52 
made illegal unless: used by a fishery official. With these 
nets I often got fine catches of whitebait, and it was with 
whitebait caught in Morecambe Bay that we solved at 
Southport the problem as to whether whitebait were the 
young of the herring, by the simple and conclusive process 
of growing them into fine herrings. .This was accom- 
plished in ‘two years, thus giving the rate of growth of 
another of our great food fishes. 
Personally I should not be surprised if the herring 
returned to Morecambe ‘Bay. They have deserted other 
places for many years, sometimes half a century, and then 
returned, and unless the artillery question has something 
‘to do with-it,, I see no reason why they should not return 
again. 
About sixteen years since, I believe, they made an ap- 
proach. I was dredging well out in the bay with an old boat- 
man (Fairclough); when we found the sea birds in countless 
thousands, such a sight as I have never seen before, or 
since; hundreds of Gannets, and countless thousands of 
Razor Bills,and Guillemots, beside myriads of Gulls. The 
birds were so tame that I could have struck them with the 
oars, all signs pointing to herring. This continued two 
days. We reported it to the boatmen, and some of them 
who had some old herring nets, went at night, and tried, 
and caught a few, but not enough to pay, and apparently 
the shoal thought better of it, and went elsewhere. 
