302 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [2] 



The location of Icelaud and its luuiieroius fiords, penetrating far into 

 the country, l)otli in tlie west, north, and east, make it a home for a pop- 

 nhition whose principal source of income must be the fisheries. The 

 sea around Iceland is particularly rich in fish, and it must be considered 

 a low estimate when the extent of its fishing banks is stated to be 1,000 

 square miles, or about one-half as much as tlie entire area of tiie island. 

 The fishing grounds around Iceland are probably much larger, as they 

 extend all around the island and for many miles out to sea. All that 

 is required is to find the fish in the right place and at the right tinie. 

 It is not necessary to stay long on the coast of Iceland before one dis- 

 covers that an exceedingly productive sea washes these sliores. The 

 AVrtter literally swarms with animal life. The fish which are brought on 

 shore are fat and of very fine quality, and close up to the coast there 

 are fish which form an exceHent artich^ of food. It is, therefore, not 

 sur])rising that foreign nations, including France, England, and Nor- 

 way, take a share in the Iceland fisheries. During the present year 

 (1884) even tbe Americans visited the Iceland waters, as two schooners 

 came from the well-known tisliing station of Gloucester in order to catch 

 halibut. Tbe manner in which the Americans take hold of such matters 

 is well illustrated by the expedition of these two schooners. When one 

 of the American commissioners to the Berlin Exposition of 1880 went 

 home he paid a visit to England, and was informed by English cod 

 fishermen that they often caught large quantities of halibut near Ice- 

 land. This information drew the attention of the Americans to Icelaud, 

 as salt halibut is much sought after by the smoke-houses; and if mat- 

 ters really were as the Grimsby lishermen stated, it would be much 

 more advantageous for American fishing vessels to visit Iceland than 

 the west coast of Greenland. At the London Exhibition of 1883 the 

 Americans found this information conlirmed, and the conseipience was 

 the immediate dispatch of the two schooners to Icelaud. When I was 

 in the southern part of Iceland it was known that the American vessels 

 had arrived, but it could not be ascertained what success they had met 

 with. In the middle of August the two schooners had not yet returned 

 to Gloucester, which Avas considered a good sign, as they certainly 

 would have returned long since if they had caught few or no fish. I 

 iuive called attention to this determined way of engaging in a new en- 

 terprise, which contrasts so strongly with the slow development of the 

 Danish sea fisheries. 



The great fisheries near Iceland have for their object principally cod, 

 herring, and sharks; and it is pariicularly cod and herring that attract 

 foreign fishermen to these waters. Besides these fish, whales and hali- 

 but are caught. The Icelanders also catch lumi)-fish, fiat-fish, and other 

 small fish; aud in the fresh waters considerable salmon and trout fish- 

 eries are carried on. 



The cod fisheries are the most important of all the Iceland fisheries. 

 The catches of large codfish form the basis of the entire trade iu salt 



