132 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. ~— ~ [6] - 
den and rapid decrease could not possibly be found im any meteorologi- 
cal change which took place near the coast, and which might have pre- 
vented the usual number of herring approaching; but that there was, 
on the whole, no indication that any considerable number of herring 
had come near the coast. In the beginning of the ‘“‘ period” the pros- 
pect seemed very favorable, but these hopes soon vanisted. Thus, in 
1873 and 1874 only few herring were noticed near the coast during the 
months of January and February, when generally the more important 
spring-herring fisheries are going on. The same experience was met with 
at the outermost station of Udsire. As in 1869, so also in 1870, the 
schools of herring were accompanied by an unusually large number of 
coal-fish and cod, both in the southern and in the northern district. The 
same phenomenon was observed in a still more noticeable degree in 
1871, both during and after the fishing season. At present I have no 
data to show to what degree this was observed during the following 
two years. In 1874, however, the superintendent reports that but few 
cod were observed; the schools of herring had also decreased in size 
to such an extent that the cod, the inveterate enemy of the herring, 
had no special inducement to follow the schools. It has been supposed 
that an extraordinary increase in the number of the enemies.of the her- 
ring might be the cause of their disappearance. But there is not suf- 
ficient cause to justify this supposition, and it would at any rate be too 
hasty a conclusion to give this as the principal cause of ae disappear- 
ance of the herring from our coasts. 
The mingling of small herring with the spring herring rapidly as- 
sumed larger dimensions. In 1871 it was considered doubtful whether 
any genuine spring herring were caught; and many experienced fish- 
ermen expressed it as their solemn conviction that no genuine spring 
herring had approached the coast in the southern district during that 
year. From the report of the superintendent it also appears that the 
number of small herring was larger than at any previous time; and 
this was the case both in the northern part of the district, near Bran- 
desund, and in the southern part, near Rover. The average size of the 
Rover herring was determined by ‘standard barrels,” each of which 
held 620 to 680 herring. In 1872 such a barrel comfortably held 660 to 
720 herring, and there is no longer any talk of unmixed spring herring. 
But during all these years, even from the season of 1869-70, other phe- 
nomena were observed, which were followed by an increase of spring 
herring. Of these phenomena I shall have occasion to speak later. 
In the northern district the spring herring approached the coast grad- 
ually, just as in the southern district, towards the end of the last ‘‘her- 
ring period.” From the reports of the superintendents, it appears that 
in 1852, 1853, and 1854 the first herring were caught in December; in 
1855 on the 8th of January; in 1856 on the 15th of January; in 1857 on 
the 13th of January; during the two following years again on the 15th 
of January; in 1860 on the 19th of January, and later always after the 
19th of January. 
