38G A Plea for Sea Fisheries Ciiait. xxvi. 



than a hunger-satisfying fund, they must again be held to be a failure 

 as regards the object of the present paper. But it is contended 

 that there is no insuperable difficulty hi the way of salting fish any 

 more than there is in the way of salting pork or beef, so as to fit it 

 to form a substantia] part of a health and strength and life 

 sustaining meal. The several manners of curing form only one of 

 the minor difficulties to be overcome. The manner of curing is 

 call ulated very much to follow the demand. 



48. I am told there are parts of India in which the fish-eating 

 portion of the population is comparatively small, almost nil, ami 1 

 think the general idea is that it is so in this Presidency also. But 

 it is not. The majority are vegetarians by compulsion of circum- 

 stances, not by rule of creed. Taking the last Census report, and 

 going very carefully through the castes, I find that more than 

 90 per cent, are of castes that may and do eat meat when they can 

 get it. 



The total population of the Madras Presidency, including the 

 Native States of Mysore, Travancore, Cochin, and Poothocottah, is 

 given as 39,5G5,777. Of these 35,903,807 are meat eaters, which 

 is a proportion of 90 - 7. 



The way in which the calculation has been arrived at is shown 

 in an enclosure. 



49. But I may be told my calculations are purely theoretical 

 The fish are in the sea. You cannot count and weigh and eat them 

 there. True. That is the very point of my argument. I say the 

 harvest is there, and we will not reap it. I will go further, I will 

 admit that the calculation indicates only the vastness of the farm 

 standing there before us ready to be reaped. It ttands as vast 

 impenetrable forests have stood in times past, inviting the axe 

 and the plough of the settler to utilize their wealth of produc- 

 tiveness. But it differs from them in not needing so much outlaw 

 and in being inexhaustible. It stands as a sea of corn inviting j ou 

 to put in the sickle, aye, to turn in all the reaping machines you 

 can, and do nothing but reap ; for clearing, tilling, sowing, are all 

 unneeded. It may take years bet',, re you are able to reap a tenth 

 or even a fiftieth part of it, still it is as well to run the eye over 



the standing crop, estimate its value as approximately as possible, 

 and consider in earnest whether it is not worthwhile to make a 

 real commencement at harvesting it, an effort worthy of the crop 



