28 



CRABS. 



Soft. 



Berried. 



Gauge. 



Enforcement 

 of law. 



LOBSTERS. 



Gauge. 



CRABS. 



Gauge. 



Season for. 



LOBSTERS. 



Berried. 



Gauge. 



CRABS. 



Gauge. 



LOBSTERS. 



Gauge. 



Season for. 



is at its best. The cock crab is good all through the year. Often gets baskets 

 of crabs from Scotland. There are a large number of white crabs among them. 

 They are very small, and some of them are watery. Is in favour of these white 

 crabs being returned to the water. Gets most of these white crabs in the 

 spring of the year. A berried hen is worth double as much as any other 

 lobster. Some men get a good living by buying spawn from retailers, and 

 retailing it to pastry-cooks. Has had Is. for 2 ozs. of spawn. 



A crab under 6 inches hardly pays to brush, i.e., clean. A hen crab has to 

 have all the spawn, and the " feathers " to which the spawn is attached, 

 brushed out from under its tail before it is sold. Would have no crabs sold 

 under 6 inches. Thinks that the retailers generally would approve this gauge, 

 but the small retailers buy the small crabs and lobsters cheap. 



Henry Burland {examined by Mr. Walpole). One of the fishmeters at 

 Billingsgate. Is appointed by the Fishmongers' Company. It is his duty to 

 inspect all fish brought into the market, and judge whether it is fit for human 

 food : if it is unfit, to condemn it and seize it. This applies to shell fish as 

 well as all other kinds. There are three officers in this position. Theoretically 

 all the fish brought into the market pass under the cognisance of himself or one 

 of his colleagues. Has no instructions to ascertain whether the fish sold can 

 be legally sold : only looks to its condition. If a gauge were fixed for crabs, 

 there would be a difficulty in carrying it out. Hardly sees one out of every 

 50 crabs sold. Only sees that they are alive. The size of the crab in most 

 cases could not be ascertained till the fish was exposed for sale by the retailer. 

 Sometimes 120 packages of crabs arrive by the same line of railway ; they are 

 scattered over the market, and if there were 20 fishmeters they would be unable 

 to see every package. The sellers even now try and set the fishmeters at defiance, 

 with respect to the sale of unsound fish, and they would do so with live fish. If 

 it were illegal to buy, sell, or take unsizeable crabs, it would act as a great 

 deterrent to their capture ; and this result would be increased by the know- 

 ledge that the fishmeters would seize unsizeable fish. But the only way to 

 stop the traffic would be to make it illegal for anyone to have an unsizeable 

 fish in his possession for sale. In this case it would be possible to stop the 

 traffic in unsizeable crabs and lobsters. Thinks that a lobster over 8 inches 

 might be sold. Under that length should not be sold. Thinks a barrel gauge 

 easier than a gauge of the entire length. Is in favour of a 5-inch gauge for 

 crabs. Smaller crabs should not be sold. 



(By Mr. Buckland.) The crabs come to Billingsgate in baskets and in 

 barrels, both dead and alive. Never heard of crabs and lobsters being packed 

 in coal. 



Edward Winder (examined by Mr. Buckland). Succeeded to Mr. Scott's 

 business in the Haymarket 12 months ago. Has a very large demand for crabs 

 and lobsters, especially in the summer months, July for preference. This is 

 because oysters are out of season. His experience does not extend beyond 12 

 months. He doesn't care for lobsters under 9 inches, prefers 12-inch lobsters. 

 There is no great demand in his business for berried hens. Doesn't care to have 

 crabs under 6 inches. Wouldn't object to gauge of 6 inches for crabs and 

 9 inches for lobsters. If it were made penal to sell them anywhere, it would 

 stop the catch on the sea coast. The mere fact of a law would stop the sale. 

 Tradesmen do not like to see articles which it is illegal to sell exposed in their 

 shops. 



(By Mr. Walpole.) In his opinion 5 inches is too small for a crab, and 

 would prefer a 6-inch gauge. Thinks this might have a prejudicial effect 

 on the smaller tradesmen in the poorer districts of London. This, however, 

 ought not to influence Parliament in considering the object in view. 



Prefers a 9-inch gauge for lobsters, and does not think that it would be a 

 serious injury to the trade eventually. It would be ludicrous to go below the 

 8 inches. 



Henry Barber (examined by Mr. Walpole). A fish salesman in Billings- 

 gate, established 40 years. His own experience extends for 29 years. Deals 

 largely in shell fish. Obtains his lobsters chiefly from Scotland, Cornwall, 

 Devonshire, Jersey, and the Channel Islands. The Scotch lobsters come 

 principally in the colder months, the English lobsters from the spring to the 

 autumn. The Scotch and English lobster seasons are perfectly different. 

 Thinks the difference is due to the difficulty of carrying the lobsters from 



