hi] THE GREAT HERRING FISHERIES. 351 



come. There is no reason, however, to suppose that such an event will 

 take place, although the undeniable fact that at present a quantity of 

 nets five or six times larger than in former times has to be used proves 

 that the herring are more scattered than formerly. With the increase 

 in the quantity of the nets, the expenses for apparatus have, of course, 

 increased, while the number of trips has been diminished. 



It is the general opinion that the fisheries are a trade whose economic 

 value is constantly on the increase. In the same degree as the apparatus 

 is enlarged it costs more money, and the fishermen are therefore com- 

 pelled in some way or other to get a larger income in order to get the 

 apparatus, which is constantly becoming more expensive. As the 

 average yield of the fisheries per vessel has, on the whole, not increased 

 in the same degTee, it has become necessary for the fisherman to pro- 

 vide for the needed increase of his income in some other way. There is 

 no difficulty about this in Scotland, as all the products of the fisheries 

 find a ready market through the numerous railroads. For the Bohuslan 

 people, however, such an increase in the cost of apparatus, without a 

 corresponding increase in the yield of the fisheries, would prove a more 

 serious matter. The great quantitj^ of nets, however, exercises a very 

 considerable influence on the manner in which the fisheries are carried 

 on. People are much more afraid of stormy weather, in spite of the 

 more general use of the barometer, and fishing trips are often made in 

 vain, while at the same time it becomes necessary to make a larger 

 catch on every trip when nets are used, for which reason they also 

 must be larger than formerly. The same remarkable increase has been 

 noticed in the Dutch and French herring-fisheries. Here, too, the 

 number of nets has been increased, so that it is no uncommon thing for 

 a fishing vessel to have several hundred nets. As the hauling in of the 

 nets takes more time, the fishermen have less time to take proper care 

 of their fish, and the very exhaustive work of hauling in the net even 

 causes spitting of blood. Steam is therefore, to a constantly increasing- 

 extent, employed in doing this work ; but this, of course, causes another 

 increase of expenses and makes it more difficult for small capitalists to 

 take part in the fishing trade by equipping fishing vessels, for experience 

 has shown that joint- stock companies are but rarely calculated to insure 

 a paying income from the " great " fisheries. 



As regards the preparation of the fish, it may be said that the fisher- 

 ies with floating nets in general are more profitable, as thereby the 

 catches are more even though smaller, while with the seine fisheries 

 the catches are often so enormous that it becomes almost impossible to 

 prepare the fish properly. It happens sometimes in the net fisheries, 

 when the herring approach the coast, that a rich haul is made, especially 

 when the herring come very near the coast. This is the reason why the 

 vessels from the southern part of Scotland generally make greater hauls 

 than those from the northern part, owing to the fact that the herring 



