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of late years does not contradict this. It is well known that a beginning has 

 been made, and already on a considerable scale, with the trawl — as a means 

 of capture for this fish. This new departure, however, has alarmed the drift 

 net fishers, who fear that the use of the trawl may cause too great and 

 lasting destruction among the young of the herring. According to their opinion, 

 the herring fishery, which has existed for several hundred years, is jeopar- 

 dised by the new method. All the countries co-operating in the International 

 Investigations are interested in the herring fishery ; it is therefore an appro- 

 priate, though not an easy task for the international co-operation carefully 

 to investigate the method in question, and, in case it should be found neces- 

 sary, to formulate proposals for its regulation. 



Also with regard to various other migratory fish, among them some of 

 the greatest economical importance, the International Investigations have 

 already been the means of obtaining valuable information. It must here 

 suffice to mention, that while exhaustive studies have already been made with 

 regard to the mackerel, the sardine, etc., which are still to be published, the 

 results of similar investigations regarding the salmon of the Baltic, the anchovy 

 and the eel have already been made public. These investigations were most 

 successful, especially for the eel, and have furnished us with certain knowledge 

 as to the metamorphosis of the fish, where we were formerly obliged to be 

 content with mere conjecture. Not only have we learned to know a whole 

 series of the stages of development of this fish, but we are now further accur- 

 ately informed as to the distribution of these stages in the ocean. It is thus 

 possible now to pronounce an opinion upon the far-reaching migrations of this 

 fish, and to formulate a theory as to its spawning and spawning grounds. 

 It is also possible to judge, far better than was formerly the case, of what 

 advantages can be obtained from protective measures for this fish, and in 

 connection with these investigations, the transplantation of eel-fry, commenced 

 many years ago, has now been resumed, and applied on a far greater scale. 



Altogether, we may fairly say that our knowledge as to migratory fish 

 has made great progress during these ten years of international co-operation. 

 Nor is this less true in respect of the second problem, mentioned at the be- 

 ginning of this review, and which has likewise from the first been the object 

 of special consideration on the part of the International Investigations. This 

 is the so-called question of overfishing, a problem of the greatest economic 

 importance ; the question of how far a too great extension of the fishing 

 industry might prove dangerous to the natural production, whether this were 

 not already the case in the North Sea, fished as it is by so many nations, 

 and especially whether the proportionately great destruction of undersized 



