120 



Herring fishing, too, was carried on extensively in those 

 days, and amongst the many records concerning this 

 fishery, I find one of which the subject even now com- 

 mands great attention, and justly so ; it concerns the 

 desirability of enforcing restrictive laws for herring fishing. 

 I shall not entertain this subject in my paper, as it is a 

 matter of dubious benefit, but as it may be interesting to 

 know what were the ideas on the subject of the fishermen 

 of former days, I give the extract : 



4th Oct., 1731. "And whereas the Herring fishery is 

 also greatly destroyed by persons fishing in spawning time, 

 we present that no person fish for or take any Herrings or 

 Sprats within the limits of this corporation before 29 

 September or after I January." 



Thus it will be seen that two or three centuries ago 

 mackerel and herring were captured with great success and 

 with superior appliances on the Southern Irish coast. 



Following the observations I made at the commence- 

 ment of my paper, I shall proceed to show that on the 

 same ground where those great fisheries existed centuries 

 ago, the same fisheries are still carried on with success; 

 that at all times since then the haunts of those fishes have 

 been the same ; how, for a time, the fisheries existed (to 

 the same extent) no longer, and the manner in which they 

 were revived and have since their revival been worked. 



Shortly after 1739, the last date at which we have mention 

 made of the presence of foreigners at the Kinsale mackerel 

 fishery, the restrictions enforced by the Government for the 

 protection of the native fishermen became so noxious that 

 French and other fishermen elected to remain away. The 

 result of this did not benefit the natives ; they needed 

 emulation, and at the same time several religious and poli- 

 tical feuds occurring in the town, the fisheries were neglected, 



