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  OTTER-TEAWL 
  FISHERY. 
  

  

  DEMERSAL 
  FISHERIES 
  OF 
  SCOTLAND. 
  

   FISHING 
  REGIONS. 
  

  

  The 
  Scottish 
  reports 
  furnish 
  but 
  little 
  specific 
  data 
  respecting 
  the 
  

   fishing 
  regions, 
  such 
  distinctions 
  as 
  are 
  made 
  indicating 
  merely 
  the 
  

   part 
  of 
  Scotland 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  fish 
  are 
  landed, 
  the 
  east 
  coast, 
  Orlmey, 
  

   and 
  Shetland, 
  and 
  the 
  west 
  coast, 
  respectively. 
  The 
  latter 
  two 
  are 
  

   of 
  practically 
  no 
  importance 
  to 
  the 
  purposes 
  of 
  this 
  report 
  and 
  are 
  

   not 
  discussed. 
  

  

  The 
  major 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  demersal 
  fish 
  caught 
  in 
  the 
  Scottish 
  

   fisheries 
  are 
  landed 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  coast; 
  and 
  as 
  that 
  is 
  the 
  region 
  in 
  

   which 
  trawl 
  fishing 
  is 
  of 
  greatest 
  importance, 
  and 
  as 
  practically 
  all 
  

   fish 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  North 
  Sea 
  by 
  Scottish 
  vessels 
  are 
  landed 
  there, 
  it 
  is 
  

   the 
  only 
  region 
  which 
  we 
  have 
  deemed 
  it 
  necessary 
  to 
  consider. 
  

  

  FISHERIES 
  OF 
  THE 
  EAST 
  COAST. 
  

  

  The 
  statistics 
  and 
  the 
  general 
  information 
  available 
  for 
  Scotland 
  

   are 
  not 
  very 
  satisfactory 
  for 
  the 
  consideration 
  of 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  otter 
  

   trawling 
  on 
  the 
  fisheries, 
  inasmuch 
  as 
  they 
  lack, 
  even 
  to 
  a 
  greater 
  

   extent 
  than 
  the 
  earlier 
  reports 
  for 
  England, 
  that 
  particularity 
  of 
  

   data 
  which 
  is 
  necessary 
  for 
  a 
  proper 
  consideration 
  of 
  the 
  subject. 
  

   How^ever, 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  to 
  trace 
  some 
  trend, 
  and 
  as 
  this 
  accords 
  in 
  

   general 
  with 
  that 
  indicated 
  in 
  the 
  English 
  fisheries, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  re- 
  

   garded, 
  with 
  some 
  caution, 
  as 
  confirmatory 
  of 
  the 
  conclusions 
  formed 
  

   respecting 
  the 
  latter. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  following 
  discussion 
  the 
  same 
  historical 
  periods 
  and 
  sub- 
  

   periods 
  are 
  considered, 
  partly 
  for 
  the 
  sake 
  of 
  uniformity 
  with 
  the 
  

   discussion 
  of 
  the 
  English 
  data 
  and 
  partly 
  because 
  the 
  forms 
  of 
  the 
  

   statistics 
  underwent 
  some 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  years 
  of 
  demarcation, 
  or 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  some 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  fishery 
  became 
  definitive 
  in 
  those 
  years. 
  

   For 
  instance, 
  1898 
  is 
  the 
  first 
  year 
  concerning 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  known 
  that 
  

   all 
  steam 
  trawlers 
  were 
  using 
  the 
  otter 
  trawl, 
  which 
  had 
  gradually 
  

   replaced 
  the 
  beam 
  trawl 
  ; 
  in 
  1904 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  classifi- 
  

   cation 
  of 
  the 
  fishes; 
  and 
  in 
  1906 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  material 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  

   particularity 
  of 
  the 
  statistics 
  in 
  respect 
  to 
  certain 
  important 
  fisheries. 
  

   The 
  effects 
  of 
  these 
  changes 
  have 
  been 
  eliminated 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  possible 
  

   in 
  the 
  following 
  pages, 
  but 
  their 
  existence 
  dictated 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  the 
  

   more 
  comprehensive 
  digest 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  appendix 
  and 
  colored 
  the 
  

   form 
  of 
  final 
  presentation 
  of 
  the 
  data 
  adduced. 
  

  

  THE 
  CATCH 
  AS 
  A 
  WHOLE. 
  

  

  The 
  east 
  coast 
  was 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  producer 
  of 
  de- 
  

   mersal 
  fishes 
  in 
  Scotland, 
  the 
  catch 
  of 
  that 
  region 
  in 
  1891 
  being 
  over 
  

   TO 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  product 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  and 
  in 
  1912 
  over 
  76 
  

   per 
  cent. 
  

  

  