40G REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [241 



monopoly salt, along with the value of the salted and dried fish, which 

 were exported by sea: 



The table shows that the amount of annual exports of salt and dried 

 fish in Western India had very little, if any, connection with the quan- 

 tity of monopoly salt which was disposed of. 



Curing fish with salt earth. — In the native state of Cochin, the sale of 

 salt in ten years, ending 1872-'73, owing to augmented duty, was re- 

 duced by two-thirds, while it was during this very period that the great 

 increase in the amount of exported salt fish began. In the contiguous 

 British district of Chowghaut, although intheyearl872 £1,067 8s. worth 

 of salt fish were exported, only £46 worth of monopoly salt was disposed 

 of. The cause of this is susceptible of afi easy explanation. Owing to 

 some flaw in the land or revenue laws, or else due to an immemorial 

 custom, it was ruled that the people might collect salt earth in orderto 

 cure fish for their own consumption ; while, there being no law restrict- 

 ing their disposing of any surplus they possessed, a large trade in sell- 

 ing such sprang up. Consequently, fish-curing did not require a large 

 capital to commence with. This induced an increased demand for fish ; 

 the fishermen's trade became remunerative, and an immense amount of 

 animal food found its way into the market which would otherwise have 

 been lost. That this is the correct explanation is shown by examining 

 the state of the fisheries on the eastern coast of the Madras Presidency 

 at the same period. There the right to gather salt earth is not recog- 

 nized, but, observed one official, the practice of salting fish must be in- 

 creasing, considering that the price of the fish, which formerly cost 2s., 

 has been reduced to Is. 3d. or Is. 6d. This reduced value of the fish 

 was doubtless due, not to the increased prosperity of the fishermen, who 

 were evidently in a miserably poor state, but that the absence of salt 

 wherewith to cure fish had diminished the demand for the article, and 

 fishermen had to be content with a lessened price. The Madras revenue 

 board * (May 14, 1873), observed that the fishermen numbered through- 



* One of the members of the revenue hoard at Madras, writing to me on November 8, 

 1882, observed, ''The industry (of salting fish) is really commencing at last ; 400 tons 

 more were salted this year than last, and 80 more yards for cui'ing are to be opened in 

 a montli or two. 



