Alsiraljax Fisheries. 13 



and the liawker renews liis ealls, he is tnrned off with 

 explanations and reg,Tets. 



Ihe reason why tish is so surprising!}- expensive i.s that 

 there are too many men handling too small a quantity. All 

 of them rec|uire a " living w'age '" added to any small (|uan- 

 tity liandled, and a profit that ought to he distrihuted over 

 sav half a ton is usually plaeed upon a ewt. or less. When 

 this process is repeated a tew times no one need wonder 

 wh\- fish is dear. 



-Vccordino- to the official statistics of the laimber of fish.-r- 

 men in Australia, and the quantity of fisli caught, it appears 

 that the average catch per man is just about 3 tons per 

 annum, and wher. it is mentioned that the average catch 

 [jcr trawl fisherman in the North Sea is ten times as great, 

 or 30 tons per annum, it becomes apparent that the 

 industry, from st?rt to finish, is antiquated, and its methods 

 so clumsy, as to render the necessary profits impossible, 

 except by the gieatly i ntlated prices; and t here d(_:»es not 

 appear to be an y way wheroby the general pu1)lic can 

 benefit from the present methods of working. 



'i'he prime (|ualities now caught, such as \ hiting, garfish, 

 and flounder, will always be in demand My the well-to-ao, 

 and that trade will not suffer w'hen trawlers get to work, 

 for they will aim at supplying quantity at such moderate 

 l>rices as to be within the reach of all. The conditions 

 under w'hich this may be p(xssible have already be'.n indi- 

 cated, and the essential circumstance is that ever\' indi\'i- - 

 dual connectea with the business is rendered as produc- 

 tive as ])ossil)le, and enabled tcj hraidle fish in Indk inr.tead 

 of small parcels. From a catching i)oint of view, tlie 

 trawler is nowadays acknowdedged to be the most efficient 

 agent for intense production and the purveyor to the 

 ])eo])le"s markets. A second i)oint is the mode of sale, 

 which, in the first instance, should be ou wholesale jirinci- 

 ])les, and 1)\- fixed standards. At present a bu\er is fre- 

 quently in doubt as to what weight (or bulk) he is lidding 

 for, and that is detrimental to all concerned. A third point 

 is that all fish oiycred for sale should l)e disposed of to ihe 

 highest bidder, and under no condition be relurned to 

 cool stores. I5\' "clearing u]) " the market fron^. day to 

 (lav, a fair chance is i)rovide(l for next day's su])i)ly. and in 

 this manner both tlu' catcher and the consumer ma\' ha\-e 

 some benefit from the Muctuating ]jrices; now, nt'ilher jjarty 

 is deri\'ini>- much benefit therefrom. 



