UNDER THE STDARTS I JAMES I. : A NEW POLICY 131 



The herring fishery of the Dutch along the British coast was 

 known as the " great fishery " (Groote Vissdierye), to distinguish 

 it from the " small " or fresh-herring fishery which was pursued 

 locally, and it was subjected to minute regulations. The busses 

 collected at Bressay Sound in Shetland in the early part of June, 

 but the fishing was not allowed to begin until St John's Day, 

 on the 24th of the month, when the vessels departed in fleets 

 for the fishing-grounds under the charge of " commodores " and 

 guarded by men-of-war. As the season advanced the fishing was 

 carried on farther and farther to the south. Until St James' 

 Day (25th July) it was prosecuted in the neighbourhood of 

 Shetland, Fair Isle, and as far south as Buchan Ness; from 

 then until Elevation Day (14th September) it was from Buchan 

 Ness to the coast of Northumberland ; then southwards to the 

 deep water off Yarmouth till St Catherine's Day (25th Sept- 

 ember) ; and so to the mouth of the Thames, the fishing usually 

 coming to an end at the beginning of December. The " fleet " or 

 train of nets was more than a mile in length, which necessitated 

 the busses keeping some distance apart to prevent fouling; 

 they were shot in the evening and hauled in the morning, 

 when the crew began to salt and pack the herrings into barrels, 

 which were then taken to Holland in "yagers," or carriers, 

 repacked, branded, and exported to various countries. The 

 smaller vessels which took part in the " fresh " herring fishery 

 were employed especially off Yarmouth in the autumn, and 

 they sold their herrings for ready money to the fish-curers 

 with whom they were " hosted." On some occasions as many 

 as 200 of those smaller Dutch vessels lay in Yarmouth harbour 

 at a time. The boats that went for cod, ling, and haddock 

 fished throughout the North Sea, the smaller ones at the 

 Dogger Bank as a rule, the larger on the Scottish coast and 

 at Shetland. Hand -lines, baited with herring or lamprey, were 

 used, the cod being either pickled, dried, or brought to land 

 alive in wells, and these vessels furnished the larger part of 

 the supply to London. 



The quantity and value of the fish caught by the Dutch off the 

 British coasts were variously stated. Keymer, in his first tract, 

 estimated the quantity of herrings taken by the 2000 busses in 

 the twenty-six weeks of their fishing at about 300,000 lasts 

 (or 3,600,000 barrels) annually, and the value, at first hand, at 



