26 



debarred from that kind of thing, and instead of getting the 

 money obtained the same assistance in kind, which would 

 tend very much to the advancement of the fisheries. He 

 had a very well grounded hope that there was a great future 

 for the fisheries of Ireland, It was much to be deplored 

 that there had been a very great decrease, owing to causes 

 which he would not stay to enumerate in detail, but subse- 

 quently to the famine the numbers of fishermen were 

 reduced from 113,000 to 25,000, and the boats from 20,000 

 to 6,000 or 7,000 ; still he had strong belief that with the 

 means now placed in the hands of inspectors of fisheries 

 a great stimulus would be given to the enterprise, and 

 that many other industries, such as boat-building, sail- 

 making and net-making, would be put in motion also. It 

 was not Ireland alone which would benefit by the promotion 

 of this industry, but the United Kingdom also would 

 participate by having a very largely increased quantity 

 of the most wholesome food contributed from the Irish 

 seas, 



Mr, Earll seconded the vote of thanks. Those who 

 had paid attention to the questions which had come before 

 the Conferences must be more deeply convinced than ever 

 of the importance of the fisheries, and of the necessity of the 

 utmost caution in all questions of fishery legislation, for 

 fisheries, though little understood, now rank among the 

 principal industries of the w^orld. They had had to-day 

 two Papers by gentlemen evidently deeply interested in 

 the subject, Mr, Bloomfield had spoken of the possibility 

 of increasing the supply of fish in the inland waters of 

 Ireland, and had referred in very flattering terms to the 

 United States Fish Commission, and to their method of 

 stocking inland waters. It was found in a country like 

 the United States rather difficult to get the best quality 



