cxlvii 



tliiiif^fi, ov injudiciously oxtorminntp a iintiiral sourcp of food-supply, lins 

 only existed, I)ecause, until now, tliere lins not liecn a Governinont sliong' 

 or civilized enough to control it. Thus ' suttee,' ' Uiug'g-ce,' 'hnmnii 

 sacrifices' were all ' jtrcscriptivc rights' in their way, and had, moreover, a, 

 certain amount of legal sanction, and yet, because tliey involved loss of 

 human life, they were very rightly swept away, and so can this right of 

 wanton destruction of human food bo." (4) It is assumed that the 

 proved wasteful destruction of fish is a legal light obtained l)y license. 

 If the Hrilish law holds good, license gives no title, but is revocable at will 

 (sec paragraph 12). (.5) That anj'how, ithad better bo left alone for political 

 reasons. If such reasons do not exist in the Panjab, it is remarkable th.at 

 they should in the North-West I'rovinces, more especially as the Superin- 

 tendent of the Doon reports that the nalive land-owners are carrying out 

 restrictive measures with great success. (6) That the remedies are 

 impracticable. This being a matter of o]iinion, I do not propose advanc- 

 ing my own in opposition to some of those which have been adduced. 

 (7) That the police are such high-easte people, and the subordinate 

 natives, who would have to bo employed, are so nntrustwortby, they 

 would exercise unlimited extortion. This, being a matter of fact, must 

 likewise be left to the local officers, who have the supervision and control 

 over them. 



325. I will now enter upon what measures would doubtless prove 



. , . ,, , most cnectuaLand I would suggest might be 



Advisable steps. . , i. ■ ii -nt n iv t ii • 



earned out in the JNoriii-VVcst 1 rovinces. 



Fixed weirs, traps, or nets should be prohibited : in fishing-ncts the 



nicsli should never bo less than I inch between each knot; damming 



waters for fishing ])urposes, whether hill-streams or flooded fields, 



should not be allowed; fish passes to be placed in all irrigation weirs, 



and the destruction of fish in all canals prevented whilst the water is 



not flowing; snagging or poisoning of waters be likewise interdicted, 



and some pools in all hill and minor rivers to be kept solely for 



anglers; no netting allowed within 200 yards of all weirs across 



rivers; vermin to be destroyed. As regards close months, if they are 



instituted in the plains, the first two or three months of the monsoon 



are considered the most appropriate, but, with the abolition of fixed 



engines, &c., they might be dispensed with, at least for the jiresent. In 



the hills it is difl'iMent, and from July 1st to October 1st arc considered 



the most appropriate months. 



32G. As some oflicials oppose these steps, I would suggest, as an 



intcrincdiatc plan for the jnesent, what 

 Propositiong for teuipor-iry j^j ,,^. ,„odify the evils ^^uch exist. No weirs 

 measures. ,. , ■■ c i ■ i- i \ i • 



or lixed engines ot any description to Ijeuscu m 



the waters from June 1st to November 1st inclusive, but when permitted to 

 be so, such must be in writing as a license, and that they never have 

 less than 1 inch between the knots of the meshes of nets, or the interstices 

 of the substances of which they are composed : irrigation works, as in the 

 last paragraiili; damming, lading, diverting streams, or poisoning waters 

 for fishing purposes, to bo jirohibited : close months from net fishing to be 

 inst,ilulcd in hilly districts for three consecutive months of which one 

 must be July to be selected by the local civil authorities; snagging to 

 be abolished. 



