154 



Part III. — Twenty -seventh Annual Report 



1885- 1895. 1896-1908. 



East Coast 95*1 per cent. 95*7 per cent. 



Orkney and Shetland . . 04 ., 0*7 „ 



West Coast 4 4 „ 3-6 



It is of interest to note that while over the period the value or price of 

 crabs rose on the East Coast, and in particular in Orkney and Shetland, 

 the price declined on the West Coast, as the following table shows : — 





East 



Orkney and 



West 



All 





Coast. 



Shetland. 



Coast. 



Scotland. 



1884-1888 



11-9 



6-2 



136 



11*8 



1889-1893 



10-0 



8-9 



8-6 



9-2 



1894-1898 



10-0 



120 



7-6 



9-9 



1899-1903 



12-1 



10-7 



8-8 



L20 



1904-1908 



12 6 



12-4 



7-5 



12-2 



The figures show the values in shillings per 100 crabs. 



Unclassified Shell-fish. 



To this division belong a number of shell-fish which, in the order of 

 their value, may be given as follows : — Periwinkles and whelks, limpets, 

 shrimps, cockles, razor-fish or spout-fish (Solen), Norway lobster or craw- 

 fish. It appears that the names periwinkle and whelk are given 

 indifferently at different parts of the coast to the same mollusc ; but there 

 is little doubt that the most valuable of the unclassified shell -fish in Scot- 

 land is the periwinkle, of which thousands of cwts. are collected from the 

 shores. Shrimp-fishing is confined to the upper parts of the Solway Firth. 



Taking all the coasts together, the aggregate quantity of unclassified 

 shell-fish landed in the years 1883- 1908 amounted to 1,423,060 cwts., 

 giving an average per annum for the period of 54,733 cwts. In the years 

 1883- 1895 the total quantity was 718,313 cwts., the average being 

 55,255 cwts. ; in the years 1896 - 1908 the quantity was 704,747 cwts., the 

 average being 54,211 cwts. per annum. There was thus a slight average 

 decrease, amounting to 19 per cent. On the East Coast the aggregate 

 quantity in the twenty-six years amounted to 408,504 cwts., the average 

 per annum being 15,712 cwts. ; in the first half of the period the quantity 

 totalled 222,975 cwts., the average being 17,152 cwts. ; in the second half 

 the total w^as 185,529 cwts. and the average 14,271 cwts. There thus 

 occurred a decrease of 16*8 per cent, in the quantity on the East Coast. 



The aggregate quantity at Orkney and Shetland was 186,777 cwts., 

 giving an annual average for the twenty-six years of 7184 cwts. In the 

 first period the total amounted to 124,356 cwts., the average being 9566 

 cwts. ; in the second period the total was 62,421, the average being 4802 

 cwts. There was therefore a decrease in the latter period to the extent of 

 almost 50 per cent. 



On the West Coast the total quantity amounted to 827,778 cwts., giving 

 an average of 31,838 cwts. per annum. In the period 1883-1895 the 

 quantity was 370,981 cwts, and the average 28,537 cwts. ; in the period 1896- 

 1908 the total amounted to 456,797 cwts., the average being 35,138 cwts. 

 The West Coast thus differs from the other coasts in showing an increase 

 in this class of shell-fish to the extent of about 23 per cent. It is 

 problematical, however, whether an increase in this class is an indication 

 of prosperity. If it consists, as it appears to do, to a large extent of peri- 

 winkles and other forms obtained by collection along the shores, it is not 

 unlikely that in periods of scarcity in fisheries proper this method of 

 increasing the means of support is had recourse to. 



