Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 9.djvu/267

SCOTCH HEnnixt; FISHERY.] F ISHERIES 2,Y7 p irpose, and hoisted up just clear of the water; the top is then opened, aud a man steps into tho chest and lifts the iish out, seizing them. by the head and tail, and throwing tlum on the deck of the hulk. It is of ten difficult work to gob hold of the struggling and slippery cod, but one after another they are taken out and handed over to the execu tioner on the deck of the hulk; he grasps the fish tightly behind tho head with his left hand, holding it down on the deck, and giving a few heavy blows with a short bludgeon on the nose, kills it at once. Tho dead fish rapidly accumulate in a heap, whence they are taken on shore to be picked in bulk in the railway trucks waiting by the bide of the market to receive them. The iish thus killed and packed reach Billingsgate early the next morning, and are known in the trade as "live cod"; they fetch the highest prices ; and there is something in the manner in which they are killed vhich enables them to be properly crimped many hours after their death. SCOTCH FISHERIES. -The important fisheries on the coast of Scotland are drift-fishing for herrings, and line-fishing for cod, haddock, ling, and some other kinds. Besides these there is in particular localities scan or "trawl "fishing for herrings, and for sprits or " garvies." llerriiir/ Fishery. We will first speak of this special fishery, which from its profitable character, extensive range, and the employment it gives to vast numbers of the coast population, both afloat and on shore, ranks as one of the most important fisheries of the United Kingdom, as it is also one of the great harvests of Scotland. The herring season on the Scotch coast does not com mence everywhere at exactly the same timo, although the principal fishing is always during the summer months, the winter fishings being local and rather uncertain. The earliest herrings are taken on the west coast, and are generally first met with outside a line between the Butt of Lewis and Cape Wrath during April. In May the herrings come into the Minch and work their way southwards ; but they sometimes enter the Minch at the south end of the islands, and in 1S70 in particular, there was a large fishery near South Uist and Barra, but mostly on the Atlantic side, some miles south-west of Barra Head. It is rarely, how ever, that herrings are taken on the western side of the outer Hebrides, and the great fishery may be said to lie between those islands and the mainland. The fish remain iu these waters in greater or less abundance till nearly the end of September, but May and June are the most produc tive months of tho season, and during that period a great number of boats from the east coast go to tho western side to take part in this early fishery. As July approaches the order of proceeding is reversed : the time is near for com mencing the great fishery on the east coast, and one by one the boats which had come from that side return to their own waters, and many others from the western districts accompany them. Tho eastern fishery begins about the middle of July, and continues until about the end of September, commencing at the north and extending gradually southwards as the season advances. Many changes in the importance of particular districts as centres of this fishery have taken place in the course of years. For a long time Wick was the leading fishing and curing station on the east coast, sending out 1000 boats daily during the best of the season ; but recently the fisheries from Peterhead aud Fraserburgh have been unusually suc cessful, aud they have taken the principal position on the east coast for the extent of their curing operations. 1 Drift-fishing is the method by which most of the Scotch herrings are taken, the use of seans or " trawls " being practically confined to a few localities on the west coast so far as regards the herrings, although they are employed on the eastern side for the capture of garvies. Cotton nets are now universally used, and the manner of working them is precisely the same as we have already described in our account of the Yarmouth fishery ; but j there has been a considerable increase in both the size and number of the nets worked by each boat. This has been due to several causes. The lightness of cotton nets com pared with those of hemp formerly in use enables a larger quantity of netting to be easily handled by the same number of men, and thus more catching power is provided. Then it is desirable to make up a certain weight of nets in proportion to the size of the boats, that they may not drift too fast and drag the nets through the water ; for all the strain that is needed on a fleet of nets is as much as will keep them extended in as near a straight line as may be. The fisheries have in late years been carried on far out at sea, and a remarkable change from open to decked fishing boats has taken place, a change that had for a long time been earnestly recommended to the fishermen for their own sakes, and to prevent the great loss of life which had FO frequently occurred when the open boats were overtaken by bad weather. This change led to larger boats being built, capable of using an increased quantity of fishing gear. There are thus many reasons for the additional netting now generally employed, without resorting to the idea that it lias become necessary owing to herrings having gradually dimin ished in the seas. We may here mention that the official returns of Scotch fishing boats have of late years shown a steady diminution in their number, but it will be found on examination that the falling off lias been only in the second and third class boats, and that those of the first class have been increasing. In the last report issued by the Board of Fisheries, that for 1876, a decrease of 109 boats is recorded; but at the same time it is stated that there were 181 fisher men and boys more than in the previous year, and the estimated value of the boats, nets, and lines, had increased by as much as .35,719. The size of the fishing boats is limited unfortunately by the general absence of natural deep-water harbours where they would be most useful, so that no very great increase in their tonnage can be con veniently made ; and although first-class boats are taking the place of those which were in the second, the change does not involve an addition of more than four or five tons in one of the larger craft. Fourteen tons was a common size for a large second-class boat, and as anything over 15 tons ranks in the first class, the new ones of 17 or 18 tons are all included under that head. There is little difference at first sight in the appearance above water of most Scotch fishing boats, but there are many distinctions below the water-line in accordance with local ideas. As a rule, excepting on parts of the west coast, the boats are sharp at both ends and have a great deal of beam, but they differ much in depth and in the extent of rise to the floor. The Buckie boats have long been remarkable for their peculiar build and rig, having a low and broad midship section with a flat or rather hollow floor ; they are very fine at both ends, and have considerable rake of both stem and stern post. They are commonly known as "scaffy" boat-*. Another peculiarity in these boats was that they carried a mizen lugsail in addition to the large fore and main lugs which were the usual working sails of the general run of Scotch fishing craft. Fishermen as a class are most unwill ing to make any change in their style of boats or methods of fishing ; but when decked boats were fairly tried on the Scotch coast, their advantages could not fail to be acknow ledged ; and as it was found that profitable fishing 1 could be carried on with them in weather such as was dangerous 1 As evidence of the advantage of using large-decked boats, tlie following extract from the fishery officer s report from Eyemontli is quoted by the Hon. B. F. Primrose, the energttic and obliging secretary to the Board of Fisheries, in his Annvftl Report for 1876: IX. ^