THE COD FISHERIES NEAR THE LOFFODEN ISLANDS. 643 



be noticed; but this is not the case. The summer-berriug fisberies were 

 particularly rich this year on the ledges of Stavanger ; at any rate, no 

 decrease could be noticed, but rather an increase. 



It is well known that Mr. A. Boeck has, chiefly from historical data, 

 reached the result that a so-called "herring period" should now have 

 come to an end, and that consequently there would be a period of poor 

 herring fisheries. The same signs are said to show themselves now as 

 •when many years ago the herring-fisheries came to an end. No one is 

 more ready than I to acknowledge the great merits of Mr. Boeck in 

 having compiled the truly astonishing number of historical documents 

 ■which had never before been printed, the collectiug and arranging of 

 ■which must have taken considerable time and trouble. I likewise ac- 

 knowledge the great value of such documents as materials for a history 

 of the herring-fisheries. But I believe that in using these documents, 

 ■whose completeness and reliability decreases the farther back they date, 

 ■we ought to be very careful, and, at any rate, first and foremost consider 

 an accurate and exhaustive knowledge of the natural history of the her- 

 ring as the only really sound basis of our opinions. It is not at all 

 decided to my mind whether there are really such regular "herring- 

 periods." If we wish to talk of real periods, it is not sufficient to know 

 that once upon a time the herring-fishery proved a failure, and that 

 after a number of years it revived again. This must be repeated sev- 

 eral times under similar conditions in order to justify us in speaking of 

 regular " herring periods." 



D.— REPORT FOR 1873,. 



As in the preceding year, I again intended to make use of the reg- 

 ularly established connection between the investigation of the fisheries 

 and the coast-survey, and therefore resolved to go again on board the 

 steamer Hansteen, and stay there as long as anything worth observ- 

 ing should show itself. I considered this all the more important this 

 year, as surveys were to be made near the southern herring-district and 

 as thus I would be enabled to gather valuable information regarding 

 these fisheries. 



On the 6th of June I left for Hangesund, where I arrived on the 8th, 

 and immediately went on board with all my apparatus. On the follow- 

 ing day we went out to sea. After soundings had been made at differ- 

 ent points outside the herriug-district, I arrived at an agreement with 

 First Lieutenant Wille, according to which we would first follow a line 

 from the coast- to the reef, lying about in the middle of the district which 

 had been selected for this year's surveys. This line ran in a westerly 

 direction from the Selbjorn's fiord. On this trip, which occupied several 

 days, the bottom was carefully examined with the bottom-scraper, speci- 

 mens brought up by the sounding apparatus were likewise examined, 

 and frequent thermometrical observations were taken at different depths. 

 Besides this, a careful comparison was instituted for every point with 



