676 THESE REASONS GAINSAID BY THE FISHERMEN. 



the sea : millions were thus annually lost to every one. 

 And the evil ended not here; for the localities where this 

 useless destruction took place were usually deserted by 

 the herrings for a long time afterwards. 



The fishermen and others interested, however, saw the 

 matter in a somewhat different light from the deputies, 

 they contending that, so far from the noxious mat ten- 

 cast from the curing-houses into the sea heing injurious 

 to the fish, as asserted, it was, in reality, in the highest 

 degree beneficial, affording them nutritious and whole- 

 some food. They further contended that the capture of 

 the smaller herrings, called Lott-SiU, was in no degree 

 hurtful to the fishery (as assumed by the deputies), they 

 being of a totally different species from the larger her- 

 rings; that the proper home of these smaller fish are the 

 Arctic regions, from whence they were chased by whales, 

 sharks, seals, &c., to the shores of Europe, and that 

 their destruction, in however great numbers, could not 

 therefore have any possible connection with the non- 

 appearance of late years of the larger herrings, or those 

 for which the fisheries were carried on. 



But leaving the merits of their story out of the ques- 

 tion, these men, by M. Holmberg'a account, would not 

 appear to have been the most intelligent in the world. 

 " .Many of them," he says, " were hardly aware that 

 fish spawn at all ; and some, on being questioned as to 

 the cause of the smaller herrings (I.dlt-Sill) having 

 neither roe nor milt, replied, ' They did not breed like 

 oilier fish, but were stij'ln<l>' f r//r llcrrc lirurt //y//V 

 in-;' that is, 'were created by Providence every third 

 year.' Others varied the story somewhat, their notion 

 being that ' the Lull-Sill \\ere quickened in the M\-I 

 every month out of a irreen substance that tlourished 

 on the surface, and hence it was altogether impossible 

 to diminish the breed.' " 



