A HISTORY OF SUFFOLK 



£455. Ten years later, as evidenced before a 

 Parliamentary Commission, the Lowestoft fisher- 

 men's wages were from 16/. to i8j. 1 



In 1863 Boulogne fishermen bought herrings 

 for bait of the Suffolk fishermen at 10;. to 1 31. 

 per 100. One boat made for a catch of 7,000 

 £33, another sold a last for £60. 2 



It is to the Great Eastern Railway Company 

 that Lowestoft owes its modern prosperity, the 

 port ranking as third in the kingdom as regards 

 the quantity of fish landed, 3 Yarmouth being 

 fifth. The industry is divided into two distinct 

 classes, as in remoter times, viz. : the herring and 

 the mackerel fishing, in both of which floating 

 nets are used, and the trawl fishing, in which a 

 net is drawn or ' trawled ' on the bottom of the 

 sea for soles, turbot, plaice, and other fish swim- 

 ming near the bottom. For each branch separate 

 dock and harbour accommodation is provided, all 

 piers and harbours in the port being owned by 

 the Great Eastern Company. 



To the total quantity of herrings landed 

 in 1904 at the thirteen principal ports — 

 namely, 3,151,582 cwt. — Lowestoft contributed 

 827,477 cwt. 4 The number of regular fishermen 

 resident in the port and employed in fishing in 

 1905 is as follows : — 



Number engaged in trawling (except for 



shrimps) ..... 1,300 



Number engaged in other modes of 



fishing ..... 2,800 



Total . . . 4,100 s 



The number and average net tonnage of steam 

 fishing boats, which were also registered as 

 'British ships' under the Merchant Shipping Act 

 of 1894 at the port of Lowestoft in 1905, was 

 124 of 36 average net tonnage, as against I of 

 32 in 1890. The Lowestoft yawls, which are 

 owned by the beachmen, and are models of form 

 and seaworthiness, are used for salvage purposes, 

 and are exceptionally swift craft. 



The following is a summary of the number of 



boats engaged in the fishing industry at the port 



of Lowestoft : — 



/Engaged in herring and 



„ mackerel fishing at Lowes- 



2qo Steamers , T . . °— ,, 



tott, Lerwick, Cornwall, 



and on the Yorkshire 



>.coast. 



350 Scotch boats Catching during Oct., 



Nov., and Dec. 



320 Sailing trawling 



smacks 



1,020 



1 In the winter season of 1904 the average earning 

 per boat at Lowestoft was slightly over £200, allowing, 

 after clearing expenses, about £20 per man for a ten 

 weeks' voyage. Fish Trade Gaz. 10 Dec. 1904, p. 24. 



' Nail, Gt. Yarmouth, 304. 



3 In 1905, 667,830 cwt. 



4 Ann. Rep. Sea Fisheries, 1904, xiii. 5 Ibid. 1905. 



100 Sailing boats 



On these 7,200 men and boys are employed 

 afloat, whilst about 4,000 men, boys, and women 

 find employment on shore in dealing with the 

 fish caught. 



The fishing fleets are made up as follows : 

 250 steamers and 1 00 sailing craft, which are 

 used for herring and mackerel catching, and the 

 crews of which number at least 2,800 men and 

 boys. These vessels take part in the fishing at 

 Ncwlyn and other west-country ports, going also 

 to the Shetlands and on the Yorkshire coast. 

 During the fishing season, which starts in October 

 and lasts until Christmas, the Scotch fleets, 

 numbering 350 boats, arrive in the port and 

 carry 2,800 men with fish from Lowestoft. 



The trawling fleet, which consists of 320 

 sailing trawlers with 1,610 men and boys, is 

 made up of exceptionally smart craft. 



The fish are all sold by auction, and buyers 

 come from all parts of Scotland and the north of 

 England, also from Germany, Russia, and other 

 countries, and during the months above quoted 

 some thousands of tons of herrings in a fresh and 

 cured state are conveyed to Germany by steamers 

 which run to Hamburg almost daily. 6 The Scotch 

 curcrs bring the women and men whom they 

 employ by special trains, the herrings being 

 gutted for the Russian and other ports. Large 

 curing-houses and yards are erected all over the 

 town, forming a very important centre of interest 

 as well as of industry. Bloaters and kippers are 

 the chief fish cured, though other kinds are also 

 dealt with in a lesser degree. 



In nearly every case the men and boys on the 

 boats work on the share system, the boats them- 

 selves being largely owned by local masters. A 

 few fish companies are in existence, and these 

 are all managed by local experts in the trade. 



The value of the fish landed at the port during 

 the year 1904 was £575,930; in 1905 the 

 value was £536,840. The weight landed 

 during these years was, respectively, 58,791 tons 

 and 57,650 tons. In 1 851 it is interesting to 

 recall 77,999 packages of fish were despatched 

 by rail from Lowestoft; in i860, 13,030 tons; 

 in 1864, 17,340 tons. 



Fish on the east coast is divided into 'prime' 

 and 'offal.' Under the former category are 

 included soles (a general favourite), turbot, brill, 

 and cod ; 'offal' comprising haddock, plaice, and 

 whiting. The term was formerly introduced 

 when fish were abundant and men to catch them 

 few, and the means of conveyance restricted, and 

 it was therefore necessary to throw much of it 

 overboard. It is now applied merely to the 

 cheaper and more plentiful sorts of fish. 



One of the leading fibh merchants of the town 

 is Mr. E. F. Thain, who supplies thousands of 

 customers in every part of the kingdom, and to 



8 120,000 packages of cured herrings went to 

 Holland and Germany for the Christmas season of 



1904. Fish. Trades Gaz. Jan. 1904, p. 25. 



298 



