Fishery Board for Scotland. 
xiii 
national agreement; and at a conference of representatives of the 
fishing industry held in London last February resolutions were 
passed, that in view of the diminution of the valuable food-fishes, 
the hatching of sea fish should be undertaken on a large scale, and 
measures adopted to prohibit the sale of immature flat fishes under 
a certain size. The decrease in the fish-supply from the off-shore 
banks has not yet become so marked off the Scottish coast as is 
the case further south; but from the statistics given below as 
to the yearly increasing number of Scottish beam-trawlers ; the 
flocking northwards of English vessels from their own depleted 
grounds; and the actual diminution in the quantity of flat fish 
landed there is reason to apprehend that in the course of very 
few years a similar result will be brought about here. As has 
been stated above, the Board are at present having erected at Erection of a 
Dunbar, by means of the ordinary vote for scientific investigation, i^ciifry 
on a site granted by the War Office and the Council of the 
Burgh a large hatchery for sea fish, with the necessary tanks 
and pumping apparatus, which, when complete, will permit of 
several hundreds of millions of the food fishes being hatched 
every season and planted on the fishing grounds. It will therefore 
be possible for the first time in this country to adopt active 
measures to directly add to the fish supply, as has already been 
done in the United States, Norway, Canada and Newfoundland. 
2. TELEGRAPHIC EXTENSION. 
In the Board's report of 1882, it was urged that remote fishery Appropriation 
districts should be brought into telegraphic connection with the of surplus 
rest of Scotland, as had been recommended by the Select Com- brand * ees ' 
mittee of the House of Commons on the Herring Brand in 1881. 
The Lords of the Treasury having b?en pleased to authorise the 
sum of £1000 out of the surplus brand fees to be applied to this 
object, an arrangement was made with the Post Office authorities, 
under which they agreed to extend the Post Office telegraph to 
certain stations, on condition that if the revenue did not amount 
to the sum named, the deficit should be made up either by the 
Board or by local guarantors. In 1882-3 the whole of the surplus 
brand fees had been added to the £3000 annually voted by 
Parliament for harbours, and the following is a statement of the 
amount received from brand fees and its appropriation to harbours 
and telegraphic extension during the following years : — 
Appropriation. 
Year. Amount. Tel. Extension. Harbours. 
1882- 3 £3000 — £3000 
1883- 4 2300 £1000 1300 
1884- 5 2400 1000 800 
in addition to £600 spent 
in scientific investigations. 
1885- 6 5200 1000 4200 
1886- 7 5200 1000 4200 
1887- 8 2100 1500 600 
1888- 9 1650 1500 150 
1889- 90 — — _ 
1890- 91 3324 1500 1824 
