FISHING STATIONS— SCOTLAND. 



283 



We cannot attempt to explain the discrepancy ; but it 

 is evident that either one or both of the returns must 

 be inaccurate. As we have already pointed out, the 

 special organization of the staff of the Fishery Board is 

 such as should prevent much error in returns of this 

 nature ; and it appears likely that there are many more 

 boats than have hitherto been registered by the Customs. 

 In our sketch of the Scotch fisheries we shall, how- 

 ever, give a continuation of the general returns published 

 by the Board of Trade, as they include every kind of 

 fishing boat, although we have great doubt about the 

 correctness of the figures; as before, we shall only 

 mention the returns for 1872, those for the previous 

 years having evidently included numerous boats which 

 should not have been registered. 



Leith to Kirkcaldy — Number of Boats. 



Port Letters. 



Port. 



L.H. 

 B.O. 

 A.A, 

 P.E.H. 

 K.Y. 



Leith 

 Bo'ness . . 

 Alloa 

 Perth 

 Kirkcaldy 



3rd Class. 



These five ports include all the fishing stations north 

 of Berwick-on-Tweed as far as the north-eastern limit 

 of the Firth of Forth. It will be observed that the 

 fisheries within the boundaries of three of them are 

 insignificant, but the others contain some important 

 stations. 



The fisheries of the Firth of Forth are more varied 

 than on any other part of the Scotch coast ; as besides 

 the almost universal drift-fishery for herrings, and the 

 equally general white-fishing by lines, there is some 



