NORWEGIAN FISHING 161 



in different districts. Here, in North Bergen 

 County, it extends from 6 r.M. on Friday to 



r.M. on Monday. At first sight this appears 

 liberal and sufficient ; but when it is remem- 

 bered that the mouths of the chief rivers are 

 distant between twenty-five and a hundred, or 

 more, miles from the open sea, it is obvious that 

 a fish, which has safely passed one netted reach 

 during the close time, runs a risk of being 

 caught further on a few days later, when the 

 nets are fishing. And there is also reason to 

 fear that the close-time is not strictly observed. 

 The temptation to fish when salmon are passing 

 is very great; the fines inflicted for a breach of 

 the law are ridiculously small ; and the methods 

 of inspection appear to be hopelessly inadequate. 



1 had some reason this season to suspect that 

 all was not as it should be, and I wrote to the 

 Lensmand, a sort of police magistrate, on the 

 subject. He informed me that the inspector 

 was doing his duty, and that no cases of unlaw- 

 ful fishing had come to light. But what can a 

 man with a rowing boat do in the way of 

 supervising nets scattered over hundreds of 

 miles of coast ? And there is so much money 



