152 
ANIMAL LIFE ON THE 
^' add another prize- wreath to the laurels of Her Majesty's 
navy." The prohibition law against trawling, however, was 
not maintained through the selfish cry of a few interested 
individuals, but by the unanimous voice of the drift-net 
fishermen of Scotland. It was asserted, with some show of 
reason, that the system of capture broke up the shoals, and 
when practised at the mouth of the loch, prevented the fish 
from ascending to their old quarters. The same reasoning 
was applied to the Kyles of Bute. In that quarter, at 
Tighnabruaich, we have heard an old experienced fisherman 
say : " Well, suppose you place a set of trawlers over yonder 
on the Bute shore, and another set here, they are able, with 
their enormous nets and ropes, to sweep the entire distance, 
and capture or frighten back every fish that attempts to 
advance. And this is the reason that our once famous 
Kyles of Bute fishery is now unknown." 
But there were other reasons of a more damaging nature 
advanced. It was stated that the most experienced trawler 
could not tell the size of the fish before he had them 
captured, consequently great quantities of immature fish 
were bound to be encircled and destroyed. Next, it was 
said that both in-shore and with the "ringing system" out in 
the deep, that with such vast multitudes that are captured, 
it is utterly impossible to secure the entire draught ; there- 
fore, out of the encircled host, as many tons of dead fish go 
to the bottom as are secured, where they go to feed and 
accumulate dogfish and other vampires that constantly 
follow in the wake of the shoals. Again, it was stated 
that the trawl system deteriorates the marketable value of 
the fish, by sending into the market a class of fish that will 
not keep for any length of time, even in the cured state. 
Of all the objections stated this last one is certainly 
the most damaging; and, unfortunately for the system, is 
