426 EXAMINATION OF THE PRESENT STATE 
being to some small extent interested in agricultural pursuits, the 
refuse fish is found useful for manure. 
Note added in the press.—In comparing my statistics with those 
furnished by the Board of Trade a considerable discrepancy is 
found to exist. The official total (of plaice) for the year ending 
March 31st, 1894, is 168,000 cwt., 7. e. 11,837 cwt. less than the 
amount indicated by my inquiries. Seeing that the latter purport 
to deal only with plaice landed by deep-sea fishing vessels, and 
exclude even occasional contributions from a fleet which ordinarily 
lands at Billingsgate, while the official figures presumably embrace 
all fish from whatsoever source derived, it is somewhat remarkable 
that my returns should give the larger total. 
I acknowledge the objection that my return is completed by the 
deduction of averages for a certain number of days on which no 
actual observations were made, but when we come to compare 
separate months, in which no such source of possible error exists, 
we do not arrive any nearer to an agreement, or even to a consist- 
ency of disagreement. Thus in April, June, October, 1893, and 
June, 1894, my figures are 2256, 3792, 214, and 2274 cwt. in 
excess of those given by the Board of Trade for the same months ; 
whereas in January and February, 1894, the official figures exceed 
my own by 1980 and 2868 ewt. I will content myself with the 
incontrovertible statement that both series of statistics cannot be 
accurate. 
Cuar. V.—Proposep RemeprAL Mrasvures. 
Having admitted a grave deterioration in the returns of the 
North Sea trawling industry, I think the contents of the last chapter 
furnish us with quite sufficient evidence to allocate the causes in so 
far as Grimsby vessels and the general fishery of the district are 
concerned. 
To my mind they fall under two distinct headings : 
(i) An immense destruction by deep-sea trawling of immature plaice 
and turbot on shallow grounds on the Continental coast, frequented only 
by immature members of the first species, and chiefly by immature mem- 
bers of the last ; visited also by spawning soles, turbot, and brill. 
(ii) A serious destruction on our own coast by various methods of long- 
shore shrimping of immature plaice, and of immature soles, turbot, and 
brill, in proportion to the abundance of these species. A serious destruc- 
tion (but not necessarily involving destruction of the very young stages) 
of immature members of these species, especially of soles and plaice, by 
shrimp-trawling and inshore fish-trawling on our own coast. 
