13 



Appendices to Thirty-eighth Anmial Report 



to 10s. per half barrel. Coopers' wages were also bigb, and rose again 

 slightly in December. Prices paid to coopers now stand at 9d. for hooping 

 whole barrels in factories only ; for dressed staves and ends supplied 

 Is. 6Jd. to Is. lOd. for whole barrels, and from Is. 5d. to Is. Yd. for half 

 barrels ; and out of the rough with no wood dressed 2s. 8d. for whole barrels 

 and 2s. 4d. for half barrels. Their fishing wages are fixed at £4 Is. per week 

 for the home fishing, and £5 5s. when away from home, with overtime in 

 addition at the rate of 2s. 3d. per hour, and all travelling expenses. The 

 working week is 56 hours. Large contracts for empty whole herring 

 barrels from factories have been entered into by curers for 1920 at from 10s. 

 to 12s. each for delivery in May, and are chiefly for English stations. 



From the districts under review a large number of craft participated in 

 the east Anglian herring fishing, Buckie district contributing the largest 

 number of boats. Taken all over, the English voyage was satisfactory 

 for the Scottish fishermen, and the earnings of steam drifters averaged 

 about £1500, and of motor boats about £900. An unfortunate feature, 

 and one that was very general, was the extraordinary amount of damage 

 done to gear, through stormy weather and fouling. Some of the boats 

 instead of landing at Yarmouth and Lowestoft look their catches direct to 

 Ymuiden, and are reported to have made very substantial earnings. 



Li continuance of the policy carried out earlier in the year in Scot- 

 land, the Government came to the assistance of those participating in the 

 English fishing, and a scheme was introduced whereby a minimum of 45s. 

 per cran was assured to the fishermen, while the curers' produce was 

 purchased by the Government at the following rates per barrel : £3, 6s. 6d. 

 for gutted, and £2, 19s. 6d, for ungutted herrings. This arrangement 

 had the immediate effect of steadying the industry, though perhaps it was 

 weU that the weather conditions were what they were, otherwise gluts 

 would have followed which would have had an adverse effect on the smooth 

 working of the scheme. The scheme was ably administered by an 

 Executive Committee, representing all the various branches of the industry, 

 while the important work of inspecting and stencilling the herrings was 

 efficiently and expeditiously carried out by a staff of eight of the Board's 

 Officers lent to the English Fishery Department. No less than 317,026^ 

 barrels were inspected and stencilled by these Officers, with whose work, 

 it may be remarked, the trade generally expressed thorough satisfaction. 



James Donaldson, 

 Assistant Inspector of Sea Fisheries. 



Fishery Office, 

 Aberdeen, 7th February 1920* 



Eyemouth District. 



In reporting on the district fisheries during the year under review, 

 it may be pointed out that practically aU the men were demobihsed by 

 the end of the year, and that the conditions during the latter six months 

 were about normal, both as regards men and boats. During the years of 

 the war greater attention was given to fine fishing, but during the past 

 season the herring fishing again became the principal industry. The 

 returns do not quite show this, as a number of crews prosecuted the 

 herring fishing during the winter and autumn at other ports. The year's 

 returns show an increase of 30,250 cwts. in quantity, but a decrease of 

 £21,425 in value. AU the line fish show a decrease in value. ' While the 

 average earnings do not equal those of 1918, it is evident that the fisher- 

 men had a fairly prosperous year, a number of crews having made gross 

 earnings of from £5000 to £7000. Kippering of herrings is now actively 



