THE FISHERIES. 3 



in the Bann, or Foyle, or on our extreme west- 

 ern shore, can be now produced in every part of Eng- 

 land, or on the most fastidious London tables, in a 

 state of freshness and perfection to satisfy the aspi- 

 rations, even of the most distinguished artistes. 



The circumstances here detailed, it will be seen, 

 operate highly to the advantage of Ireland in a com- 

 mercial point of view : our facilities of communica- 

 tion with Liverpool give us a complete command of 

 the chief English markets, and, with timely atten- 

 tion, there is reason to hope, that our Salmon-fish- 

 eries will long continue to be adequate to the supply 

 not only of our own demands at home, but also to 

 contribute largely to the supply of England with 

 that much-esteemed fish. 



But if this timely attention be not afforded, our 

 Salmon-fisheries will decline and dwindle away, as 

 those of England have already disappeared, and a 

 long-cherished and important resource of this coun- 

 try will depart from among us : to avert this na- 

 tional misfortune, for such it may truly be called, a 

 Bill to consolidate and amend the Law relating to 

 the Irish Fisheries has been brought into the House 

 of Commons by the member for Donegal County, 

 (Mr. Conolly,) and we shall now proceed to a gene- 

 ral examination of that measure, and the amend- 

 ments of the law which it proposes, and essay as 

 much as in us lies, to awaken attention to a subject 

 of such general importance. 



In the year 1842, a Bill was introduced into Par- 



