162 



THE RELATIONS OF THE STATE WITH 



Introduction 

 of fish 

 machines. 



The eight days' interval, however, between the arrival at the 

 Nore and discharge of cargo was extended in the case of 

 lobsters to twelve days, and of live eels to twenty-eight 

 days. 



In other respects the conditions of sale were made much 

 more stringent. It was enacted, among other things, in 

 two or three successive Acts, that a list containing a full 

 account of all the fish offered for sale should be displayed 

 over every stall to which they were brought from the vessel ; 

 that no more than a certain specified and limited number 

 of fish of each sort should be offered in one lot ; that they 

 should not be sold twice in the same market, or within 1 50 

 yards, in one day : and so on. 



In 1762 the use of "fish machines," or vehicles adapted 

 specially for the land carriage of fish, was introduced, and 

 Parliament at once afforded these conveyances special 

 privileges, in the exemption from tolls, when returning 

 empty, and from certain other highway regulations. The 

 introduction of these " machines " did more to increase the 

 supply of fish than all the Acts of Parliament for the sup- 

 pression of " regrators " and " forestallers ; " and forty years 

 afterwards an Act of Parliament was passed declaring that 

 the amount of fish brought to Billingsgate had so much 

 increased that it was desirable to amend the law restricting 



o 



the quantities of fish to be sold in one lot, and the number 

 of each kind of fish that might legally be offered for sale at 

 a single bid was consequently largely increased. With the 

 still growing trade these restrictions, however, became more 

 and more irksome, and they were ultimately removed by the 



Abolition of Billingsgate Act of 1846, which swept away the last re- 

 restrictions. 



maining vestiges of Parliamentary interference with the 



course and customs of the fish trade. 



The revolution which fish " machines " had created in tl 



Growth of 

 fish trade. 



