120 



THE SEA FISHERIES 



fisheries of the Isle of Man and Ireland, Foreign fisheries, the New- 

 foundland fishery, fish soap, and the various accounts refeLdTo 

 in the different parts of the evidence. The third r^ort cSed 

 he resolutions of the Committee, the most importCt of wSch 

 recommended a gradual reduction of the tonnage bounties trios 

 a ton for two years ending the 5th April. 1801. and to 5s. per ton 

 for three years, ending the 5th April, 1804. ^ ^ " 



.h^lwJ* ^''^ been expected, the proposal to reduce and then 

 abolish the tonnage bounty in the herring buss fishery caused 

 consternation to the adventurers in the herring fishery, and we 

 hnd representations regarding this in the next report of the Com- 

 mittee (19th March, 1799). There was a memorial for the adven- 

 turers m the White Herring Fishery from the ports of Campbeltown 

 and Rothesay. It is an easy matter to raise a clamour against 

 the best and most useful systems, and it may be considered by some 

 as a very popular subject to rail against bounties ; but to the buss 

 bshery of the Hebrides it does not, however, justly apply— that 

 fishery and the bounties connected with it, have been the means 

 of estabhshmg viUages. extending towns, and creatmg fleets and 

 seamen where there were none before, and have enabled our 

 merchants to export to the West Indies annually about 40,000 

 barrels of herrings, exclusive of the home consumption, for which 

 sugar and rum, paying high duties, are brought back in return." 

 Other memorials were presented by the adventurers in the Forth 

 herring fishery and the fishery of Greenock. The latter contains 

 what is probably the best statement of the case for the continuation 

 of the tonnage bounty. The chief witness who advocated the 

 abolition of the bounty system on tonnage was Mr. Irving, Inspector- 

 General of the Imports and Exports of Great Britain, and this 

 emphasises the contention of the adventurers of Greenock that the 

 opinions and conclusions adverse to the buss fishery proceed from 

 gentlemen having no actual knowledge of the fisheries. These 

 conclusions were rebutted. The great argument in favour of the 

 tonnage bounty is that owing to the great uncertainty attending 

 the fishery this bounty was a sort of insurance against loss in bad 

 seasons ; to pay a bounty on the herring caught was merely to 

 increase the takings in a good season. 



The arguments of the adventurers had no effect on the Com- 

 mittee, who in their report of 1799 declined to alter the recommenda- 

 tions as to tonnage bounty made in their third report in 1798. In 

 certain other directions, e.g. in the "quantity of herrings necessary 

 to qualify for the limited bounty, the Committee gave way and 

 modified their recommendations. 

 TTie first report of 1800 recommends that the fishery laws, lately 



