of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



107 



Only one steam drifter manned by local men took part in the East 

 Anglian fishing, but a considerable number of district fishermen were 

 engaged as hired hands on board vessels belonging to other districts. 

 The average earnings of the hired hands were about £35. About 100 

 women workers from the district were employed at this fishing, and 

 about the same number were employed at the various centres, chiefly at 

 Wick, during the summer herring fishing. 



Two steam drifters owned in the district were sold in the spring and 

 left the district for Spain. Five 2nd class motor boats, two of which 

 were new, were added to the motor fleet, making in all a total of 41 

 motor vessels now belonging to the district. There is little likelihood of 

 the number of sail boats in the district increasing, and it is very 

 questionable whether any of the large sail boats will again participate 

 in a herring fishing. The number of district fishermen has decreased to 

 some extent owing to the fact that some of the young Embo fishermen 

 emigrated during the year to the Colonies and to America. Through 

 lack of proper harbourage, this creek offers very little inducement to 

 the young fishermen to remain, and for a similar reason the increase in 

 the number of motor boats has been considerably retarded. 



A class for the teaching of navigation was formed in Helmsdale 

 during October, this being the first class of the kind for five years. 

 Twenty-two young local fishermen were enrolled and satisfactory progress 

 was made. 



Save for a few half-barrels which were made inGolpsie, barrel-making 

 was confined to one cooperage in Helmsdale, where four coopers were 

 employed for the greater part of the year. 



Happily no lives were lost at sea during the year, but in the beginning 

 of October two Embo fishermen who had proceeded a few miles from the 

 village to gather willows with which to make creels and baskets were 

 unfortunately knocked down and killed by a railway train. 



The damage to fishing gear was considerably greater than in 1919, 

 on account of the loss and destruction of so many cod-nets. 



Although for the fishing industry as a whole future prospects are 

 meantime anything but bright, this district, being essentially a line 

 fishing centre, is not likely to feel the effects of a herring fishing failure, 

 if such should happen, to the same extent as those districts to which 

 that fishing is of vital importance. Little improvement in the position 

 of the fishermen, however, is to be looked for so long as the cost of 

 living and prices for fishing gear, bait and other accessories remain at 

 their present high level. 



John Buchan, 

 Fishery Officer. 



Fishery Office, 

 Helmsdale, \§th January 1921. 



Lybster District. 



During the year 1920 the fishermen of Lybster district were employed 

 chiefly at haddock and hand-line fishing. Line fish were fairly plentiful, 

 especially in the last quarter of the year. Six motor boats were em- 

 ployed in the district, of which four belonged to the fishermen and two 

 were hired by Lybster crews from Wick owners, and these accounted 

 for 654 per cent, of the total quantity of fish landed. A considerable 

 number of the fishermen are crofters, who do very little at fishing except 

 with hand-lines during the summer months. 



There are now no fishing boats over 45 feet of keel in the district, 



