23 



amount of regularity at Pwllheli, and that crabs exceed in 

 numbers the lobsters. From what one knows of the local 

 shell-fish beds and the relative abundance of lobsters and 

 crabs, one is again forced to the conclusion that the figures 

 previous to May, 1902, are unreliable. 



Mr. Johnstone sends me the following note on the ques- 

 tion of the Board of Trade statistics of shell-fish taken in the 

 (old) Lancashire Sea Fisheries District. 



Statistics of Shell-Fish. 



The total value of the shell-fish landed in the year 1898 

 is obtained from the official " Statistical Tables and Memoran- 

 dum " for that year by subtracting the value of the fish 

 landed at the Lancashire ports, exclusive of shell-fish, from 

 the value of the fish landed at the same ports, inclusive of 

 shell-fish, (see " Statistical Tables " for 1898, page 27). This 

 gives us £29,475 as the value of all the shell-fish landed in 

 Lancashire (and Hoylake). 



But in 1895, during the inquiry into the bye-law proposing 

 to close the Burbo Bank shrimping grounds for a certain part 

 of the year, it was stated (and the Inspector holding the 

 inquiry accepted the statement)' 1 " that the value of the shrimps 

 landed in Lancashire was £50,000 per annum. f In 1898, 

 with the assistance of the Fisheries Bailiffs, I estimated the 

 value of cockles landed in Lancashire for that year as £13,370, 

 and this estimate was probably under the mark. Therefore 

 we have : — 



(1) Board of Trade value for total shell-fish, £ 



1898 29,475 



(2) Fisheries Committee's value for shrimvs 



and cockles alone, 1898 ... ... ... 63,370 



Now both of these values cannot be right ! 



* See Report Inspectors of Sea Fisheries (England and Wales) for 

 1895, page 42. 



fit is not clear, however, whether this was meant to be the value of 

 the shrimps landed, or of the shrimping industry. (I think this is the 

 value of the shrimping industry. — J.T.J.) 



