THE LAST PHASE OF WHALING 277 



and that the whaling steamers disturb the shoals 

 both with their propellers and their harpoon 

 guns. 



The Departmental Committee took evidence at 

 several places in the Shetlands and at Peterhead. 

 They also visited and inspected the Colla Firth and 

 Ronas Voe whaling stations. As a result of their 

 inquiries they decided that while unrestricted whaling 

 might be a possible danger to the herring fishing, 

 there were no valid reasons for the total prohibition 

 of whaling. The latter would probably lead either 

 to the establishment of floating factories or to the 

 working of the Shetland grounds from the Faroes 

 where the whalers would be beyond British control. 

 The Committee believed that the new industry might 

 prove to be beneficial, and afford a source of employ- 

 ment to the inhabitants of the Shetlands. Whaling 

 ought, however, to be restricted. " Unrestricted 

 whaling would be an evil on other grounds than its 

 possible danger to the herring fishery. It could not 

 last long. The Basque and the Greenland whaling 

 industries came to an end by the practical extermina- 

 tion of the species pursued. With the means of 

 destruction now brought to deadly perfection the 

 same fate would overtake the Finners off our coasts 

 in a very short time. That would be an evil in 

 itself, and, while a few companies might go 

 out of the business with a large profit, the local 

 industry would be brought into being only to 

 perish in a few years, and leave the inhabitants worse 

 off than ever." It should be clearly understood that 



