LORD OF THE FISHES 115 



during the early years of the seventeenth century, when 

 Holland, striving for world dominion, and likely to be 

 crushed for want of funds, found in the vast herring- 

 fisheries the means to raise money and pay her way. 

 In those days men went just as mad over the possibilities 

 of this fish as a source of wealth as they do now in 

 relation to gold-mines. The fishery, indeed, was called 

 the gold-mine of Holland, and there were not wanting 

 in England enthusiastic but deluded people who believed 

 that from the sea was to come, with ease, the riches that 

 were needed to save a decaying England. For long 

 years the famous " busses," or deep-sea boats of Holland, 

 had been working the Dutch herring-fishery. The first 

 long herring seine net was made at Hoorn early in the 

 fifteenth century, and in that period, too, was discovered 

 the way of curing the fish which swarmed in countless 

 millions in the North Sea. So ably were the Dutch 

 operations carried out, so zealous were the Hollanders 

 in developing their resources, and so courageous were 

 the people on the waters, that there was no part of the 

 civilised world to which herrings were not carried. It 

 is said that in 1615 there were 2000 busses sailing from 

 Dutch ports, with 37,000 seamen; and that within a 

 few years the trade had grown enormously, with a 

 corresponding increase in the number of busses and 

 other vessels and crews employed. 



So far-reaching in importance were the herring- 

 fisheries at that period, that about 60,000 people in 

 Holland were dependent on them for a living, and it 

 had been long agreed that the fisheries of England and 

 Holland should be allowed to proceed without molesta- 

 tion, despite the bitter quarrels and misunderstandings 



