150 INVESTIGATIONS IN FORTH, 1891. 



65 in October, 1891. Of the three sizes the following is the 

 result. A large dab appeared about once in eight hauls in 

 1890 and about 1 in 3 in 1891 ; the average for the medium in 

 1890 was 15 per haul ; in 1891, 18 per haul ; the average for 

 the unsaleable (under 7 inches) for 1890 was 13 ; for 1891, 

 15 per haul. The high average of August 1890 (73) was 

 composed mainly of those under 7 inches, whereas the highest 

 in 1891 (65) was more equally divided between medium and 

 small (324 — 393). No important deduction can be made from 

 such variations. They are associated with all fishing opera- 

 tions. 



The total for whitings was 2,302 or 21 per haul — less than 

 a third what it was in 1890. Of this number 1,976 or 18 per 

 haul were saleable and 326 or 3 per haul were unsaleable. By 

 some this would be held as an evidence of the decadence of the 

 whiting-fishery, yet it is 6 per haul more than were captured in 

 1887, the year of plenty in the "Garland's" returns, and more 

 than twice what it was in 1886. But the curves of this species 

 from year to year show how unsafe it is to draw conclusions 

 from such changes. The maximum occurred in October, which 

 had a total of 617, not half the total (1,525) of the same 

 maximum month last year. 



Long-rough dabs followed with a total of 2,242 or 21 per 

 haul, the next highest to the year 1887, which had an average 

 of 28 per haul. They agreed with the dabs in having their 

 maximum in October. The saleable numbered 873 and the 

 unsaleable 1,369. 



The gurnard is a fish which is generally caught in moderate 

 numbers by the trawl. This year the total number was 1,638 

 or 15 per haul, exactly the same as in 1887 when all the figures 

 were so high. Persistent trawling outside and line-fishing both 

 there and in the closed waters would probably have a tendency 

 to reduce such a species as well as the haddock, yet here we 

 have a form, for which perhaps fishermen care but little, 

 keeping up its numbers with a steady persistency, notwith- 

 standing the means for its destruction are the same as those 

 for the haddock. On the other hand, it may be said that the 

 gurnard as a rule swims higher than the haddock, and is less 



