74 MAKIXG A FISHERY. 



no doubt a grave one, and if he prefers the 

 lazy, loafing life of a poacher to the more 

 laborious one of earning his bread by hard 

 work, he should be punished with sufficient 

 severity to stop him from further offending, and 

 at the same time deter others. 



The comparatively prosperous tradesman or 

 publican, however, who knowingly buys from 

 the poacher for the sake of the extra profit he 

 can make, or of getting an article of food for 

 his own consumption at a cheap figure, is to 

 all intents and purposes committing the same 

 offence as a receiver of stolen goods, and should 

 be subject to the same penalties. 



In dealing practically with the question, how- 

 ever, one must take things as they are, and be 

 prepared to find that the sentence of a bench of 

 county magistrates on the ordinary fish poacher 

 will be a fine of is. 6d. or 5s. If it should 

 happen that he is an old offender who has been 

 before them on some twenty or thirty previous 

 occasions, if the fish should have been taken 

 out of season, and if the solicitor conducting the 

 case could persuade the bench to listen and 

 give some weight to this additional charge, 

 they may possibly commit for a fortnight. On 

 the other hand, if it is intended to try seriously 

 to make a fishery, entailing heavy expenditure 

 of both time and money, steps must be taken 



