128 



BRITISH FISHERIES 



Under this system of administration the sea- 

 fisheries of Ireland have on the whole declined from 

 the time of the Royal Commission of 1866. I 

 give the returns of the numbers of vessels, men, 

 and boys engaged in the industry since 1865, for 

 each fifth year : * 



Even these figures, discouraging though they 

 be, do not represent the real depression and 

 poverty of the industry. Of the vessels engaged 

 in 1901, only twelve were steam trawlers; the 

 majority of the second-class sailing boats were less 

 than ten tons in net register, and more than half of 

 the total number of vessels were rowing boats. In 

 1901 this fishing population landed on all the 

 coasts of Ireland fish of all kinds of a total value 

 of 374, log. 2 Long-line fishermen in the same 

 year earned, on the average, from aos. per week 



1 Taken from the Annual Reports of the Inspectors. 



2 In 1902 the quantity of fish (exclusive of shell-fish) landed on 

 the coasts of Ireland was 556,868 cwts., worth ^296,606. 



