DRIFT-NET FISHING. 281 



only provisional ; but they point to a high degree of tem- 

 perature in the sea being unfavourable to fishing, and that 

 when the sea is found to be colder in any one district than 

 in that on either side of it, the herrings are more abundant, 

 and the fishery is more successful in the colder than in 

 the warmer water. They also state that the influence of 

 thunderstorms has been perceptible in several years. If 

 there is a thunderstorm of some magnitude extending over 

 a large portion of the east of Scotland, good takes of 

 fish may be made on that day, but on the following one 

 few if any fish are caught over that part of the coast, 

 unless at the extreme verge of a deep part of the sea, 

 as if the fish were retreating thither. Observations on 

 the influence of winds and the temperature of the sea 

 have also been made by the Dutch fishermen ; and Herr 

 von Freedon of Hamburg, Director of the German See- 

 Warte, believes from an analysis of these observations that 

 57 degrees Fahrenheit is most favourable for the herring 

 fishing, and that the chances of success diminish with 

 higher and lower temperatures. These investigations are 

 of great interest ; and although it is yet early to predict 

 what they may lead to, there are so many problems to 

 be solved in connection with the movements of wandering 

 fishes like the herring, pilchard, mackerel and sprat, that 

 any bit of distinct knowledge we may gain about their 

 habits may help materially to guide us in subsequent 

 inquiries. 



The nets used in drift-fishing or "driving," as the 

 fishermen call it, are made either of cotton or hemp, the 

 latter being generally known as " twine ; " some fishermen 

 preferring the one material, some the other ; and it is not 

 unusual for the two kinds to be placed alternately in the 

 same train of nets. Not many years ago flax nets were 



