83 



carried out at Overton, there could only have been one 

 month's fishing- in the season 1905-190G instead of at 

 least four months, and many of the local fishers would 

 have been compelled to tjo elsewhere to find work. Tlie 

 aA'era^e number of people engaged in mussel fishing- at 

 Overton from the beginnings of the season to the middle 

 of December is stated by Mr. I\. Gardner to have been 

 fifty. 



Growth of Mussels and Description of 

 Overcrowded Skears. 



, Under favourable circumstances it is probable that 

 the mussels will grow fully half an inch in length each 

 year, and at the end of three years reach the minimum 

 legal size of two inches. The mussels on " Roosebeck 

 Outer Shear "' which were investigated in 1S95 and 189(i, 

 and found to be in flourishing condition, grew half an 

 inch between September of one year and August of the 

 next. The shear was much overcrowded and could not 

 be regarded as suitable for growing mussels quickly. The 

 " Roosebeck Skear " was not then over-populated to any- 

 thing like the condition that the Heysham Skears are at 

 all times. On the latter tlie mussels, as we have already 

 seen, grow about one-quarter of an inch in seven months. 

 The same mussels, when transplanted to favourable areas 

 grow three-quarters of an inch. Our experience is that 

 even in a good situation the rate of growth varies 

 inversely (roughly speaking) as the number of mussels 

 present. Fewer and more equally distributed mussels 

 grow faster than those that are plentiful and closely 

 packed together. 



The meaning of the expression " overcrowded shear " 

 can be much bettei' understood from an actual visit than 



