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PROTECTION OF DEEP SEA FISHERIES. 403 



The present law regarding the settlement of salvage and Salvage and 

 damage cases is not satisfactory. At present the County 

 Court Judges and the Justices of the Peace have concurrent 

 jurisdiction. These are assisted by nautical assessors, 

 who are usually wholly unacquainted with fishing from a 

 practical point of view. It would be much better that 

 there should be a fishery authority at each port, with power 

 to call in assessors who are practical fishermen, and who 

 should be chosen, as far as possible, from all branches of 

 the industry, viz., trawl, drift, and line, and take these 

 practical matters quite away from the County and Magis- 

 trates' Courts, but giving power to appeal to a higher Court. 

 They could then be dealt with summarily and practically. 



The effect of the present law as regards the lettering Letters and 

 and numbering of boats would be good, if it were carried m 

 out in its entirety. But it is not. It would be far better 

 if it were extended to all shipping for purposes of identifica- 

 tion in cases of damage, disaster, or foundering. At least all 

 vessels should be compelled to have their names painted on 

 the luff of the bow, not in their eyes, as is now frequently 

 the case, where it cannot be read from a broadside view. 

 It is also desirable that two-ended or duck-sterned boats 

 should have their names and ports painted on uniformly, 

 such as the name of the vessel on the port side, and the 

 name of her port on the starboard side. It does not 

 matter much which way it is, provided there is uniformity, 

 so that it may be always known on which quarter to look 

 for the respective names. 



The method of shipping and making of agreements with Agreements, 

 crews of fishing vessels having already been fully explained, 



is hardly necessary to remark that the effect of the law 

 on this point is practically nil, and, in fact, that as the 

 Act of 1880 gives power to a man to break his agreement 



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