The Sun.
London, England, 1833-10-29 00:00:00

1...--INTERFERENCE OF THE FRENCH FISHERMEN.

It is in evidence before your Committee, that for a long
time past, and up to the present period, the fishermen
from Calais, Boulogne, Dieppe, and other places in France,
have been accustomed to fish with large fleets of fishing
vessels upon the Kent and Sussex coasts, frequently within
half a league of the shore, and occasionally much nearer;
and in the bays and shallow waters, in which it is parti-
cularly necessary for the preservation of the brood of fish
that such as frequent those waters during the breeding
season should not be disturbed, or their young destroyed
before they have attained maturity. That the French
fishing vessels have greatly increased since the peace, there
being now between 200 and 300 sail out of Boulogne only,
and they are more numerous, and of a much larger tonnage
than those of our own countrymen upon that coast, being
generally manned with about double or triple the number
of men usually employed in the English vessels, and car-
rying nets and fishing gear of a much larger and heavier
description than those used by our own fishermen. That
in consequence of this superiority on the part of the
French, the English fishermen coming in constant compe-
tition with them have sustained so great an injury, and
such frequent loss and damage of their nets and fishing
gear, especially in the herring and mackerel seasons,
which are the harvests of fishermen, that they have not
only been unable to earn a livelihood as they used to do by
their trade, but have in some instances been wholly ruined,
or have withdrawn altogether from their pursuit; while
the French fishermen continuing on our coast, and some-
times not returning into their own ports during the whole
period of the herring or mackerel seasons, mike a constant
practice of selling their cargoes of fish at sea, and of ship-
ping them into carrier-boats coming from the Thames and
other parts, and into boats which board them in the bay
of Dover and elsewhere on the coast, for the supply of the
London market. It has also been proved to your Com-
mittee, that in the other seasons of the year, when the
French employ themselves in fishing with hooks and lines
for turbot and other sea fish in the Channel, they are used
to come in great numbers every morning from Boulogne
and other places into the English bays, before they com-
mence fishing, and there drag with nets for bait in the
shallow waters, close upon the shore, taking and destroy-
ing an immense quantity of the young and unsiseable fish
at those periods of the year when the French are not per-
mitted to fish in the bays upon their own coast,* and
when the English fishermen are accustomed to leave as
much as possible their breeding grounds for fish undis-
turbed. This last mentioned practice your Committee
find is also the cause of great injury to the English
fishermen, and is much complained of as tending to dimi-
nish the quantity of fish upon that coast; and they cannot
bet remark, that while these proceedings are taking place
upon the English side of the Channel on the part of the
subjects of France, the fishermen of England are not al-
lowed to fish within three leagues of the French coast;
but on their approaching that limit have been warned off
by the revenue or police coast guard vessels in the service
of the French Government, and told that they will not be
allowed to fish within that distance of their shore.
Your Committee also think it right to observe, that
great attention on the part of the French Government
appears to be paid to the encouragement and extension of
their Channel fisheries, particularly as a nursery for their
seamen; for which latter purpose they require so large a
number as 18 or 20 men to be carried on board each
fishing vessel ; and it is stated in evidence before your
Committee that bounties are also granted in aid of their
fisheries. While to these causes, therefore, your Com-
mittee attribute the greatly increased numbers of the
French fishermen, and observe the decrease and distresses
of our own, they deem it their duty to suggest that all
possible protection and encouragement should be promptly
given to the English fisheries, not only in justice to the
parties engaged in them, but regarding them in a national
point of view as the most valuable source of supply to
our navy.
Now, in order to remedy the grievances at present
sustained by the English fishermen from the interference
of their rival neighbours, as already mentioned, your
Committee are of opinion that foreign fishermen should
be prevented at all seasons of the year from fishing
within one league, or such other distance of the English
coast as by the law or usage of nations is considered to
belong exclusively to this country; so that the fishermen
of England may at least be pl iced upon an equal footing
with those of foreign states, as regards the protection
afforded to them by their own country; and, further, that
regulations
e
all foreign fishermen should be required to observe, during
the spawning or breeding season of fish, all such laws or
pmracyserbveaitmi imposed o soefd
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o,i fishermen
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in the bays and shallow waters upon our coast. To
accomplish these objects, your Committee recommend
that his ALjesty's Government be requested to give direc-
tions both to the Lords of the Admiralty awl the Com-
missioners of his Majesty's Customs, that all officers of
customs, and of the revenue, and other cruising vessels
upon the coast, may be instructed to prevent foreign
fishermen from fishing within such prescribed distance of
the shore; to enforce the observance of the laws and
regulations before mentioned, as well by our own people as
by foreigners ; and to protect the Engdsh fishermen from
aggression at sea. And your Committee believe that if
such ins •
unctions be promptly given, and effectu dly acted
upon, and the same officers be also directed to prevent the
illegal importation of foreign-caught fish, as aftermentioned;

An ordinance of the French Department of Marine, dated
15th of January, 1829, and now in force, has been laid before
the Committee, by which the French prohibit their fishermen
from fishing with a certain species of net, supposed to answer
to our trawl, or ground.nets, within three leagues of the
shore from the 15th of April to the Ist of September, and
within two leagues from the Ist of September to the 15th of
April annually, which ordinance is understood to be enforczd
against English fishermen also.
t The
Committee understand that one league from the shore
out at sea is considered to be the territory of the adjoining
country, which seems to be asserted by the French and Dutch,
and is acted upon by our Custom House in their grant of
licenses to go
also to be the principle on which our Legislature declares for-
feited any within that distance of foreign coasts. It seems
foreign vessel within a league of our shore, having
prohibited goods on board. (See 6 George IV., c.. 108, s. 5.)
Whether the league is to be reckoned from the shore, or from
a straight line drawn from headland to headland, appears to be
doubtful. The French and Dutch are understood to claim the
latter, and it would be much more beneficial to our own
fitierie3 than the former.