fish, which undoubtedly 

 occurs periodically, as Garstang was the first to demonstrate, 

 is due to catastrophes to the eggs at and after spawning, and 

 to the larvae, especially during the first critical week or so 

 after hatching. If Garstang is right, measures to protect 

 young fish would be useless, and the old fishermen's adage, 

 ' You that wish to live and thrive, save a little dab alive ', is 

 nonsense, for protection of young fish will never produce more 

 big fish. As will be seen below, it is now probably possible to 

 discover whether Garstang or the other school is right. 



Principles underlying Remedies 



In devising remedies the legislator must keep before him 

 two questions : 



1. Would the remedy, if apphed with reasonable efficiency, 

 have the desired effect ? 



2. Is it possible to apply it with reasonable efficiency ? 

 He must remember that no remedial measure is likely to be 

 effective unless the people whose operations will be affected 

 by it believe in it on the whole ; that no remedy will be per- 

 fectly efficient ; that any remedy will raise a certain amount 

 of opposition and press hardly on some individuals. In fact, 

 biologists are undoubtedly well qualified to judge whether the 

 stock of plaice does or does not require protection. Protection 

 will always mean some degree of restriction, which will succeed 

 or fail according as it has or has not the goodwill of the persons 

 whose operations are to be restricted. At this stage, therefore, 

 it is . obviously desirable that naturalists should collaborate 

 with the managers and skippers of fishing- vessels. Science has 

 been defined as ' the systematic classification of experience '. 

 And the scientist will be well advised if, before prescribing 

 remedies, he thinks out all difficulties in the way of carrying 

 them out with the men best capable of judging their prac- 

 ticability. 



•.-b'" 



