65 
On the other hand, with regard to crabs, there is a great 
similarity in the results of the fishing in the Eyemouth and North- 
umberland districts, and a contrast between these two and the 
North Eastern area, which leads to the impression that the close 
time in the latter district has been accompanied by good results. 
It is clear that since the close time was imposed in 1896 the 
catches of crabs have pretty steadily improved, and it must also be 
remembered that the catching season is contracted by five months. 
Our attempt to secure a close time for Northumberland during 
the season when the fishing is already at a low ebb and when the 
soft crabs are so much in the majority, when moreover the catches 
include so many of the females about to spawn, met with failure 
because a great deal of the fishing at this period of the year is done 
particularly in the northern division of the county outside the 
territorial waters. The contingency argues in favour of the exten- 
sion of the limits, and it argues also for the change desired both by 
the Northumberland and the North Eastern Committees that the 
law should make the landing and sale and possession prosecutable. 
If the fishermen’s contention that the crab fishing is 
deteriorating is admitted, and they are agreed that further legis- 
lation is necessary, there is no other way of legislative interference 
than by imposing a close time from the beginning or at latest the 
end of September to the end of the year. By preventing fishing 
during this period, not only the soft crabs, but more important 
still, the crabs about to become berried are protected. It is argued 
very frequently that the raising of the size to the biological 
limit ought to be the object of legislation, but it is open to question 
whether this is always the logical view of the situation. In the 
case of the crab this would mean raising the limit to 5 or even 
5|in., and in some districts that would be a great hardship. A 
crab of that size would bear about 500,000 ova, whereas a full- 
grown crab would carry from about one to three million eggs. It 
would not be an act of much judgment therefore to raise the limit 
to a size which would give the females a chance of coming once 
into spawn, and at the same time to permit the catching of the far 
more important females of a larger size which are about to become 
berried. It is not clearly recognised either that the fishermen 
catch only a small percentage of the young crabs. I am not 
arguing against a size limit in general, for there are cases when 
it is the most desirable and effective method of interference if such 
be wanted, but a raising of the size limit as a means of protecting 
