SEmM9ER T. THE TROPICAL AtIRIOlJLTURlST l6? 
BEOH'R-DF.-M'R'R ATO PEABTiRHELL 
FISTTEKIES OF QUEENSLAND. 
In a vn’nminnn* ralaWng ♦« ♦■hft hAoh^.Ha-inar 
an*^ naarlab**!! flsbAnp* of Northern QiiAen«Vn^, 
comn’l^*^ Bwocta+inn wUh hi* reo^n^ t^nr, PxtAndinBT 
ovpr four month*. Mr. W. Saville-Knot, Corami^monpr 
of FJsh#‘rie8, tnVa* much Intereptinff and vAlnable 
informat'on. In'Mwv l*pt Mr.Kpnfwaaa na*penpef by 
H.M.8. “ Rambler '* for Torres StraitP, and onnnrfnni^v 
wn* taken of the time oonnnled by ‘be offirem rftbat 
vofMel in mak’ncf a •vaferaati© iin^vev of tbp neiebbonr. 
hood of the **Q'ietta ” wreok, to irvp*tipato the marine 
fanna ffpnpr'*J1v of that a’*ea. The rahiaMe r.ommerchl 
variety of beobp.dp-m«r known a* r^d-flsb wa* observed 
in some nnmhov*Q r>n the evonsed roofs pontiffnons to 
tbo Mid Rrother R'^oks. Risek.h'pned nparlabell wa* 
ai«o fonnd the^’p. and on thp rppfs of Ado’pbns T«l*nd. 
Snecimphs of tbpa© wP’-p rollected. taken aUvp to 
Tbnrsdav TsUnd, and laid down on the pjcnerimental 
rpapfvp. A ponnidprahlp eolleotion of thp ■fish of this 
dlpt^i<»t tva« likpwipp madp. whinb will, it ia sf'ti''inst‘'d, 
be found hn oritip*! oxsmination to co*'fain mnn'r 
appcioa not pfPvi''U8lv known to inhaMt Qi^oenslsnd 
waters. On arrlviojf at Tburs'^av Inland hi* attention 
^a* flOPoiaUv (lir'-nfpd towards obtainin'^ complotp 
mfnrmstion oonrpminij thp hocho— dp-mpr fishprip®. 
and towards Rcqnirin'* a personol srrina’ntanep w‘th 
S'U of the mofft important onTn*nfi'‘oi- 1 rppre*pntnt!ve* 
of thst ppouliar pmup of thp invertpbra^-p anh-kinirdom 
variopalv dtH^n^nishpdhr thpponnlan tiHps of trepane, 
booh<».do-TnPr, or flpa-«lnrT«. To aroompl’sb tbi* he 
proceeded to Tod, or Warner laiand, at the north 
estr^mitv of the O^^oat i^Mr^ier coral re^f. and within 
forty miV.i of the New Unine* ooa*t. Thi« island is 
^p hoarhinartprs rf a ©onoidprahlp sprtion of the Tornp* 
Sf'aitsi h#ehp-d«.^npr fipbinff fl»«t The snpc’p* <»f 
heohe-do-mpr ooliooTPd and oxaminod at Warrior Tal'iid 
■WPro what arp dia^t^tTniahprl in ♦hn ma^knfc V*v the ti*lpq 
of hiark-fish. rrd»fiah, test-fi'^li, pr'^klT-fish. lolV fiah, 
and Rsnd*fiah. ‘N^ono of the literature acc*’ssii'le in 
Briahanp has pnnblpd him to d»tprminp, with t-nf one 
p^o'^nfion, the tenhojoal identitv of th»-sp 
cornmorclal aopotaa, nud {4 in q, rnattnr of s^rup dnnhf 
as to^ whether t1»ny hnvo aa ret boon roirntificady 
dnpcr»hpd. p Iotp' p*..Ri*pd oommnrrtal bcchp-de-'nior 
obs'^rved in Qncp''«land waters is tho ordi^arv n^’cUlr- 
fish. or nr'ckiv*rn«), which, in it® fnliv pxte* ded Bta*p, 
may measTirp 4Ft. - r mom in lenpth.with an accompany, 
inv diameter of 4'o. or5»n.* E^hteen inf»h.»a represents 
the mcrp r^dinarv extended lencth of hlaek. red, and 
toat fish. In nil inpt«n'‘es these o.-ffan’BmB a’'e cana^'le 
of confractinjf to aho^tt onp-haif of thoir extended 
length, tho ho*v tinder such cord'tton* hpincr relatir^^lv 
thicker. M**. Kent dewoTthos the nrooe^a hv which 
hpohp.dp-m»r aro nrernfed for tho ma^'Wet. and the 
monns h’’ whi^’h the fidiery is carried on. A pond 
average fake for a fishing stetion workinff with nnlv 
four hoata, carrring twenty to twpntv-four men. fa 
one ton of cured hecbivlde-mpr per month. The 
eollect'on of the heebe-de-mfr is aecomnliOied in 
asBocistion with the \f^w tides th^t obtain dnring the 
new and full phnaes of the moon, end ei^ht or ten 
days am fhns left in each Irniar mo»'th whi^’h are not 
profitably ntdised, Tlie greater portion of the heche— 
de-mer is sirnnlr picked off the reefs when the water 
h"s roceded. but the finest red and black fl^h. and the 
pricklv-fmh almo.s^ exclnaively, are obtained hy diving 
during the Fame low tides to a depth of two or three 
ia*homs. 
Respertfnp' the hath-vmetrloal or vertical distribution 
of commercinl bcche-de-»> rr, red, WacV. and prickly 
fiah are reported to oornv a depth of four or five 
fathoma, and loilv-fish t<. Iihco been observed hv divers 
■ R (kPti down na oi"' t „ fnH.nm., Thp d.H?r wn^or 
PxaniplpH of the rpd U'-d h’ank pnpi'ptipp, oht.'OPd hy 
divine, pro of tliP lorePPt Piz , fntn^ » hiohor ppipp, 
^d ,re ropoRnls.d hv » diptinet t'tlo in thP mprkpi. 
Thp qnn.t'on hna hppn dipous.pd hv oprt iin of tiie 
hoafowoTB PB to whPthpr b»php-do.inpr miphf ho 
pro(i‘pi,ly o olTpotpd with tho pid of diving apnar.tns 
* H tvp sen tings of Piinh tnor.DOiis size ever hem 
found m OeyloB P— Fo). T. A, 
after tho m.nnhr of peurloholl. and will prohahlv ho 
put to a praotlosl tost. Tho southernmnat point at 
wh'oh the hooho-do-moT fl*hpriep have so far hean 
profttaMy worVed Is eastward from Maoiray. Many 
largp.piaefl pppoirs not yPt tnrned to praptioal aooonnt, 
however, ahonnd threnRhoiit tho A-iiatraHan littoral! 
Ono fpatnro peeiili«r to a npmhor of the non-oommoroiai 
yariotipB i« the hnhlt they poa«e9«, when handled, of 
ejpptine from the vent ropel'ke maapps of a white cottony 
•nhafanoolhar on ira first emisBion odhores with extreme 
tonaeitv to evory ohjeet with which it oomoB inoontac*-. 
It would appear nospiMe that a naefnl ineredlevt for 
c»mpnt, having anmevhat the property of oaontohenc, 
might he m*nnfpctiirpd from thia anhstanoe. The 
morov value of the total apru"! output oWelv 
oerreaponda with, hiit ia aomewhat in eyep.a of, that 
of the ovaters an pxienaivelv exported from the aenihern 
dlatrlet of Quaenaland to the neighhouring ooloniea. 
Ohina reprSaentf the Tnarket. wh*eh, with the exeoni'on 
of a few hsudeedwelghta, »1' the AuBfra'tan heeha.dp_ 
mer ia odnaigned. Barrier flsh eniova a . .M»h”r 
Teputa*ion and realiaea better nrie-a th“n ia obtained 
for the article derived from any other loeaHtr on the 
fare of the glohp. The most flouriahing epoch of the 
Qneenaland beche-do-me- frad - was proorier.eed 
between the veara IBSl and Isa,*?, whim the .due of 
the total aonnal exrorts apnroximot“d nr even exceeded 
£.St1.000. The mo-t npremureratiye po'nt to the aamo 
InduRtry waa represented hv th" rp,r IgSf, vlian the 
total export value fell to £1,5.000. Slope that date 
there haa Imen an improving tendency, which is 
appa'entlv atill in prngreva. the I'cen.pa for boats t.lten 
nut. for the onrrent rear hoine in rxocsa of 'ast rear’s 
niirnhor. The returns in tins direptinr show that sixfv- 
two- t'oats are now lie«nsod from Port Konpedy. in 
Thursday la’and. and twpntv-.evon from Cooktown, 
To these are to he addo' some half-a-dnxen which, 
have taken opt lieovso” at Towr.wHc Osiri s, se.l 
Inghsin. This pivea a' total of 'yer 100 ersft enoageil 
in the fishery. Tho current pripca for h''ohe-de.mer, 
as recentiv qrioi'd in the Onnktown market, were aa 
follows : — T a*-fi h. Idaek and ordirarv, £140 to £1,50; 
tP"t-fivh. white, £40; rpd-fi«h, nrdinarv niid devp 
water. £100 to £11(1 ; rod. fish, .n.f £«o »o £90 ; tlaek- 
fish, deep water. £M0; hlaeV-fi.h nr'inarv ad 
Caledonian, £90 to .£9P ; 'oliv-fldi £.9.5; nr*ck!v-fish, 
or prioklr-red. £30 to £10; sat,d-fi,l,, £20 to £a0. 
The nrioVlv-fiah nr pwokiy-red. now roalieing from 
£30 to £40 nor ton only, stood eight years aoo at 
tha head of the I’st, and readily s Id at from £140 
to £150 per ton. The heavy d. prevl"t*on in vahie aro.p 
from the cironmatanee that o conaignment of this 
variety aevt to Chins at about the time ’ndiea'ed had 
hocn boiled, prrviona to eiiring, in a copper vessel, 
with the reault that a number of Chioeae were poi.nned. 
I'oiannons properties were immedia'ely attrihu ed to 
this partleiil’ir sp.cies of |;)eohe-de— rner. and it has 
nevor sires recovered it. original value in the mar’set. 
A matter demanding seriou" attention with relaiion to 
the Ivche-de-mer fisheries of Northern Qiiaenslaod is 
asanriated with tho employment of native lahoiirvra. 
Of late rears, and in the Torres Straits district more 
particularly, ont-ages committed by these labo'Tprs, 
ill whieh the bontownera or their'agents have to ti 
assaulted and io't 'heir 'iv-s, or the hiiats with ston . 
on hoard have been stolen, have hponrne so fr qnent 
as to paralyse the in 'iistry t.i a very large > » ,ii'. 
Net only have the originators of i hese ontrsgi's es. at eil 
punishment, but in msnv instsnees indiviunsls kii. ivii 
to have lieen asBOciated wilh previous inasiaores and 
outrages have been re-e-gi ed hy other voipl vers. 
Some essays at ipdiscpinii"atp retril'iiti ui on the native 
t'ihPB. in which more ot -n the inn'ic'iit have suffer. d 
for thn gii'itv, have I'eon ' ccasional’v ntt-'n p . ' j h^t 
anti' strin* jnsliee is administered, ami tli" oftim.linp 
indivi.luals only are in do to pay the penal i of their 
setions, no amo'inrslion of the existing iin’-l’.sr e'ory 
eendilion of this Nhoiir question e.an he a 'h iv.i*, d, 
fr has been pointed eat to h-m t's* ail c Unci i t pnheo 
station eot ihli'lipd on the r>"oi ■ Kiver a' 'lie p int 
whereit ia crosf d hy the teh g apli line w- uld aoc niplish 
raneh towards the Mippr. sMon of the.se outrages as 
upcli station wenM not ooly be oa the line of route 
