1(59 
*r«verft«'{5 hv the abceondiilg Batifefi, bat woiiii? also 
bo wHViin a day's tide of <>H>ier Cape Grenvil'e on the 
ppst. "ttS the Batavia Eiver on the 'west, as the 
qprvicoR of the police mipht be reqnlrG*!. A to ore 
pffpotun' rpmedy for the existing condiHon of affairs, 
airl onfl that wonld conduce materially towards the 
es^nhlishmont of the beche-de-m'^r 'ndnstry on a more 
heaUhynn'' nprmanpnt tiaais. would b« thn api^ointniBnt 
of a v'V;iant Bvstem of anrveillance of the fisheries in 
asonn'otinn -with the Government steampr stationed 
!,f Thnrpiiav Island. Mr. "Kent advises that the inspector 
fishp'ip^, recently recommended for anpoiotmeiit 
with r^'ntion to tlie oearl and pearlshell fiflheries of 
rfi^rrno Sfroits, gliould ex6roisR similar functionfl with 
rpiatJon t^o that of the beche-de-mer, and, worVine in 
ror^ junfitiVn with the land and watpr police and Customs 
Department, be intrusted with full powers to snpervise 
all tranqsctioDB asaoeiated with the ene-agement and 
disntiarffe of native lahourera. Under such auspioes a 
rppnior Rvstfin of water patrol should be maintained, 
»nd fl.n the heehe -'le-iiier stations and fishing grounds 
b" subiect tn viHitation by the fishprips 'nsnector at 
anv in^, ) f feraWv. ,r>pxf>p''^"l "^iv va s. Tbe 
recommendations made wiih rercreu;;e to the a))Do5nt- 
ment of a system of t>atro1 of the bpcbe-de-mer fishing 
grounds of Torres Straits will apply with cnnsiderable 
if rot pqunl force to the fisheries of a like nature 
that are nrogecuted alone the Great Barrier and mainland 
coflut south of Oape York Peninsnla. An imnortant 
matter connpeted with the employment of native 
lfibourer'5 for the collection of becbe-de-mer was bronerht 
under Mr. Kent's notice by a deputation of the leading; 
hi^atowners md ViecVie-de-mer merchants in Cooktown. 
In acpprdarce with the existing regulation it is requisite 
that all native lahourera engaped for this indnstrv should 
he brought to the nearest Onstom-house or shipping 
office to the nlace at which they were recruited for 
the rurnose of resiatrxtion. The complianee with this 
regulation frequentlv entails a very serious loss of time 
and moTjev to the boatowners. from which they are 
anxious to ho relieved. A remedy for the disadvantages 
under which the beche-de-mer industrv is carried on, 
owing to the circumstances described, was sugge.sted 
bv the Cooktown deputation. Th's was that the 
reeistratirin of the native labourers engaeed should 
be permi^^ted at any of the lisrbtships or lighthouse 
stations fllma- the coast, and that the official in charge 
of them should be vested with the necessary powers 
to witness flu'^ sanction such reor'stration The conces- 
sion sought being so reasonable, Mr. Kent has no 
hpsitatipn in recnmmending it for favourable 
entprtainrapnt. The appointment of a well-qualified 
inappctorof fisheries for the Cooktown district is greatly 
needed. The duties of such an appointment might be 
hoHi ar^-ropriately and economically undertaken, with 
a PuifRb'p increment of emolument, in conjunction 
with the functions discharged by the present harbour- 
master. In intimate asfociation with the beche-de- 
fiB>>prv may be mentioned the collection of 
tortnispslieil. The trade in this material is not of 
sufficient extent to constitute an independent industry, 
the greater portion of that which is exported being 
obtninpd bv those engaged in the collection of beche^ 
dp-mer The average annual value of this material 
that has been exported from Queensland within the 
nast ten years has slightly excseded £400. The highest 
fi'.urp, and one that indicates that the trade in 
1ortoi'=( shell is increasing, was reached last year, when 
it amounted to as much as £1705 The prices obtained 
for Qtieensland tortoiseshel! vary considerably, accord- 
ing to qualitv. The best and most valuable descrintion 
is obtained from the true tortoiseshell turtle which, 
if of superior texture, mav realise from il to ±,1 5s 
ror pouu'i. The thin and inferior descriptions of 
tortoisesbpll produced by the edible turtle will not 
ov tain \vahi r price than 4s. or 5s. per pound. Ike 
plnn adopte l for the capture of turtle bv the natives 
. f f e Tnrx'8 Straits Islands is remarkable^ I'or tins 
purp. se tbev make uao of the sucking fish, which m 
'hfae ■-'atp.s attains to a length of 3ft. or 4ft The 
fist' ciuLdit for turtle fishing are kept ahye in water 
in the bottom of the canoes, a thin line being secured 
to the tail and through its gill coyerfl. When a turtle 
in m9a in the watec oloae to the oimoe the ammg 
fi«h Is thrown out towards it, and immediately iwim' 
for and fastens itself to the reptile's carapace. If 
the tnrtlo is a small one ft mav be drawn to the 
boat's side by the ^.t+ached line, without the sncting 
fish lettmg go its hold: hot if of larffs dimensions 
the native plunc^s ovprboard and ea'ilv sppnreB it. 
There B re other marine produets besides that of 
tortoiseshel! bv which those engaged in the beohe-de- 
mer tisheries might angment their incomes and turn 
to prefitflble nocnnnt thpspire timpintprvenlng between 
the seasons most prrfitable for cellctm" the prim«ry 
object of thfM- attention. The edible turtle of the 
Pacific, if Buitablv prepared and dried, or otberwiso 
preserved, would command a ready sale in the Dhinesp 
and other markets. The same may also he said of gb arks' 
fins, which, at many stations on the Indian coastline, 
represent an extensive and higblv valuable article of 
eisport. At one of the becbe-de.m"r curing stations in 
the Great Barrier diatrict Mr Saville-Kenf wasinformed 
that a cnrer had experimentallv aent in somp dried 
sharks' fin to Cooktown. which had rendilf realige^d 
among the Chinese residents a price of no less than 
19d. ner lb. This price represents £q 17". 4'. per ewt; 
or, £177 per ton. and ghcui'1 ppconrage the estah. 
Hshment of a regular tr«fle in tho article. Sharks, and 
espeei.illy the smaller Viflrmle^s spep.iea abound throufrh- 
ont the waters productive of heche-de-mer. and might, 
with a very trifling ouMav, he mtr^p the obiect of a 
remunerative suppleiriPntary fishprv. The livers of 
sharks and a'so of stiniyravs, wbich are excep'^ingly 
abundant in thesp same aistrlcto, vipI-I a valuable oil, 
while their earpas=es, in combination with the waste 
products from the beehe-de-mer, would make excellent 
manure, akin to guano and partlcularlv rich in 
phosphates. Another marine product to which attpntinn 
might he profitably turned by those engaged in the 
beche-de-mer industrv is that of sponge. Examples of 
sponges, gome few being of excellent quality, and 
others, though less fine in texture, having an un'loubted 
commercial value, h«ve been submitted to the 
commissioner as collected fi-om a variety of stations 
along the North Queensland coast. A thoroughly 
systematic exploration of the waters in the neigh- 
bourhood of the bScbe-de.mer curing stations wonld, 
there is good reason to anticipate, reSultinthe discovery 
of extensive beds of this valuable commercial article. 
A substance produced in great varietv and abundance 
throughout the becbe-do-mer fishing grounds, but which 
has hitherto received but scant attention, is that of 
coral. The form known as " precious coral" has not 
as yet been obtained from Australian waters, thoueh 
the conditions favourable for its P'rowth anparently 
exist throughout extensive areas. The descriptions of 
coral here referred to are those which enter so ex- 
tensively into the constitution of coral reefs, and are 
probably nowhere in the world developed on so large 
a scale and in such a multiplicity of varieties as are 
to be found in the Great Barrier svstem of the 
Queensland Fpahonr.l. .'inia'l consicrnments of this coral 
are occasionally exported as puriosities or for ornampr.tal 
uses, the bulk so far, ho'vpver. rarely excep'^ing in 
one year a declared value of £-(0. The tr>idp. nevertbeleps, 
is one that would appear to tie capable of consirlerable 
development. Some dozp" or so of the most rea''ily 
accessible varieties, out of over 100 species that exist 
to choose from, represent all that have, so far, been 
turned to comnierciar account. These, neverthelpss, 
when well prepare*!, have ohtained good prices ; 30s. 
to 408. per case, each case containing perhaps half a 
dozen sppcimeua, and weii hing, collectively, less than 
Ijcwt, being the ordinary chirtre. There is no '^ou'ht 
that well-Behcted collpctiona of the Barrier Eeef anrl 
Torres Strails c<"ral3, such as could bo selected and 
prepared with the greatest facility at any of the 
beche-de-mer curing station<: would command a readv 
sale as objects of intrinsic beauty at suitable depots 
ill all of the hirger Au'tra'ian cities ; the muspums 
throughout tte world wnnl,] sljidly utilise the opportunity 
of secu-iug type col ectioi s ot the innumerable corals 
of the Torres Strnits and Great Barrier regions. A 
remarkable Rpecies that is not' Uufreqnentlv obtaired 
by the pearlshell divers in Torres Straits and throughout 
in the Barrier region is the black coral. This coral 
poBse«,^e» a high commercial value in the Indian mnrket 
