IO 
to the size of the nets used at different places, he stated 
that at Scarborough, Hull, and Grimsby, they used a 
universal size of mesh, namely, from two to three inches in 
the clear. One would naturally suppose that that mesh of 
net would allow everything to go through that should go 
through. Great praise was due to the people of these 
places, for keeping to the larger size mesh net. At 
Yarmouth, he found that the mesh was reduced to 1} and 
1} inches, in the same part of the net ; at Lowestoft it was 
Ij inch; at Ramsgate it was rather smaller; at Brixham it 
was smaller still, and at Plymouth about the same. A 
great deal of the destruction of immature fish by the 
trawler was caused by the small mesh in the cod end of 
the net, owing to the ground-chain nipping the ground, 
and so taking everything into the net. In the mesh 
used by the fishermen of Scarborough, Hull, and Grimsby, 
a great proportion of the débris and smaller fish would go 
through the mesh, but when the mesh came to be reduced 
to one and a-half inch the débris choked the net, thus 
causing the fish to be smothered or drowned by the vessel 
going through the water. When the nets were hauled there 
was no question about it that the great proportion of the 
fish were found to be dead. One of the principal things to 
recommend to the Government would be that any one found 
in possession of a fish under a certain size should be 
amenable to the law. If a universal size mesh of net was 
used by the fishermen of all countries it would result in a 
great benefit to the public at large and the fishermen of all 
countries. 
He had heard it stated that the “trawl” was first used in 
England by the fishermen at Brixham some time during 
the last century, but he must go back to a very early date 
in English history for this origin. He found in the Govern- 
