VALUE OF FISHERIES 65 



needs to be better known, and here the 

 State can help ; if only people knew 

 that a plentiful supply of fresh fish is 

 beneficial for health, economical for the 

 purse and, in view of the training our 

 fishery gives to seamen in fitting them for 

 naval work, of exceptional advantage to the 

 State, the industry would soon be recon- 

 structed and move ahead with renewed 

 vigour. Before the war the average price of 

 herrings when landed in Scotland was one 

 penny per pound, and yet by far the greater 

 proportion was exported to Germany. Sur- 

 rounding the Western Isles of Scotland is 

 a sea of wealth, yet the people inhabiting 

 those islands are the poorest in Britain. 

 If the nation took advantage of these food 

 resources, the increased demand would soon 

 encourage the fishery, create adequate 

 harbour and transport facilities, and thereby 

 raise the standard of life to those people. 



Of all fish the herring is* the highest in 

 food value, the most prolific in propagation, 

 the most inexhaustible in quantity. As a 

 food it is probably equal to double its 

 weight of cod-fish or .haddock, so that in 

 considering prices the householder should 



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