174 OUR HERITAGE THE SEA 



be kept within bounds by the State; but I have 

 nothing but admiration for the legitimate business 

 enterprise which they exhibit. 



Of the abysses of the Atlantic I have said nothing, 

 not believing that they, although containing un- 

 doubtedly immense quantities of fish which may be 

 eaten, will ever be exploited ; for many reasons, 

 chief among which is the fact that deep-sea fish, so 

 far as we know, are, although eatable, very hard and 

 tasteless. They may, of course, be treated as the 

 Italians treat the tunny, an essentially deep-sea fish, 

 namely, by boiling in oil >nd preserving the flesh in 

 tins; but that is too costly a process ever to solve 

 a food problem where cheapness is the first considera- 

 tion. Nor have I said anything about the commercial 

 aspect of dealing with the non-edible creatures, such 

 as seals, whales, etc., which in the past have been 

 caught merely for their oil and skins, but are now 

 being utilized entirely by the enterprising men who 

 have established factories on barren coasts to deal 

 with this hitherto undeveloped mine of wealth. But 

 since manure derived from animal substances, such 

 as bone or fish, plays such an important part in the 

 production of our food ashore, I do not think this 

 new venture ought to be lightly passed over. More 

 especially as it fulfils that first essential of successful 

 enterprise to-day, namely, that of utilizing products 

 which have hitherto been regarded as waste. In many 

 places, but notably in Newfoundland, the chase of the 

 whales, hitherto regarded as useless owing to the low 

 value of their oil, as well as its small quantity, and 

 also the extremely scanty amount of baleen or whale- 

 bone to be got from them, is now being carried on 



