TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 193 



In 182-5 there was imported there — from 



Great Britain. Holland. Denmark. Norway. 



18,160 4295 19G0 6,758 



In 1845 81,189 2457 307 44,264 



In 1850 116,538 508 470 12,567 



and in 1855 the quantity of British herrings amounted to 160,572 barrels— about 

 nine times the quantity sent in 1825 to Stettin ; and as the herrings are carefully 

 separated, assorted and packed into proper-sized barrels, cured under the eye of the 

 inspecting officers, the British herrings haye become known, in consequence, as 

 a safe and staple article of commerce, and are imported into various other ports; 

 for instance, there were exported to the following ports in 1855 — 



Konigsberg 14,417 



Danzig 59,204 



Hamburg 26,774 



Harburg 60,377 



Bremen 6,754 



Rotterdam, for the Rhine 7,955 



Other ports 8,244 



Stettin 100,572 



Making a total of 344,207 



And it is interesting to know that at the fishery stations in Scotland there were 

 employed in the year referred to, Fishing Boats 11,251, the tonnage being 77,794; 

 and the fishermen, coopers and others employed, amounted to 91,139, of which 

 91,139 people directly employed, 39,266 were fishermen. These statistics apply to 

 the Scottish coasts only, where the greatest shoals of herrings resort ; but there are 

 other places, as already stated, such as Yarmouth, where many of the fishermen are 

 occupied in fishing herrings in the usual seasons. 



It is necessary that the truth should be known as to the progressive prosperity 

 and increase of the Herring Fishery, because there are some authors who are in- 

 clined to depreciate our national productions and progress ; for instance, we find 

 McCulloch, in his 'Dictionary of Commerce,' which is considered a text-book and 

 standard work by a certain class of readers, saying " the Dutch have uniformly 

 maintained their ascendency in the Herring Fishery since the earliest period," and 

 that " ours remains in a very unhealthy and feeble state." 



As already stated, the Dutch Herring Fishery is in a declining state, and instead 

 of 300 busses proceeding annually to the fishery, as was the case not many years 

 ago, the number has been gradually decreasing, .and does not now exceed 60 busses ; 

 but on our coasts great prosperity is evident from the progress of the population, 

 the increase of towns and villages, and from the comfortable state of the fishermen 

 and their families, and the great circulation of wealth that must exist by an annual 

 increase of one million sterling taken out of the sea on our own coasts. 



The value of this great fishery should teach us the propriety of carefully fostering 

 and protecting it ; and to enable us to do so efficiently, we must have some know- 

 ledge of the natural history and habits of the herring, as well as accurate statistcis. 

 He said he was prepared to prove tbat the herring was a native of the seas adjacent 

 to the coast to which it resorted ; and in conclusion, he said that to promote its 

 prosperity, or even to protect it, legislation was necessary, and power should be 

 given to prevent the disturbance of the spawn, and the indiscriminate destruction 

 of the young herring or fry. The fishery grounds during the proper season shonld 

 be attended by the proper number of ships of war, to prevent disputes and disturb- 

 ance among the fishermen, and to prevent the large fishing vessels from driftino- 

 into the smaller ones. He recommended that the Fishery Board established in 

 Scotland, should be extended to England and Ireland, as calculated to increase the 

 prosperity of the fisheries and the number of fishermen and seamen suitable for 

 the navy. 



Before concluding he produced a copy of a letter written by him to the Rio-ht 

 Hon. the Lord Advocate of Scotland, to prove that it is absolutely necessary °for 



1860. 13 



