It may be of interest to note here the return of fish landed 

 in Natal, which has procured quantities and values since the 

 year 1908. Summarised, they are as follows : — 



Year. Cwts. 



1908 . , . . . . . , 26,779 



Value. 



;^28,5I3 



24,143 



23,194 

 25,426 



26,206 

 26,764 



25,706 



1909 23,837 



1910 . , . . . . . . 20,961 



1911 . . . . . . . . 22,527 



I9I2 23,389 



I9I3 24,333 



Average 23,637 



It would have been of great interest to have obtained the 

 quantities of fish landed by trawlers since their arrival in 1901. 

 An idea of the quantity which it was shown could be procured, 

 may be obtained from the fact that in 1899 the Pieier Faure, 

 fishing for three months on a purely commercial basis, in order 

 to demonstrate practically the value of the new fishing ground, 

 procured 46,817 large fish (Kabeljauws, Stockfish, etc.), 83,320 

 small fish (Silverfish, Pangas, etc.), and 28,270 pairs of soles, 

 or nearly 4,000 cwts. in all. 



The Customs Department at Cape Town, since July, 1912, has 

 procured returns of fish caught by the three trawlers. Star of the 

 South, Richard Irvine, and The Bluff, working from Table Bay. 

 These returns show that, during the year 1913, the three 

 vessels landed at Cape Town 47,380 cwts. of fish, including 

 Soles. If the fish landed by the other five trawlers now at 

 work be calculated on this basis, the total annual catch of the 

 regular trawlers now working will be about 125,116 cwts., 

 reckoning the catch of one of those at half that of the others, 

 as it is a small vessel. These figures may be considered as 

 fairly reliable, as, on the return of the Cape trawler after each 

 voyage, the amount of the catch is reported to the Customs 

 Department. The fish procured by the trawler is shipped 

 directly from the vessel to refrigerating cars and sent up 

 country, only a small quantity passing through the local 

 market, so that the catch of the trawlers is practically not 

 included in the Government returns for 1897-1904, nor in the 

 Census returns for 191 1, which may, therefore, be taken as the 

 approximate catches of Cape fishermen as distinguished from 

 those of trawlers. 



The following is a synopsis of the figures (in thousands) of 

 fish caught in the Cape Province : — 



Average catch of Cape fishermen for the years 

 1897-1904 (from Cape Government statis- 

 tics) . . , . . . . . . . . , 100,000 cwts. 



[C.P. 6-'i4.] 



