WHITEBAIT FISHING.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 23 September 1927, Page 6

WHITEBAIT FISHING.

'TIME IS RIPE FOR REGULATION.'

"I think the time is ?ipe for better regulations in regard to whitebait," declared Mr A. S. Heft'ord, Government Inspector of Fisheries, in Christchurch. "All we are hesitating over at present," he added, "is the variation of conditions of fishing in different parts of New Zealand. No fishery is so varied and complicated as the whitebait one, and what may be quite fair in one river would be totally unjust in another. What we want is more definite information on the subject. We will have to study the times, the methods, and the intensity of fishing. Another important question for investigation is that of the country in which the Avhitebait flourishes best at all stages of its life. It has been found that the fish flourishes in swampy, marshy country, which in recent years has been diminished in Canterbury by drainage. "We have reached a stage in our investigations when we can at any rate formulate general principles that should be regarded in connection with whitebait fishing. We are not seeking to regulate the fishery for the sake of regulating it. The real beneficiary will be the fisherman himself, for, with regulation, he will be assured of a better supply. An analogous case is that of the game, of Rugby, Avhere the rules are made for the good of the game and the greatest number."

Asked concerning the extermination of fish considered inimical to whitebait, Mr Hefford said: "Is the trout an enemy to the white*bait. The answer to that is, 'Yes.' But so are other fish, for example, the so-called herring, and, for that matter, the human being."