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diameter, and were totally disengaged one from the other, 
there being no adhesive matter causing them to stick 
together. Round each egg was to be found a slight ring, 
and after they had laid still for a short time, they all went 
to the bottom, and then the ring showed on the top. 
He had no means of keeping these eggs, or else he should 
have tried to go further into the matter of how the eggs 
were hatched. Fish were now so scarce in the North Sea 
that in order to obtain sufficient to meet the national wants 
the number of vessels had to be increased, and the expendi- 
ture was barely recouped by the increased price obtained 
for the fish. He had seen hundreds of tons of fish thrown 
overboard ; but it really was not the fault of fishermen ; 
they were not their own masters, and were forced to go 
where others went, if a large haul could be obtained. The 
average weight of an ordinary-sized plaice was three and 
a-half pounds, and the quantity of small fish that were and 
are still caught on the German coast during the summer that 
it took to weigh three and a-half pounds was seventeen. He 
had seen large quantities of fish thrown overboard, which 
he considered a great waste of human food, as it was well 
known that when fish had been brought up in a trawl 
it was impossible for them to live when thrown back, in 
consequence of the handling which they received. With 
regard to the small fish caught around the coast, he 
could’ ;not ‘say imuch,. as he had never (beensimga 
shrimper, though he recollected, when a boy, having 
seen as many small plaice, flounders and brill destroyed as 
would fill a large basket. He did not wish to interfere 
with any class of fishermen, but he thought it ought to be 
made compulsory upon all shrimp fishermen to throw 
overboard what was of no benefit to them, or to any one 
else, at that time, because they might be of benefit to 
