PROCEEDINGS OF THE COTTESWOLD CLUB 217 



of man ; a downright waste which we may well hoj)e will 

 ere long be at least considerably modified. 



Independently of such waste as this, consider the 

 millions of various fish which are caught in order to 

 secure some particular part of their body, the remainder of 

 the carcase being then cast into the sea. The Chinese have 

 a partiality for the back fins of a kind of shark, or rather the 

 back fins of two kinds of sharks, called respectively white 

 and black fins, so discriminating is their taste that white 

 fins are worth 60/- the maund, whereas the black have a 

 value of 18/- only. In many parts of the Indian Ocean 

 and especially at Kurrachee, many men are employed in 

 providing this delicacy, and sharks are caught and slain by 

 tens of thousands solely for the sake of their back fins. 



Consider again the codfisheries, where the total take 

 of the English, French, and Americans amounts to at 

 least 250,000 tons. Of this at least one half is thrown 

 away in cleaning and curing, and this reduced to a 

 thoroughly dry state would represent about 50,000 tons 

 of a manure probably at least as good as guano. As our 

 annual importations of guano amount to 250,000 tons a 

 year, and the supplies are being undoubtedly rapidly 

 exhausted, this refuse alone, if properly utilized, would be 

 a most valuable addition to the list of artificial manures. 



For the same purpose much refuse from the seal and 

 other fisheries might be used. The experiment has been 

 tried in Norway with considerable success. 



There large quantities of fish manure are made, less 

 nitrogeneous than Peruvian Guano, but more rich in 

 phosphates. Very much, however, remains to be done, 

 for all over the world incalculable quantities of fish 

 refuse are thrown away into the sea, which might be 

 employed for this purpose. Moreover, the manufacture 

 of these fish manures ought specially to be encouraged, 

 because it conduces at the same time to the benefit of the 

 fishermen, and of the cultivators of the land ; and further 



