persons who may be desirous of cultivating Mussels 

 thereon, for which no rent should be charged until it would 

 be seen whether the venture would be successful. 



"The cultivation of the Mussels to be subject to the 

 supervision of a Government Inspector, to see that it is 

 properly attended to. 



" The supply of Mussels to our line fishermen is of vital 

 importance to them. For instance, here in Eyemouth 

 alone, where twenty-eight boats, manned by seven men 

 each, prosecuted the line fishing for Haddock from October 

 last until now, no less than 920 tons of Mussels were used 

 by them in that period, costing nearly 1,800 to the fisher- 

 men, about one-half of which sum was expended on the 

 carriage of the Mussels. 



" These twenty-eight boats grossed on an average for the 

 season upwards of 600 each, still the item of Mussels 

 bulked largely in their expenditure. 



"The 28 Eyemouth boats shot their lines 2825 times 

 during the fishing season ended May 1883 ; each boat 

 carries 7 men and 7 lines, but on Mondays 10^ lines; each 

 line is 1200 yards long, so that the total length of lines 

 that passed through the fishermen's hands during the 

 season was 15,200 miles, or a length that would extend to 

 about two-thirds the circumference of the earth. 



"Every day the boats proceeded to sea they shot 

 135 miles of lines, and on Mondays 202 miles. On each 

 line there are 1050 hooks, and every time the boats were 

 at sea 205,800 hooks, baited with 411,600 Mussels, were 

 put into the sea. The total number of Mussels used 

 during the season, averaging two for each hook, was 

 46,819,500: exclusive of this enormous quantity of Mussels 

 a good deal of Limpets were used, and also some bullock's 

 liver. Nearly all the Mussels come from the Wash or the 



