of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



43 



still to be settled, no compensation was secured by the complainers 

 owing to the evidence available being insufficient to admit of further 

 proceedings being taken. In all but one instance the complaints 

 originated outside territorial w T aters, and consisted, for the most part, 

 of damage to line fishing gear, steam trawlers being the greatest 

 offenders. 



In addition to the foregoing, several cases of damage to the gear 

 of fishing vessels by H.M. ships were investigated during 1920 by the 

 Board's officers. The claims were transmitted to the Admiralty, who 

 in seven cases awarded compensation amounting in the aggregate to 

 the sum of £323, 7s. 6d. 



During the cod net fishing season in the Moray Firth a con- 

 siderable amount of trouble was experienced through the operations 

 of foreign trawlers in the Firth, and the consequent damage to the 

 cod net fishing gear of the local fishermen. Eight specific complaints 

 of such damage were reported to the Board, and in other cases gear 

 was reported to have been lost, but no evidence was forthcoming as 

 to the identity of the offenders, although it was believed that foreign 

 trawlers were responsible. 



The practice of the local fishermen of leaving the nets unattended 

 during darkness, and their failure to comply fully with the Begula- 

 tions issued by the Board in January 1914 for the Marking and 

 Lighting of Anchored Cod Nets, render it impossible to prove wilful 

 damage, and it is thus difficult to obtain redress. 



In particular cases where evidence was available as to the identity 

 of the trawler alleged to have caused the damage, the Board 

 endeavoured to obtain compensation for the fishermen, but without 

 success, as the claims could not be legally enforced except by recourse 

 to proceedings in foreign courts. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



MISCELLANEOUS. 



Fishing Boat Insurance. 



Although, on the whole, excellent facilities for the insurance of 

 the larger fishing vessels are provided by the various fishing boat 

 insurance companies, the same could not until very recently be 

 said of the small and medium-sized motor boats, which now con- 

 stitute so large a proportion of the Scottish fishing fleet, and during 

 the course of the year the question of providing better facilities 

 for the insurance of such vessels was taken up. Certain of the 

 Scottish companies, it is true, offered favourable terms for the 

 insurance of such craft, provided they were under £500 in value and 

 did not exceed 50 feet in length of keel; but owing to the great 

 appreciation in money values during the war, the majority of the 

 boats to which these terms were evidently intended to apply could 

 no longer take advantage of them, and were either insured at higher 



