of the Fishery Board for Scotland, 



xlvii 



Board under statutory powers, and is found to meet the requirements 

 of the trade exceedingly well. It is made in two sizes, the " whole 

 barrel " of 26| gallons, and the more recently introduced " half 

 barrel " of 13 J gallons. To keep the cured herrings in good condition 

 the barrels must remain perfectly tight, and in order that the bai-rels 

 may stand the great pressure to which they are subjected when piled in 

 tiers in the hold of a ship, the good workmanship and materials 

 specified by the Regulations are fully required. The method 

 of hooping now invajiably adopted, viz. : wooden hoops on the 

 quarters and the stronger and ha tidier iron hoops on the ends only, 

 helps greatly to preserve the barrels, as the projecting wooden hoops 

 relieve the pressure on the bulge. 



Herring barrels are used in thv tnuh in Scotland practically only 

 once : a few cargoes of er[i])ty barrels were brought back some years 

 ago, but did not give satisfaction. Old Scottish barrels are, however, 

 bought up and filled by the Dutch curers, and are put to a variety 

 of uses in the interior of Germany and Russia. In the East Anglian 

 autunm fishing new Scoitish bari'els are largely used, not only by 

 curers who have taken tlieir stock south, but also by English curers 

 who import from Scotland. The annual output of barrels in Scotland 

 is therefore in excess of the large number of barrels of herrings cured 

 from year to year. 



Appendix G. No. 11. (p. 150) shows that in all 2,884,463 barrels 

 (2,001,466 whole, 882,997 half) were manufactured in Scotland in 

 1914, as compared with 3,029,963 in the record year 1913, a decrease 

 of less than 5 per cent. The decrease would have been much greater 

 w^ere it not that the manuiactm'e of barrels has been continued in the 

 hope of an early improvement in the international situation. But 

 if, as threatens, only a very restricted fishing takes place in 1915, 

 stocks must soon be as large as any curer desires to carry. Of the 

 total output in 1914 over 80 per cent, was manufactured at the five 

 ports, Aberdeen, Peterhead, Fraserburgh, Wick, and Lerwick. Less 

 than 1 per cent, was constructed of woods other than fii\ 



BASKET-BRANDING. 



As will be seen from Appendix G, No. II., the number of i-cran 

 baskets examined and branded dm^ing 1914 shows a considerable 

 decrease from that of the preceding year, the figures for 1914 and 1913 

 being respectively 38,306 and 51,426. The only district to show an 

 increase is Loch Carron and Skye, where the factory at Uig, with an 

 output of 8253 baskets, improved upon its production in the preceding 

 year to the extent of 60 per cent. 



MARINE SUPERINTENDENCE. 



During the first seven months of the year the superintendence of 

 the fisheries around the Scottish Coasts was carried out by the five 

 fishery cruisers belonging to the Board, and by H.M.S. " Ringdove." 

 The Board's vessels were employed on their usual stations, as detailed 



