[CHAPTER I]. | |
FISH LIFE AND GROWTH. |
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Classification of Fish—Their Form and Colour—Mode and Meansof Life—Curiously-shaped Fish—Senses of Smell and Hearingin Fish—Fish nearly Insensible to Pain—The Fecundity ofFish—Sexual Instinct of Fish—External Impregnation of theOva—Ripening of a Salmon Egg—Birth of a Herring—Proposalfor a Marine Observatory in order to note the Growth ofour Sea Fish—Curious Stories about the Growth of the Eel—Allthat is known about the Mackerel—Whitebait: is it aDistinct Species?—Mysterious Fish: the Vendace and thePowan—Where are the Haddocks?—The Food of Fish—Fishas a rule not Migratory—The Growth of Fish Shoals—WhenFish are good for Food—The Balancing Power ofNature | 1 |
[CHAPTER II]. | |
FISH COMMERCE. | |
Early Fish Commerce—Sale of Fresh-water Fish—Cured Fish—Influenceof Rapid Transit on the Fisheries—Fish-Ponds—TheLogan Pond—Ancient Fishing Industries—The Dutch Herring-Fishing—Comacchio—TheArt of Breeding Eels—Progress ofFishing in Scotland—A Scottish Buss—Newfoundland Fisheries—TheGreenland Whale-Fishing—Speciality of different FishingTowns—The General Sea Fisheries of France—French FishCommerce—Statistics of the British Fisheries | 34 |
[CHAPTER III]. | |
FISH CULTURE. | |
Antiquity of Pisciculture—Italian Fish-Culture—Sergius Orata—Re-discoveryof the Art—Gehin and Remy—Jacobi—Shawof Drumlanrig—The Ettrick Shepherd—Scientific and CommercialPisciculture—A Trip to Huningue—Tourist Talkabout Fish—Bale—Huningue described—The Water Supply—ModusOperandi at Huningue—Packing Fish Eggs—AnImportant Question—Artificial Spawning—Danube Salmon—Statisticsof Huningue—Plan of a Suite of Ponds—M. de Galbert’sEstablishment—Practical Nature of Pisciculture—Turtle-Culture—Bestkinds of Fish to rear—Pisciculture in Germany—StormontfieldSalmon-Breeding Ponds—Design for a Suite ofSalmon-Ponds—Statistics of Stormontfield—Acclimatisationof Fish—The Australian Experiment—Introduction of theSilurus glanis | 69 |
[CHAPTER IV]. | |
ANGLERS’ FISHES. | |
Fresh-Water Fish not of much Value—The Angler and his Equipment—Pleasuresof the Country in May—Anglers’ Fishes—Trout,Pike, Perch, and Carp—Gipsy Anglers—AnglingLocalities—Gold Fish—The River Scenery of England—TheThames—Thames Anglers—Sea Angling—Various Kinds ofSea Fish—Proper Kinds of Bait—The Tackle Necessary—TheIsland of Arran—Corry—Goatfell, etc. | 129 |
[CHAPTER V]. | |
THE NATURAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORYOF THE SALMON. | |
The Salmon our best-known Fish—Controversies and Anomalies—Foodof Salmon—The Parr Controversy—Experiments byShaw, Young, and Hogg—Grilse: its Rate of Growth—DoSalmon make Two Voyages to the Sea in each Year?—TheBest Way of marking Young Salmon—Enemies of the Fish—Avariceof the Lessees—The Rhine Salmon—Size of Fish—Killingof Grilse—Rivers Tay, Spey, Tweed, Severn, etc.—TheTay Fisheries—Report on English Fisheries—Upper andLower Proprietors | 177 |
[CHAPTER VI]. | |
THE NATURAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORYOF THE HERRING. | |
Description of the Herring—The Old Theory of Migration—GeographicalDistribution of the Herring—Mr. John Cleghorn’sIdeas on the Natural History of the Herring—Mr. Mitchell onthe National Importance of that Fish—Commission of Inquiryinto the Herring-Fishery—Growth of the Herring—The Sprat—Shouldthere be a Close-time?—Caprice of the Herring—TheFisheries—The Lochfyne Fishery—The Pilchard—HerringCommerce—Mr. Methuen—The Brand—The Herring HarvestAll Night at the Fishing—The Cure—The Curers—HerringBoats—Increase of Netting—Are we Overfishing?—Proposalfor more Statistics | 226 |
[CHAPTER VII]. | |
THE WHITE-FISH FISHERIES. | |
Difficulty of obtaining Statistics of our White-Fish Fisheries—Ignoranceof the Natural History of the White Fish—“FinnanHaddies”—The Gadidæ Family: the Cod, Whiting, etc.—TheTurbot and other Flat Fish—When Fish are in Season—Howthe White-Fish Fisheries are carried on—The Cod andHaddock Fishery—Line-Fishing—The Scottish Fishing Boats—Lossof Boats on the Scottish Coasts—Storms in Scotland—Trawl-NetFishing—Description of a Trawler—Evidence onthe Trawl Question | 285 |
[CHAPTER VIII]. | |
THE NATURAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORYOF THE OYSTER. | |
Proper Time for Oyster-Fishing to Begin—Description of theOyster—Controversies about its Natural History—Spattingof the Oyster—Growth of the Oyster—Quantity of Spawnemitted by the Oyster—Social History of the Oyster—GreatMen who were Fond of Oysters—Oyster-Breeding in France—LakeFusaro—Beef’s Discovery of Artificial Culture—Oyster-Farmingin the Bay of Biscay—The Celebrated GreenOysters—Marennes—Dr. Kemmerer’s Plan—Lessons to begleaned from the French Pisciculturists—How to manage anOyster-Farm—Whitstable—Cultivation of Natives—The ColneOyster-Trade—Scottish Oysters—The Pandores—Extent ofOyster-Ground in the Firth of Forth—Dredging—Extent ofAmerican Oyster-Beds | 332 |
[CHAPTER IX]. | |
OUR SHELL-FISH FISHERIES. | |
Productive Power of Shell-Fish—Varieties of the CrustaceanFamily—Study of the Minor Shell-Fishes—Demand for Shell-Fish—Lobsters—ALobster Store-Pond Described—NaturalHistory of the Lobster and other Crustacea—March of theLand-Crabs—Prawns and Shrimps, how they are caught andcured—Scottish Pearl-Fisheries—Account of the ScottishPearl-Fishery—A Mussel-Farm—How to grow Bait | 382 |
[CHAPTER X]. | |
THE FISHER-FOLK. | |
The Fisher-People the same everywhere—Growth of a FishingVillage—Marrying and giving in Marriage—The Fisher-Folk’sDance—Newhaven near Edinburgh—Newhaven Fishwives—AFishwife’s mode of doing Business—Superstitions—Fisherrow—Dunbar—Buckhaven—Costof a Boat and its Gear—Sceneof the Antiquary: Auchmithie—Smoking Haddocks—TheRound of Fisher Life—“Finnan Haddies”—Fittie andits Quaint Inhabitants—Across to Dieppe—Bay of the Departed—TheEel-Breeders of Comacchio—The French Fishwives—Narrativeof a Fishwife—Buckie—Nicknames of theFisher-Folk—Effects of a Storm on the Coast | 418 |
[CHAPTER XI]. | |
CONCLUDING REMARKS. | |
Are there more Fish in the Sea than ever came out of it?—ModernWriters on the Fisheries—Were Fish ever so abundantas is said?—Salmon-Poaching—Value of Salmon—SeaFish—Destruction of the Young—Is the demand for Fishbeginning to exceed the Supply?—Evils of Exaggeration—Fishquite Local—Incongruity of protecting one Fish and notanother—Difficulties in the way of a Close-Time—Duties ofthe Board of White-Fisheries—Regulation of Salmon Rivers—Justiceto Upper Proprietors—The one Object of the Fishermen—Conclusion | 474 |