Great Britain Division L VI. History of Fishing. 119 



HISTORY AND LITERATURE OF FISHING FISHERY LAWS FISH COMMERCE. 



THE history and literature of fish and fisheries form in themselves a veritable ocean, the 

 inhabitants of which are of the most varied nature, from the chatty pages of Walton to the' 

 useful but scarcely inviting Tables of Parliamentary Statistics. This voluminous treatment 

 may occasion surprise to persons unacquainted with the extent and intricacy of the subject ; 

 but its cause will be readily perceived by any one who considers the complexity of the 

 relations involved, as well as the multiplicity of species and properties. Not merely do fish 

 afford one of the chief staples of human food, but they are the only denizens of the element 

 which covers by far the greater portion of the earth's surface. When to these considerations it 

 is added that they are apparently quite incapable of domestication, that some of the finest 

 sorts soon dwindle and die out unless a perfectly free course be opened to them through river 

 and ocean, that their capture is the source of innumerable jealousies, and that physical means 

 can scarcely be devised for protecting piscatorial rights whether vested in communities or indi- 

 viduals, the wonder arises not that so much has been written, but rather that there should be any 

 end to controversy. Fishing, whether for business or pleasure, is considered by English 

 people, and indeed by mankind in general, as primarily a pursuit in which all the world may 

 engage wherever, whenever, or however they please ; and the only limitations to its exercise 

 have their origin either in a defective right of access to the waters or in the necessity to 

 preserve a continuance of supply. Thus on the high seas every one may catch whatever fish 

 they can with whatever means they are able to employ, so long, of course, as they do not inter- 

 fere with the superior right of navigation. On the other hand, it is clear that when a coast is 

 approached, certain rights over the adjacent waters must naturally belong to the people of 

 the country; so that foreigners cannot exercise their occupation within some conventional 

 distance (three miles from low-water mark in the point determined) without licence from 

 the Government. Hence arises immediately the necessity for international agreement, and 

 one of the earliest conventions between Great Britain and the newly acknowledged American 

 States, had regard to the fisheries of Newfoundland. Direct piscatorial rights, too, are by 

 no means the only objects of diplomatic intervention in these matters ; and not 'many years 

 have elapsed since the position of seamen in distress, and the distribution of their estates, 

 when deceased, became regulated by Treaty between our own Government and those respec- 

 tively of Germany and Italy. Kivers, again, in so far as they are navigable, are open to all 

 natives of the country through which they run ; but where access can only be obtained from the 

 banks, both they and the fish contained in them are considered to belong to the riparian pro- 

 prietors. Angling, it may be here observed, stands upon precisely the same footing as net 

 fishing, except that the open season is protracted for a short time in order to balance in some 

 degree the nights and unfavourable days during which nets only can take effect, and that 

 trespassers with the rod are liable to rather lighter fines. The duration of the period during 

 which fishing is prohibited for fear of injury to the spawn, has caused endless discussion and 

 legislation; while the construction of wears or weirs has been a fertile source of dispute 

 since the days of Magna Charta at the very least. The regulations upon, these subjects 

 are altogether miscellaneous, not to say conflicting, and vary both with the species and the 

 locality. Salmon indeed, like the house of Courtenay, is so lordly in its nature, and so migra- 

 tory in its habits, as to require nothing less than a chapter of history all to itself. But the 

 herring, said to have been introduced into England by Cerdric, in the days of Bomulus 

 Augustulus, can boast of a lengthened pedigree, and the royal whale lays claim to no slight 

 consideration. In fact, if any one desired to become familiar with the history of this extensive 

 branch of the animal kingdom, it is necessary that he should acquaint himself not only with 

 the haunts and habits of the fish, but also with the Treaties, Charters, Acts and Kegulations, 

 whereby the original freedom of universal piscatory has been abridged in accordance with 

 international, municipal, or special declaration,^ The theme is by no means dry or wanting 

 in those glimpses of national character which give colour to historical research. In classic 

 times piscatorial rights, both public and private, were commonly recognised, as is shown by 

 the allusions of satirists, and the numerous technical terms in use. At Pompeii, for example, 

 if we may argue from the frescoes still extant upon the walls, angling must have been a very- 

 favourite employment. Amongst our own ancestors, the Anglo Saxons fed largely oafish, but 



