CHAPTER II 

 FISHING-GROUNDS 



I. The continental plateau of the Atlantic ; the in-shore and off- 

 shore districts ; the Channel. II. The threshold of the Mediter- 

 ranean. III. The North Sea and the Dogger Bank. IV. The 

 banks of Newfoundland. V. The banks of Iceland. VI. The 

 Atlanto-Saharan or Morocco banks and the Baie du Levrier 

 (Bahia del Galgo). 



FISH are not sufficiently denned by their biological and 

 geographical characteristics ; we must also consider 

 their natural habitat and surroundings. 



I 



The fishing-ground par excellence is the continental 

 plateau of the Atlantic. This name is given to the 

 intermediary ledge or series of flats between the coast 

 and the great oceanic depths. It is the foundation upon 

 which western Europe is built ; it is the bond of union 

 between England and the Continent. Its area increases 

 as we go northward. On the west coast of Spain it is 

 only a few miles wide; France it surrounds with a 

 wide girdle, while it encircles and supports Ireland, 

 England, Scotland, the Orkneys, and the Shetlands, and 

 forms the entire floor of the Irish Sea, the Channel, 

 and the North Sea. It runs along the coast of Norway, 

 and finally expands to the north of Siberia. Its 

 greatest depth is not more than 100 fathoms. It is 



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