xvi BRITISH FISHERIES 



These figures are only an approximate statement 

 of the real worth of the British sea-fishing in- 

 dustry ; and, though they may be subject to con- 

 siderable qualification, they represent what is the 

 minimum value of the industry. They are a bald 

 and colourless summary of the value of a great 

 national asset. Looked at in the pages of a Blue 

 Book, they appear dry and repugnant, but the 

 imaginative reader will see in them the evidence 

 of an immense " mine of wealth " ; of an incessant 

 struggle to obtain Nature's most grudged posses- 

 sions ; of the existence of a population whose 

 value to the nation it is difficult to over-appreciate. 



Every mile almost of the extensive coast-line of 

 Great Britain and Ireland contributes its share of 

 this fishing population. But the density is not 

 everywhere uniform, and there are remarkable 

 differences in the value of the industry at the 

 various parts. The east coast of England and 

 Scotland, adjoining the important fishing grounds 

 of the North Sea, is, both absolutely and relatively, 

 by far the most important fishing district. Then 

 follow in order the west coasts of England and 

 Scotland, the coasts of Ireland, and the south coast 

 of England. 



As I have indicated above, it is impossible to 

 give, with accuracy, the exact number of men and 

 vessels employed on the British coasts ; and the 

 exact amount and value of the fish landed is also 

 very imperfectly known. Systems for the collec- 



