CONSIDER THE FISH

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 14, 17 July 1923, Page 8

CONSIDER THE FISH

IMPORTANCE TO NEW; ZEALAND

FOUNDATION OF GREAT ' INDUSTRY.

,The speaker at to-day's Eotary" Club luncheon was the Hon.. G. M. Thomson, and his subject was "Fisheries of New Zealand." ; : . ~ -

Mr; Thomson aaid' that the.man in the f street knew'almost nothing at "all about fish and'fisheries. He might knowjabout 20 different varieties of fish,- but his knowledge , st()pped there , m nothing of-their lifeWory^or bfhow (r X \? cd'J et > on strength of that lort, kf° Wl. edge- he L Would .all sorts of enterprises by the Government n connection.with the fish industry.'He (the.speaker) had made a stud/ oTfish!: ' "°>fro, m 1 a .P^tical point of view, but as a boW. Sea life comprised th 9 * oS?h a, nL mals that listed ouj,be face t a h t globe and «»« smallest-that'ex! I"^ 6 Whale- to °fgAism s that co^uld only be^een by means ofT very strong lens. There was an extraordi Paramount of life i n theEea .. TheyS m Zealand seas about 200 ineci full- fi ,zed gropers the sea wduldT x: soon be quite; stiff. Pish might be d£ lded mtp two .groups—stationary- and migratory. , Those fish which they ate here were mostly of the stationary gW S V- ° :NeW t ?ealand>B c°a^ was 5000 miles, which was extraordi?i y g,reafc in'view of.the area of tha land. Taking that fact into consideration he.was sure that before long New \ Zealand would, become the great fishina ; centre of, the. Southern Hemisphere. Ifc - i W» 0Ii d bei mP°ssible to .fish out. the sea, of New: Zealand even 7 if. everybody: in New Zealand was to,fish-aU day and all night- right tlmmgh the yea" It -.was- possible, ; of course, to ' vi.- °"fc ■ a"-certain. area 'by robbing the fish of their food. ■ That was why. fish did not'think it worth their while.to visit the: harbours. They hadan_ enormous social wealth in the seas which, had. never been, properly develop, ed in New Zealand. „The Goverpmenf should assist in • fishing, research, and should assist'in educating the fishermen, who, to-day, were generally quite ienorant. ■ They assist "in develbpjng a fishing population, but if should be.; a British population.; (Applause.) . New. Zealand was destined, to be the weat maritime country of, the Southern , Hemisphere,"and it.vfes the duty of^all who had the interest of the country at I. heart to assist -in" the' development of that destiny. ■ ;. : .■;-. ;. .;.; ■ .-•,; ;". , ■The speaker was accorded^ a vote<o{ thanks. -'.:■ .•-'" ' . :■.•'■■. •-•. ■