9 8 



a considerable portion was taken by Manx, Scotchmen, 

 and Cornishmen ; and even the French fishermen came in 

 considerable numbers to the Kinsale coast. It seemed very 

 strange that Ireland should contribute so little to the 

 national larder, when it was asserted so often that there was 

 no diminution of the quantity on the coast, and, from his 

 experience, he believed such to be the fact. In old times 

 the English monarchs had derived large revenues from 

 allowing foreign nations to fish on the Irish coasts. In the 

 time of Charles ;8ooo was given by the Spanish Monarch 

 to allow a certain number of Spanish vessels to fish there, 

 and in about 1640 the Swedish Government, in return for 

 services rendered to England, was allowed to send a certain 

 number also. Frenchmen and Flemings fished extensively 

 there, and the important pilchard fishery, which Mr. 

 Walsh had not touched upon, was carried on very 

 extensively by the Dutch, and even now in certain 

 parts of the county of Cork there were remains of what 

 were called fish palaces, where the Dutch used to cure the 

 fish. He did not wish to awaken old and bitter memories, 

 but it was quite impossible in dealing with the fishery ques- 

 tion, to omit the fact that down to a very recent period so 

 far from the fisheries being encouraged by the government 

 they were absolutely discouraged and depressed. It 

 seemed to be the idea that the fisheries of Ireland were to 

 be for the benefit of every one save and except the Irish 

 themselves. The Cromwellian Parliament was inundated 

 with petitions that the Irish fisheries might be suppressed in 

 consequence of their competition with the English, and under 

 a commonwealth ordinance there was an immense amount of 

 suppression ; many fishermen were sent to Connaught, and 

 others transported to Barbados and the other West Indian 

 islands. He would not go further into these matters, but 



