266 SEA FISHERIES 



groups consisting each of i steamer and 5 sailing vessels of 

 any tonnage : 



France : 200 (i steamer + 125 sailing vessels), or 25,200= i. 

 Great Britain: 2,000 (i steamer + 5 sailing vessels), or 12,000 = 5. 



This formula deserves a close consideration. 



The French steamers are very like, if not identical 

 with the English steamers. As for the sailing vessels 

 of the two countries, they differ less in their methods 

 of fishery than in their tonnage. Since Great Britain 

 has ten times as many steamers as France and 2*5 

 times fewer sailing vessels, the productivity of the English 

 steamers should be ten times as great, and that of the 

 sailing vessels only two-fifths as great ; in short, the 

 productivity of England should be 7*5 times greater 

 than that of France. Actually it is only 5 times as great ; 

 or 33 per cent, less than it should be. One of two things is 

 true : either this slight advantage on the side of France 

 is due to the very large number of her sailing vessels or 

 the average catch of the English steamers is slightly 

 inferior to that of the French steamers. The second 

 alternative is the fact, as the following table will clearly 

 show : 



AVERAGE PRODUCTIVITY IN TONS PER ANNUM PER STEAMER. 



France. 



Lorient ... 400 

 La Rochelle 130 

 Arcachon... 230 

 Boulogne... 130 (?) ( 



Average 252 



Great Britain. 



Aberdeen ... 290) 



Grimsby ... 259 [ Average 240 



Hull 180) 



There is thus a difference of about 10 tons per annum 

 per steamer in favour of the French ; the steamers are the 

 principal instruments of production. 



We must remember that " a steamer fitted with an otter- 

 trawl and working 20 hours a day at a speed of 2\ knots, 



