of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 
353 
XII. ITALY. 
I am indebted to Professor Giglioli for an official publication of great 
interest in connection with Italian fisheries specially, and with sea fisheries 
generally.* It contains reports of a number of discussions on important 
questions by the Fishery Commission. One of these concerned the limits 
of territorial fishing rights, about which doubts had arisen in the applica- 
tion of certain laws in connection with trawling. Opinionsjwere obtained 
from various Port-Commissions (Capilaneria di porta), <fec, which were 
varied in their nature, but had reference, in fixing a line, to the limits 
within which fishing with trawl-nets (reti a strascico) might be deemed 
injurious. The opinions on the extent of the territorial limit most 
suitable, from the fishery point of view, varied from 1 to about 10 
kilometres ; or, it was suggested, that the range of modern artillery should 
be taken as a guide. But a large number of the answers suggest the 
propriety of taking into consideration the depth of water and the nature 
of the bottom, as well as the distance from shore in fixing such limits. 
The Fishery Commission also obtained information from a number of 
Maritime States in Europe as to the territorial rights in the respective 
countries, and the regulations regarding trawl-fishing within those waters. 
It was resolved that the following addition should be made to the law 
(Art. 16 of 1882) : — That there shall be understood by territorial waters, 
and in reference to fishing with trawl-nets (reti a drascico), from piroscafi) 
a zone of three maritime miles (5553 metres), measured from low water, 
in calma, and in creeks and bays from a line formed by the points of 
entrance, and where the entrance is greater than ten maritime miles, 
from the point where this width begins. But the district and sub-district 
Commissions, taking into account the depth of the water and the nature 
of the bottom, may propose a distance from the land greater or less than 
three miles, in which for any district or sub-district it may be convenient 
to allow piroscafi to fish with drag-nets ; but this proposal the Minister of 
Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce will order in concert with the 
Minister of Marine. 
From a previous publication of the Department,! it appears the coasts of 
Italy are divided into six districts, each of which comprises a number of 
sub-districts (Co mpartimenti), varying from two to five, there being in all 
twenty-three sub-districts. Each of these has apparently its own Com- 
mission. The total produce of the sea fisheries was (in 1886) 243,384 
quintals, valued at 17,264,075 lire; the number of boats was 17,498, of 
a total tonnage of 50,510 ; and the fishermen numbered 50,734, of whom 
only 6508 were employed on the High Sea. 
* Annali di AgricoUura, 1891. Atti delta Commissionc Consultiva per la Pesca t 
Sessione luglio, 1891. Roma, 1892. 
t Annali di AgricoUura. Notizie nulla Pesca Marittima in Italia. Roma, 1887. 
x I 
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