OUR SEA FISHERIES. 255 



beyond this limit. At times, it is true that mackerel, 

 dog-fish, &c. are caught there ; but these are priaci- 

 pally mid-water fish, and it is the ground-feeding fish 

 that are mainly affected by these poisonous deposits. 



There is one other fact in connexion with our sea 

 fisheries that I must touch upon, and that is, the per- 

 mitted infringement of our lawful boundaries, secured 

 to us by treaty, on the part of French and Dutch 

 fishing-boats. I have previoiisly noted the action of 

 the Government upon our fisheries in Newfoundland, 

 but here we have a specimen of its inaction upon our 

 own coasts. To such lengths has the supineness of 

 our cruisers and the boundless impertinence of these 

 fishermen carried them, that they have landed at our 

 fishing villages by himdreds at a time and caused 

 serious riots ; while as regards the fishing upon our 

 grounds, it has been practised to a very great extent 

 indeed — ^fleets of French and Dutch boats taking the 

 living out of the mouths of our poor fishermen, and 

 often sailing through their nets and destroying their 

 gear, regardless of the consequences, or the destruc- 

 tion they caused. 



I was not satisfied with reports of these matters ; 

 but being in Northumberland during the .herring 

 season of 1861, I went to Bamburgh and North 

 Sunderland, where these occurrences were taking 



