18 Fortieth Annual Report' 



in 1921 are shewn in the following table ; figures for the year 1920 

 are also given for purposes of comparision : — 



Scottish Herring Fishing, 1921. 





Winter. 



Early Summer. 



Great Summer 

 and Autumn. 



1 



Year. 



1st January — 

 31st March. 



1st April — 

 30th June. 



1st July — 

 31st December. 





Price 



Price 



Price 



Price 





per cwt. 



per cwt. 



per cwt. 



per cwt. 





s. d. 



s. d. 



s. d. 



s. d. 



East Coast . 



10 6 



13 6 



8 6 



9 6 



Orkney and Shetland . 



7 9 



10 5 



6 0 



6 9 



West Coast . 



11 11 



13 0 



13 0 



12 7 



Whole of Scotland(1921) 



11 0 



12 2 



8 6 



, 9 6 



Do. (1920) 



13 11 



15 1 



14 2 



14 3 



9. Disposal of Herring Catch. 



Of the total quantity of herrings landed in Scotland last year 

 1,852,254 cwts. or 75 2 per cent, were preserved in one way or 

 another, while 611,052 cwts. or 24'8 per cent, were consumed fresh. 



Details of the quantities of herrings cured in each of the fishery 

 districts are given in Table D. — No. I. (a) (p. 122), which shows also that 

 the quantities dealt with by each method of cure were substantially 

 less than in the preceding year. The quantity used or despatched 

 fresh was also less, although not to the same extent. As usual the 

 greater part of the herrings cured were pickled gutted, almost ex- 

 clusively for export, the quantity so treated representing about half 

 of the total herring catch, as was also the case in 1920, against about 

 four-fifths in pre-war years. Curing in pickle is the backbone of 

 the herring fishing industry, and on the demand for the produce in 

 the overseas markets the success or failure of the fishery depends. 



The outlook for curing at the commencement of the season was 

 not bright, as large stocks of the previous year's produce remained in 

 this country and the chief markets on the Continent were still in a 

 very unsatisfactory state, while on the other hand the stave-wood 

 and other materials held by curers had been purchased at high prices. 

 With characteristic optimism, curers nevertheless engaged sufficient 

 staffs of workers for dealing with almost a normal catch, but un- 

 fortunately events did not justify their expectations. Herrings ap- 

 peared to be exceptionally scarce on the fishing grounds, while the 

 coal dispute prevented most of the steam drifters from going to sea 

 early in the season, so that landings were very limited at the time 

 when the demand was best. Curers were practically obliged to pay 

 higher prices for herrings than the state of the cured markets 

 justified, and at the same time were unable to provide regular em- 

 ployment for their workers, which inevitably raised the cost per 

 barrel for curing, especially in the case of herrings purchased in the 

 early summer. 



