126 NORTH SEA INVESTIGATIONS. 



in findin" a market for them than the man who sells on commission, 

 the chief risk being borne by the consigner. 



The harbour at Lowestoft is divided by wooden piers into several 

 compartments, and one of these is allotted to the use of the trawlers, 

 the market for trawled fish extending along the side of it. During 

 my stay I was allowed to use one of the small offices in this market for 

 my work, and I received a great deal of assistance and courtesy from 

 members of all classes of men engaged in the fish business, from 

 fishermen, smack owners, and dealers, for which both personally, and 

 on behalf of the Association, I am glad to express my thanks. I was 

 especially indebted to Mr. Sladden for permission to make a voyage in 

 one of his boats, and to Mr. Alfred Turner for information and guidance 

 in the market. 



I have mentioned in the first section of this paper that the Lowestoft 

 smacks were during my visit trawling partly in the neighbourhood of the 

 Brown Eidges, partly around the banks and shoals off the English coast 

 to the northward, from the Smith's Knoll and Winterton Eidge to the 

 Outer Dowsing. The smacks usually remain out for seven or eight days 

 and more of them land fish on Sunday than on Saturday, for the reason 

 that buyers prefer to send fish for Monday's market on the former day 

 than on the latter. On September 9tli a smack, which had fished 

 55 miles E.S.E. of Lowestoft, at depths of 11 to 23 fathoms, landed 

 18 boxes of rather small plaice; 4 boxes of dabs; 1 box (level) of soles; 

 I box of turbot; 2 or 3 rays. A box of these plaice contained 109 

 males, 117 females, and the size was 9^ in. to 15 in. The price was 8s. 



A catch on the same date from the Swarte Bank, which is on the 

 English side, a long way to the N.W. of the Brown Eidges, consisted of 

 8^ boxes plaice ; 1 box dabs ; 1 box (level) of soles ; 1 box turbot and 

 lemon soles ; 1 box dabs ; 1 box rays ; 1 box haddock. The largest plaice 

 was 21 1 in., the smallest 9h in. 



There were frequently seen in the market large heaps of mixed fish 

 of little value. They consisted of a few small plaice, dabs, and chiefly 

 of gurnards and large weevers (Trachinus draco). I afterwards found 

 that these fish came from the neighbourhood of the Brown Eidges. The 

 gurnards in these heaps were the grey gurnard {Trigla gurnardits) by 

 far the most numerous, the red gurnard {T. cuculus) and the tub or the 

 latchet (T. hirundo). Catches from the eastern side also often included 

 a box or half a box of large latchets. The number of boxes of plaice 

 varied from 15 to 25. Haddocks and lemon soles were conspicuous by 

 their absence. On September 20th, at 10.30 a.m., I counted all the 

 small plaice in the market, and found there were 440 boxes ; but 

 this does not include all lauded in the day — some had already been 

 removed, and others were lauded later. The fishermen, in packing their 



