ild 
after Professor Coste had made his well-known experiments in artificial oyster cul- 
ture in France, that the impulse came to take up the matter. From available 
documents for Nov. 23rd 1859 it appears, that on account of Krøyer's feeble health 
the Government could not employ him again, and as the Professor in Zoology 
Japetus Steenstrup was absent just at that time, the Professor of Physiology 
Eschricht was called upon. Eschricht readily took up the matter, journeyed to 
France in 1860, later to the Lim Fjord and sent in his above-cited, interesting 
printed reports. It was in consequence of these that the Lim Fjord in the period 
from 1861—71 was let out in 5 divisions, with the right to lay down oyster parks 
in them, and that the standard for oysters was reduced by the Government to 
21/, inches, as it was for the Schleswig and »fladstrand« banks. The lessees did 
not however carry this standard into effect, but fished only the 3 or even 3!/, 
inches and they took no advantage of their rights to lay down parks. 
It has not been possible for me to ascertain whether Eschricht had any- 
thing more to do with the matter later than 1862. The fishery evidently went on 
as best it could during the 10 following years. The large numbers of oysters 
fished at the end of this period show clearly that the fishermen had now learnt 
how to dredge. 
The next time the fishery was to be let out, ca. 1870, the Government 
called upon a new man to be their expert, namely, Jonas Collin: he remained 
the expert until 1905. In 1870 he proposed »that the standard under the new 
contracts should be 3” or 31”«; Kontrollør Andersen proposed 3” in diameter 
and it remained at that until 1893. 
Appendix I gives a brief summary over the statistics concerning the 
contracts and the oyster fisheries in the Lim Fjord, so far as I have been able 
to obtain them. 
Ås will be seen the fisheries were let out for the first time, 1852—53, for 
ca. 400 Rd. (App. I). After 1861—62 and till 1870—71 the rent was somewhat 
higher, 885 Rd. How many oysters were fished during the first period I do not 
know; the number can scarcely have been great. In 1860 the lessees informed 
Eschricht that they fished that year 150,000 specimeus, but in 1867—65—65—179 
respectively 1,7 mill., 3,9 mill,, 4,6 mill. and 5,3 mill. were fished. After + 
v the 
rent rose from 375 Rd. to 42,000 Rd. The »Dansk Fiskehandelsselskab« 
now obtained the management (business director Kuhnert, manager Paulsen). 
Ås the rent of the contracts had risen so greatly the question was much discussed 
of recompense to the earlier lessees, who claimed that they had improved the 
fisheries in various ways and therefore according to the contract held themselves 
enlitled to the half portion of the increased rent. I need not enter here any 
further on this subject, but merely refer to the official documents (see List of the 
Literature »Aktstykker«). 
The conditions for the »Fiskehandelsselskab« are printed in Appendix IV. 
The company fished during the 5 years of its contract respectively 75—75—71—57 
and 6 million oysters, and obviously did good business. In 1876—77 the »Han- 
delsbank« obtained the contract, again with Kuhnert and Paulsen as direc- 
tors, but the rent was now raised to 240,000 Kr. per annum to begin with. The 
quantities sank however from 54 to 314 to 24, 2% to 14, 2 to 1% to 11 to less than 
