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Even on the basis of these approximate statistical figures it is easy to see what potentialities there must be for great markets for salted seafish within and without the Colony; and it should not be difficult for economists to devise and facilitate practical schemes for developing this industry, having regard to vital factors such as the large and rich fishing grounds of the South China Sea, the abundance of labour and man power, and the skill, industry and enterprise of the fisherfolk.
THE GENERAL ORGANIZATION OF PRODUCTION.
The fishing industries represent an unique and important phase in the economic life of the Colony. The fishermen who catch and bring the fish to shore, of course, form the basal and indispensable units of the whole system. But before the fish are distributed to the consumers anywhere and everywhere they have to go through several mediums such as (a) the sai ka or fish driers,' or other intermediate dealers, (b) the fish stores, (c) the lans or wholesale dealers, (d) the retail dealers, (e) the travelling salesmen, and (f) the grocers or stall keepers. The following description will explain how these mediums come to exist and how the fishery products are handled by them.
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The
(1) THE FISHERMEN.-For practical purposes a junk should be regarded as a unit in local fisheries. The number of junks (units) required to operate different types of fishing gear varies to considerable extent. trawl, for example, is operated by two junks whilst the drag seine needs 35 to 60 boats of different owners for carrying out fishing operations. In most cases a junk is owned by a fisherman who may have built it for himself or have inherited it from his parents or relatives. When the fisherman owner he borrow without interest from such sources as of a junk needs money may the junk-builders, the grocers, the fresh fish collecting junks, the fish driers, the fish stores, and the wholesale dealers on the understanding that the fish caught by the fishermen must be handed over to the dealers for sale or must be sold to them as the case may be. Fishermen may borrow money from individual money lenders, but the interest runs as high as 8% per month. Some fishing junks are owned by the fish dealers. The owner has to provide the hired members of the crew with food besides paying their regular wages. Two or more junk owners may be partners in a fishing party for a certain period, but there is no permanent company governed by regulations and controlled by directors or managers for the
purpose.
(2) THE SAI KA OR "FISH_DRIERS."--Most fish driers belong to the boat population. They are usually richer than those fisherfolk who The fishermen to have to carry out actual fishing operations themselves. whom money has been advanced by the fish driers are obliged to sell their catches to the latter at bargain prices often lower than the current price. A fish drier also can buy fish from any fishing junk to which no money has been advanced. It is not uncommon that the fish driers" provide themselves with one or more collecting boats about 30 feet long for buying
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fish directly in the fishing grounds. Some collecting boats do not belong to the sai ka, but carry out their business independently on the basis of advances received from the wholesale dealers directly. Practically all the fish driers" receive a certain amount of money in advance from the wholesale dealers. There is no commission system adopted in the business of the fish driers" who must make profits mostly by taking advantage of the prices between buying (from the fishermen) and selling (to the buyer through the wholesale dealers). There are 22 fish driers in Aberdeen, 45 in Cheung Chau, and 48 in Shaukiwan.
"
(3) THE YUE PO OR FISH STORES.-A fish store is usually
a branch establishment of a wholesale dealer, conducting business under the same principle as the fish drier, but entirely different from the latter in the way of making profits. This is to say that it makes profit on the chance of price variation instead of commission.
(4) THE LANS OR WHOLESALE DEALERS.-There are 3 classes of wholesale fish dealers established in Hong Kong, the fresh-water fish lans, fresh sea-fish lans and salted sea-fish lans. They are the highest Their medium for the transaction of the catch of the local fisheries. business is claimed to be carried out entirely on a commission basis, although there are some kinds of well established practices of squeezing money out of the catch handed in for sale. In the case the salted fish the commission is fixed at 6%, occasionally 4%, paid to the wholesale dealer (broker) by "" of squeeze the seller and 2% by the buyer. Besides the commission a
4 to 17% is imposed on the produce of the fishermen, depending on the kind of junk by which the fish are brought in. There exists, however, between the seller and the buyer a well established understanding in this matter of squeeze." The commission for the fresh fresh-water and sea fish varies from 4% to 6%.
About 1/4 to 1/3 of the capital of the wholesale dealers is advanced to the fishermen or fish driers without interest; each fisherman may receive $50 to $15,000, depending on time and various other conditions.
The approximate capital invested by each of the 12 big salted fish lans in Hong Kong varies from $20,000 to $100,000 with a reserve capital of $10,000 to $50,000. With this amount of capital at hand a wholesale fish dealer can transact business amounting from $100,000 to $850,000 per year. The financing conditions of both the fresh sea and fresh-water fish ians are similar to the salted fish lans in most respects.
(5) THE RETAIL DEALERS.-There are 52 salted fish retail dealers in Hong Kong. They are also called lans or small fans, but they run their business on an entirely different basis. There is no direct con- nection between the fishermen or fish driers and the small lans. Some of the latter are branches of the salted fish wholesale dealers and some arc financially independent, but in either case all the commodity comes through
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