, 1890-12-04
HERRING FISHERIES
The Cause of Their Develop
ment in Scotland.
PREPARING FOR THE SEASON
Boats and Nets That Are Used
How the Fish Are Cured
Wages Paid.


The herring fisheries of Scotland
form such stupendous interest, In
capital invested, in the number OF
men, women and boats employed,
and product for home consumption
aud export to the continent secured,
that have been at pains to study
the subject for intelligent presenta.
ton to American readers The earl.
lest date assigned such fishing on
the coasts of Britain IL about 1890
although herrlngs are mentioned in
the chronicles of Evasham In 700,
the Normans having probably then
acquired the art of sailing fish; and
1t is more than probable that the
Use of salt was known I'm the time
Of William the Conqueror, as Du-
hamel quotes one of Williams char
ters which states that In the eleventh
century vessels from Dleppe called
"grand drogueurs" went to the
north to fish for herrings in July
and brought them home In barrels
salted. The Dutch obtained privi-
,ege of Edward /. to take herrings
at Yarmouth, England; and In the
reign of the third Edward an act
was passed relative to supplying the
British fleet with herrings. During
the middle ages, aud later still, Brit
ish herring fishing, which was al-
ways chiefly along the Scottish
coasts, was even encouraged through
the means of religious fnst days.
The Scottish herring fisheries
owed their rise and development to
THE JEALOUSY OF THE DUTCH,
who largely frequehted the east
coast during the last century, and
who still annually send large fleet
of fishing "busses" to the Shetland
islands. Their method of curing
with salt is said to have been origin
ated In 1886 by one William Beukles,
a native Of Flanders. This humble
fisherman may be said to have laid
the foundation of the Dutch herring
fisheries, which have always proved
one of their greatest sources of ma
tional wealth. The saying Is that
Amsterdam itself was "built on
herring bones;" while Beukels'
memory was so honored by the
Dutch that, in 1886, Charles w., of
the Netherlands, and his sister, the
Queen of Hungary, paid memora-
BILE visit to his tomb. The Scotch
adopted the Dutch method Of curing
herring, and these two people, with
the fishermen OF our own New
England coast, are principal conf
petitors for the continental cured
herring trade of Europe.
The Board Of British White Her
ring Fisheries was established by
parliament In 1909, and Ia still in
existence under the present title of
the Fishery Board for Scotland.
Many restrictive measures have
been enacted during the present
century, such as "closer seasons,
barring the use of circle trawl-nets,
and nets of certain size of mesh, but
without result; and since 1868 the
Scottish herring fisheries have been
practically free from legislative con-
troll, even
SUNDAY FISHING
in religious Scotland being largely
practiced. The Scottish board has
in its service general inspector,
one assistant and thirty sub-inspec-
tors or officials. All OF these are
not only graduate fishermen but
have also been fish-curers by occu-
patton. For the purpose of easy
control and procuring statistics, the
coast line of Scotland Is divided
into twenty-six districts, the east
coast having seventeen and the
west coast nine districts. Eacn dis
trict Is provided with at least one
officer and some with two.
A bounty system for the en-
couragement of herring fishing pre-
vailed with curious results from
1856 to 1880. Fishermen went to
sea to ''catch the bounty rather than
the fish" 1t was paid on tonnage
OF vessels instead of upon herrings
landed. In 1853 this bounty was so
shillings per ton of tonnage. Four
barrels were taken. The tonnage
bounty paid was upward of gl50.
This being discontinued, from 1909
to 1915, the government paid 2
shilllngs per barrel of cured her
rings and, altogether. shillings,
s pence, If exported. Government
bounties ceased in 1880. Govern
ment branding, after examination,
was, however, continued; and, in
1853, branding fee of pence per
barrel was fixed, which still con-
tinues in force. In way, the |
bounty system Is still continued Us |
n concession to the fishermen, but |
in a totally different form.
The govern lnent paid its bounty |
both to the vessel owner on tonnage
and the fish-curer on cured herrings.
Under the bounty system as re-
tanned by the trade, the bounty is
now exclusively paid by the curer
to the fisherman before he puts q
net in the sea. This ''trade-bounty"
reached its height in 1854, when, ON
the Aberdeenshire coast, 1t was from
E40 toe60 per boat, the fisherman
also receiving 81 per ''crann of her
rings landed. This "trade bounty"
now greatly reduced is paid to the
crew, or rather, To the owner of the
boat, before fishing begins, and
forms
a MILD SORT OF LOTTERY.
Thus, If the bargain is El per Gran
and $50 lbounty, and the boat sh
100 Grams, the cost to the curer IL 32
per Gran. If 200 Grams are
landed the price Is reduced to 28
per Gran. Again, all her