PROTECTION OF DEEP SEA FISHERIES. 455 



The very fact of a barrel being unbranded by Govern- 

 ment tends to make a buyer suspect that possibly it has 

 been refused the Government brand owing to inferior 

 quality or some other cause, though in reality it may be of 

 special cure. There is no doubt that in the case of foreign 

 markets the brand has been of use, for the trade was, 

 till recently, a new one, and the capitalists and merchants 

 on the Continent were but imperfectly acquainted with 

 the value and qualities of Scotch herrings ; but now, if the 

 brand were abolished, there are plenty of merchants suf- 

 ficiently educated and experienced in the Scotch herring 

 trade to judge the better cures, and the deserving curer 

 would reap the benefit, and the trade would then prosper 

 on its own merits, as others do. What was desirable 

 seventy years ago, under certain circumstances, is not 

 required under the present aspect of affairs ; and if 

 branding is such an important and necessary adjunct to a 

 trade with a foreign country, why is it not necessary to 

 apply it to the whole kingdom, and especially to the 

 export trade in red herrings ? 



Again, as regards the bankers. They have got into the 

 groove of Government guarantee, and memorialise against 

 the abolition of it. Why should not the bankers, who 

 make advances of ten times the amount on bills of lading, 

 of floating cargoes in the grain, and other trades, demand 

 the same Government guarantee ? In the grain trade, for 

 instance, large quantities of grain are bought for future 

 shipment without even a sample being seen by the buyer ; 

 but the contracts are made by specifying the quality, and 

 disputes are the exception (but in their event an arbitration 

 clause always settles the point), since if a merchant wishes 

 to prosper, it will not answer his purpose to have disputes, 

 which would injure his connection and business ; so he acts 



