FISHING STATIONS— IRELAND. 345 



of Irish Fislicries, by wliom they are pubhslied in their 

 Annual Report. The returns are given by the two 

 departments according to tlieir independent districts, 

 those by the Customs under the heading of the different 

 ]iorts, nineteen in number, on the same system as in 

 England and Scotland ; and those by the Coastguard 

 for the thirty districts into which, for their own regular 

 duties, they divide the coast. In both cases the returns 

 include every description of boat used by professional 

 fishermen ; and although, in consequence of the limits 

 of the districts under the two systems being unlike, it 

 is impossible to compare them in detail, we might 

 reasonably expect to find the totals in close agree- 

 ment. This, however, is not the case. Th.e discrepancy 

 between them is so great that it is difficult to know 

 whether either is approximately correct ; for while we 

 have no more reason to place complete confidence in 

 the Customs returns for Ireland than, as we have pre- 

 viously said, we could in the case of England or Scot- 

 land, we are hardly prepared to consider the Coastguard 

 returns as entirely trustworthy, although the Inspectors 

 of Irish Fisheries state in their Report for 1872 that 

 from the particular directions given to the Coastguard, 

 theirs are likely to be the more correct. 



It should be mentioned, however, with respect to the 

 latter, that there are long stretches of coast on the 

 western side of the island which are unguarded — that 

 is, not patrolled by the Coastguard, who, therefore, not 

 having all the boats and men of these districts con- 

 stantly under their notice, can only obtain information 

 about them by special visits to the localities, and often 

 at an expense quite out of proportion to the value 

 of the results. The same difficulties are met with by 

 the Customs, and it may be even to a greater extent ; 



