THE BRITISH FISH TRADE. 65 



It is obvious, therefore, that the destruction of fish by 

 man, large as it seems at first sight, is like a drop of water 

 in the bucket when it is compared with the prodigious 

 natural waste which is simultaneously going on. It is 

 absurd, therefore, to suppose that any necessity can exist 

 for restricting the operations of the fishermen. It may 

 perhaps be added that it is almost impossible to devise 

 any regulations which will effectively prevent the cap- 

 ture of immature fish, and which will not simultaneously 

 interfere with the legitimate operations of the fishermen 

 Most, if not all, the modes of fishing involve some waste 

 The most efficient engines of capture are precisely those 

 which are the most destructive ; and any legislative pre- 

 cautions, calculated to preserve the fry of fish, will un- 

 doubtedly diminish the supply, and consequently increase 

 the price, of fish as food. People, therefore, who are 

 interested in cheap fish should cease to demand restrictive 

 legislation. The fisheries of the British Islands languished 

 under the patronage of the great, and made no real 

 progress under the patronage of the Legislature. They 

 have attained their present prosperity under a system of 

 freedom. "When the subject enjoys the fruit of his 

 industry," wrote Pope in a note on a well-known passage 

 of the Odyssey, " the earth will always be well cultivated 

 and bring forth abundance ; the sea will furnish the land 

 with plenty of fishes, and men will plant when they are 

 sure to gather the fruit." It was the misfortune of 

 England that her statesmen for one hundred years did not 

 realise the full moral of this passage, or see that the true 

 way to promote every industry was to leave it alone.* 



* The passage in Homer is a very remarkable one. " Under a good 

 government," says Ulysses to Penelope, " the land brings forth its 

 fruit, and the sea yields its fish." 



F 



