October 22, 1914] 



NATURE 



201 



THE SEA FISHERIES AND THE WAR. 



T appears possible that the British sea fisheries 

 will suffer from the effects of the war more, 



;rhaps, than most other national industries. 

 Already a large part of the North Sea is closed 

 to trawl fishing, and it may be that before long all 

 this area will become a mare clausum. Since we 

 have taken rather more than 60 per cent, of our 

 fish supply from this sea in recent years the loss 

 to the fishing industry is serious. The actual war 

 losses, so far, have been insignificant, but when 



' these are added the loss to the national food 



apply of the vessels and men now engaged in 

 mine-sweeping, the disturbance to the industry 

 which must result from the shifting of the fishing 

 fleets to other open waters, and the loss of the 

 Continental markets for cured herrings, the total 

 loss will be sufficiently great. Add to this the in- 

 calculable loss which scientific research must bear 

 in the suspension of the interirational fishery in- 

 vestigations, and w-e have very much to lay to the 

 blame of German world-politics. The co-ordinated 

 scheme of fishery observations carried on up to 

 last July by the maritime powers of Northern 

 Europe was the laborious result of more than a 

 dozen years' negotiation; probably no one then 

 engaged in it will live to see its resumption. 

 Upon such industrial and scientific ruin we 



lust endeavour to build anew, and it is fortunate 

 hat even before the war the way had been indi- 

 cated. Scientific research is unlikely to suffer 

 permanently, inasmuch as those engaged in it will 

 turn now to domestic rather than international 

 problems, and that this was desirable, even apart 

 from the war, the recently published report of the 

 Inshore Fisheries Committee indicated. It can 

 scarcely be doubted that the increased exploitation 

 of the lucrative fishing grounds outside the North 

 Sea will compensate, to some extent, for the 

 closure of that area; the enterprise of the English 

 fishing-vessel owners has already been so marked 

 that we need not fear this temporary set-back to 

 the industry. Also the formation of the Fisheries 

 Organisation Society, as the result of the Inshore 

 Committee's report, and with the support and ap- 

 proval of the Board of Agriculture and the 

 Development Commission, was a most fortunate 

 thing, as events have turned out. This body pro- 

 poses to undertake propagandist work among the 

 inshore fishermen, and generally to take all pos- 

 sible steps to develop to their fullest extent the 



ery considerable natural resources of the shallow 

 seas and foreshores. We cannot doubt that as 

 the result of active and far-seeing measures fore- 

 shadowed in the report to which we refer these 



esources may become a huge national asset in 

 the way of amplifying the food supply and pro- 

 viding productive employment. 



Lastly, there is the great East Coast herring 

 fishing and curing industry' — one which has 

 already suffered greatly. It is here that propa- 

 gandist measures are most urgently required, 

 with, we suggest, some State assistance for the 

 holding in this country of the stocks of salted 

 herrings which might yet be obtained in what 



NO. 2347, VOL. Q4I 



remains of the present season. Official and semi- 

 official pamphlets and articles already published 

 by the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries and the 

 National Sea Fisheries Protective Association 

 ought to have a wider circulation in order that 

 they may familiarise the people, even well-to-do 

 people, with the enormous supply of excellent and 

 nutritious food in the shape of salted herrings, 

 cod, ling, etc., which is available to the United 

 Kingdom in times of stress. Some education for 

 the British housewife and cook, and some persua- 

 sion that the cheapest kinds of fish are little 

 inferior in taste, and not at all in nutritive value, 

 to the dearest kinds are required ; and the evening 

 schools and public lectures of the coming months 

 ought to be utilised for these purposes. 



It is difficult to estimate the increase of value 

 which industrial exploitation might confer on the 

 raw materials of the inshore fisheries, but one 

 could scarcely err in exaggerating this value. An 

 enormous quantity of shrimps, prawns, and crabs 

 are sold in the fresh (or nearly fresh) condition ; 

 by potting or otherwise preserving these raw 

 materials employment would be largely increased, 

 the products would lose nothing of their nutritive 

 value, and would become much more "tasty," 

 while they would be more easily and widely distri- 

 buted. Enormous quantities of sprats can be 

 caught during- the next winter ; these are difficult 

 to sell and distribute ; in many places they are 

 nearly worthless commercially, while they are 

 nutritious and excellent food. Why should not 

 they be "sardined," thus again enhancing their 

 food value, and conferring employment? 



Mussels and cockles can be taken round the 

 shores of England, Wales, and Ireland in very 

 large quantities. For some years past there has 

 been a market for only a small fraction of the 

 shellfish that could be so obtained. This has been 

 the result, almost entirely, of the prejudice that 

 has been set up against these molluscs because 

 exceptionally they have been the means of dis- 

 seminating epidemic disease. In some cases this 

 fear has been exaggerated, in others it has been 

 well founded, but there can be few cases in regard 

 to which it is not possible to remove all danger 

 by appropriate means. It is quite certain that 

 mussels and cockles can deliBerately be laid down 

 and fattened in water which may be polluted by 

 sewage refuse, and then cleansed from ingested 

 micro-organisms by relaying in clean sea-water. 

 Here, again, a national food supply of cheap and 

 nutritious quality can be conserved and amplified 

 by means which also confer unskilled employment 

 upon those who are likely to require it. Also, 

 scarcely any attempt has yet been made to " pot " 

 or preserve in suitable ways these shellfish, but 

 one cannot doubt that efforts in this direction 

 might be highly successful. 



There are other fisheries which might conceiv- 

 ably be developed by the fishermen and the manu- 

 facturers under appropriate stimuli — the very 

 abundant sea crayfish (or Norway lobster), for 

 instance, a crustacean which is not inferior, either 

 fresh or "potted," to the lobster itself. Herrings 

 i might be tinned to a much greater extent than at 



