of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



xxxvii 



Statement showing the number of Scottish Fishing Boats employed, 

 and the quantity and value of herrings landed by them at the 

 English and Irish fishings. 



Scottish District 

 to wliich 

 Boiits Belong. 



Particulars of Fishing 

 on Coasts of England. 



Particulars of Fishing 

 on Coasts of Ireland. 



Total 

 Cwts. 



Total 

 Value. 



Boats. 



Cwts. 



Value. 



Boats. 



Cwts. 



Value. 









£ 







£ 





£ 



Eyemouth 



16 



40,190 



14,928 





3,486 



1,307 



43,676 



16,235 



Leith 







• 



1,155 



261 



1,155 



261 



Anstruther 



"50 



l",771 



'750 





2,100 



450 



3,871 



1,200 



Montrose . 



14 



2,149 



930 







2,149 



930 



Peterhead 



32 



51,800 



13,320 



' '2 



1*316 



*470 



53,116 



13,790 



Fraserburgh 



1 



385 



94 



41 



14,395 



4,655 



14,780 



4,749 



Banff 



3 



3,570 



1.277 



21 



10,269 



3,323 



13,839 



4,600 



Buckie 



7 



9,060 



3,735 



30 



29,400 



8,600 



38,460 



12,335 



Findhorn . 



1 



1,645 



420 



20 



14,000 



5,000 



15,645 



5,420 



Wick 



1 



1,498 



363 







1,498 



363 



Totals 1914 



125 



112,068 



35,817 



129 



76,121 



24,066 



188,189 



59,883 



„ 1913 



1,163 



2,488,183 



763,256 



159 



102,074 



40,572 



2,590,257 



803,828 



As a result of the immense success which had attended the East 

 Anglian fishings of 1912 and 1913, the most sanguine expectations had 

 been formed regarding the prospects for 1914, and even after the 

 outbreak of war had brought the Scottish season to an abrupt close, 

 fishermen and curers were not without hope that they would be able 

 to retrieve their fortunes at the English fishing. As the situation 

 developed, however, it became clear that curing operations would 

 almost infallibly result in further loss, and when eventually the season 

 opened, operations were restricted to supplying the fresh herring 

 market. To make matters worse, there came the discovery that the 

 sea had been strewn with German mines, and after a number of vessels 

 had been lost through coming in contact with these engines of destruc- 

 tion, the bulk of the fleet returned home early in November. The 

 disappointment caused by the collapse of the fishing was accentuated 

 by the fact that, to all appearances, herrings were on the grounds in 

 the same abundance as in the previous year. On one occasion, for 

 example, the average for twenty-five arrivals at Lowestoft was 140 

 crans, and the few boats which braved the dangers of fishing operations 

 throughout the entire season had excellent earnings, one vessel having 

 as much as £2700. 



The Scottish fleet was composed of 109 steam, 9 motor, and 7 sailing 

 boats, and their average earnings were respectively, £316, £102, and 

 £61. These figures are in marked contrast with those for the previous 

 year, which were respectively £794, £365, and £235, but the extent of 

 the loss which was incurred through the disastrous season of 1914 

 may best be appreciated by comparing the value of the landings with 

 the figures for 1913. In the latter year Scottish fishermen earned 

 £763,256 ; in the year under review, £35,817. 



The fleet which went to the Irish fishings comprised 112 steam, 

 9 motor, and 8 sailing vessels, as compared with 146 steam, 6 motor, 

 and 7 sails in 1913. The season was an unsuccessful one, and the 

 total catch was only 76,121 cwts., which realised £24,066, as compared 

 with 102,074 cwts. and £40,572 in the preceding year. Earnings 

 were in consequence low, averaging only £195, £147, and £114 for 



