THE HISTORY OF DUTCH SEA FISHERIES. 501 



the duration of their absence from home, their obligation 

 never to enter any port but their own, and always to rally 

 there at an appointed signal, and the inspection of their 

 vessels and men, as kept them constantly under the hand 

 of the military and naval authorities, to be gathered at a 

 moment's notice. It was the Emperor's object, not to 

 secure for his subjects such freedom of sea-fishery as was 

 not precluded by his disastrous wars, but merely to use 

 their ships as instruments for the ever-proposed expedition 

 against England. The fishery boards of the country were 

 swept away, and the Decree of 1812 substituted for them 

 a College of " prud hommes pecheurs" in each fishery port, 

 whose main duty was to supervise the regulations relative 

 to the well-known French "inscription maritime? The 

 chiefs of the Imperial Navy were by this law made the 

 supreme ordainers of all fishermen's conduct, and the vessels 

 employed in sea-fishery were considered in no other light 

 than that of ferry-boats, to be kept handy eventually to 

 land a French army across the Channel. And yet the 

 whole of this military organization was set up under a 

 pretence of consummate benevolence and liberality towards 

 the fishing interests; for the I2th article of the above 

 quoted Imperial Decree expressly stated that it was made, 

 " voulant degager ceux de nos sujets qui sadonnent a la 

 peclie de toutes les entraves qui peuvent gener leur Industrie, 

 et les tclairer des lemons de V experience ! " 



