of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



199 



and £2714 in the value of fishing material. Several trawlers were sold to 

 Portuguese, Japanese, and Swedish owners during the year, and six vessels 

 were wrecked. These vessels were replaced by 19 new vessels of a larger 

 type, fitted with up-to-date equipment, and valued at .£114,000. 



Reviewing the year's operations in connection with the trawling industry, 

 the number of arrivals made shows an increase of 410 compared with 1910. 

 The most outstanding features of the year were the increased landings from 

 home and Icelandic waters, the unusual catch of herrings from the North 

 Sea grounds, and the low prices realised for fish. In home waters fishing 

 frequently proved unremunerative owing to the difficulty experienced in 

 locating fish, whereby voyages were unduly prolonged. Long- voyage 

 trawlers found the north-western grounds again unproductive at certain 

 periods. The best catches of fish were obtained in the vicinity of Fair Isle, 

 and in Shetland waters,. Short-voyage trawlers also experienced a scarcity 

 of fish on the inshore grounds during the early summer, and consequently 

 were obliged to resort to more distant grounds. Owing to the intense heat 

 in summer, all vessels made shorter voyages than usual in order to land their 

 catches in as good condition as possible. The most successful vessel grossed 

 for the year .£6850, but, generally speaking, the individual earnings of 

 trawlers were considerably under the previous year's average, mainly owing 

 to the poorer prices realised for fish. Several new records were established, 

 principally by local vessels arriving from Icelandic waters, among them being 

 the highest value realised for any single catch (£730), and the heaviest single 

 catch (114 tons). The average catch per arrival was 170*7 cwts., and value 

 8s. llfd. per cwt., as contrasted with 150*9 cwts. and 10s. 6|d. per cwt. in 

 1910. Some 30 trawlers were laid up in summer for a short time owing to 

 poor markets consequent upon the deterioration of the fish in the intense 

 heat. In July and August no less than 9231 cwts. of fish were disposed of 

 for manure, and for the year 14,896 cwts. — mostly small haddocks. For 

 some time in autumn great complaints were made by a section of the trade 

 in regard to the landing of small plaice by short- voyage trawlers, but the 

 matter was not so serious as represented, the plaice being of a much larger 

 size than those landed in former years. The enormous quantities of small 

 haddocks landed and sold for manure, or thrown overboard at sea, is a more 

 serious matter, and one which stands in greater need of being remedied. 



The catch from Faroese waters shows an increase in quantity of 6613 

 cwts., but a decrease in value of £3672, compared with that of 1910. The 

 fishing proved unprofitable to local vessels, owing to scarcity of fish and 

 prolonged voyages caused by stormy weather. English vessels landed a large 

 proportion of the catch from those waters. 



The Iceland fishing was a record one, exceeding the previous year's catch 

 by 181,635 cwts. in quantity and £33,306 in value. The heaviest landings 

 were made by German trawlers, who landed fish during the whole year 

 without cessation from that area, and never previously have they landed so 

 much fish in the autumn and winter months as they did during 1911. Local 

 trawlers only fish at Iceland for about four months of the year. A noticeable 

 feature, in comparing the work of local trawlers with that of Germans, is that 

 the latter invariably accomplish the voyage in a considerably shorter space of 

 time than the former, and, as a rule, land their fish in much better condition, 

 thereby receiving from 2s. to 3s. per score more for their fish than local 

 vessels. A new departure was instituted by Bookless Brothers in curing the 

 catch of their trawlers and of four English vessels on board a chartered steamer 

 anchored on the fishing ground at Iceland, and of despatching the fish to 

 market for sale in a half dried state. The venture is said to have yielded 

 encouraging results. The quantity of fish landed by foreign trawlers was 

 308,072 cwts., valued at £73,543, against 219,425 cwts. and £63,196 in 1910. 

 Arrivals show an increase of 48. Six Faroe smacks landed fish to the 

 amount of 8780 cwts., which realised £2863. 



