Commercial Fishing

( Originally Published 1912 )

FISHING for market, or commercial fishing is a vast industry in the United States, so large that many readers of this book will look with amazement at some of the data given in this chapter.

The entire country is divided into five main divisions as follows: Atlantic Coast, Gulf of Mexico, Pacific Coast, Great Lakes and the Mississippi River and its tributaries.

The fisheries of the Atlantic Coast division employed 94,281 persons, and a capital investment of over $25,000,000, with a value of fish products caught in one year amounting to $35,475,000. The Gulf of Mexico division employed 15,481 persons, with a catch valued at $4,825,000. The Pacific Coast division employed 18,855 persons, with a catch valued at $6,839,000. The Mississippi River division with 11,731 persons employed and a catch valued at $3,125,000. The Great Lakes division with 8,533 persons employed and a catch valued at $3,767,000.

Of the total number of persons engaged in the fishing industry of the United States in 1908, 25 per cent, were employed on fishing and transporting vessels, 73 percent. in the shore and boat fisheries, and 2 percent. as shoresmen, directly connected with the catching of fish. In addition to the foregoing there were 2,952 proprietors, not engaged in fishing.

The Atlantic Coast division was by far the most important in the United States, giving occupation to 66 percent. of all the persons engaged in fishing, the Gulf of Mexico division next, where 11 per cent. of the total number were employed. The Pacific Coast division, and the Great Lakes division follow in the order named.

Some inland fishermen work for wages, with apparatus and board furnished; others are paid by the bushel, or according to the weight of their catch. In some coast fisheries men are given $25 a month and board while employed, the value of the board calculated at $10 a month.

Nearly seven-eighths of the value of fishery products of the United States are represented by 30 kinds of products. The products here considered are the following:

Alewives. Halibut, Pike-perches
Bluefish, Herring, Pollack
Carp, Lake herring, Salmon
Catfish, Lake trout, Shad
Clams, Lobster, Shrimp and Prawn
Cod, Mackerel, Snappers
Crabs, Menhaden, Sponges
Flounders, Mullets, Squeteague
Haddock, Mussels, Sturgeons
Hake, Oysters, Whale Products, White Fish

ALEWIVES One species of this fish is found in waters adjacent to the Atlantic ocean, and never found south of the Neuse River in North Carolina. It is known along the Potomac as "branch herring", on Albemarle Sound as the "big-eyed herring" and the "wall-eyed herring", in New England as "Alewife," and on the Connecticut River as "ellwife" and "ellwhop." It appears in the rivers three or four weeks earlier than the "glut herring" and the shad. The other species of alewife is found from the Carolinas to the Coast of Maine. It is known in Chesapeake Bay and Albemarle Sound as "glut herring," in the Ogeechee River as "English herring", in the St. Johns River as "herring", and in Massachusetts and during the later runs in the Rappahannock as the "blueback." This species is less abundant and less valuable as a food fish than the former. Both species average about a half pound in weight and from 8 to 10 inches in length. They are caught in nets, seines, weirs, etc., and besides being of great importance as food fish, are also used for bait. The name "alewife" is applied to the menhaden in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. The value of the alewife catch in 1908 was $589,000.

BLUEFISH This fish is found on the Atlantic and the Gulf coasts. On the coasts of the New England and Middle States it is generally called "bluefish"; in Rhode Island, "horse mackerel"; south of Cape Hatteras, "skip-jack"; in North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland, "tailor" and "green-fish"; and on the Gulf of Mexico, "bluefish." The bluefish varies in weight from 1 to 20 pounds, according to the season and locality, and large numbers are caught during the summer months with nets, traps, seines and hand lines. The name "bluefish" is also improperly applied to the squeteague from southern New Jersey to Virginia, to the black sea bass at Newport and New Bedford, to the "greenfish" on the California coast south of Monterey, and the "bonito" in the markets. The value of the bluefish catch in 1908 was $506,000.

BUFFALO FISH Under this general name are included three species, red or big-mouthed buffalo, black or mongrel buffalo, and small-mouthed or white buffalo. The fresh-water suckers, to which the name "buffalo carp" is sometimes erroneously applied, are found in the waters of the Mississippi Valley. They frequently weigh from 30 to 40 pounds and are caught with nets and hand lines. The value of the catch yearly averages half a million dollars.

CARP This fish, known as "German carp", is a fresh-water food fish of great interest to fish culturists, and is found in ponds and streams in nearly every state in the Union. As a result of domestication several varieties have arisen of which the principal ones are the "scale carp", heavily scaled; the "mirror carp", with a few series of very large scales; and the "leather carp", which is scaleless. The size of the carp varies with the temperature and clearness of the water, the kind of bottom, the abundance and nature of the food supply, and in general with the conditions under which it lives. These fish live to a great age, and sometimes attain a weight of more than 40 pounds. The carp naturally thrives best in lakes, ponds and sluggish streams, seeking quiet or stagnant waters. It spawns about June. It feed largely on vegetable matter, insects and their larvae, found on aquatic vegetation, forming its principal animal food. It will, how-ever, eat practically anything it can get into its mouth, rooting about in the mud much in the way of a pig.

The German carp product in 1908 amounted to 42,763,000 pounds, valued at $1,135,000. Of 38 states having fisheries of a commercial nature, 31 reported German carp. The catch of Illinois, most of which was from the Illinois River, exceeded that of all other states combined. Although carp is caught to some extent throughout the year, the largest part of the fishing is done in spring and summer. A variety of apparatus is used in taking carp, but the bulk of the catch is made with seines, fyke and hoop nets, and trammel nets.

CATFISH The American species include the sea cat-fishes of the Atlantis coast, the channel cats of all the rivers east of the Rocky Mountains, the horned pout, which is widely distributed through the brooks and ponds of the states, and the diminutive mad-toms. The different varieties are distinguished by the common names of "channel cat", "blue cat", "Mississippi cat", "mud cat", "flannel mouth", "horned pout", "bullhead", "minister", "goujon", "bashaw", "gaff-topsail", etc. They vary in length from 1 to 5 feet and in weight from 2 to 150 pounds, are caught by means of nets, traps, hand lines, and by jugging, and are used extensively for food. Catfish are taken in nearly all waters of the United States, the majority coming from the Mississippi River and its tributaries. In a canvass of 38 states all, with the exception of four New England states, reported this fish. The catches reported from Louisiana and Illinois greatly exceeded those from other states.

CLAMS This term includes the hard clam, quahaug, or round clam; soft or long clam; razor clam or razor fish; surf, sea or hen clam, and various other species. Clams are bivalve mollusks largely used for food and bait, and are found on all our coasts. The clam product of the United States is valued at about $2,000,000 annually. While the quantity of the hard-shell variety but little exceed that of the soft-shell, the value of the former is about two and a half times that of the latter.

Razor clams are reported from Washington and Massachusetts, and surf clams from New York and New Jersey. Hard clams are reported from all the Pacific coast states, from Florida and Louisiana on the Gulf of Mexico, and from all the Atlantic coast states except Maine and New Hampshire. The entire soft-clam product with the exception of a small per cent. of the total, taken in California and Oregon, is taken from the North Atlantic Coast, none being reported south of New Jersey. The clams are taken with tongs, dredges and similar apparatus.

COD The cod is caught most extensively along the coast of the Middle States, New England, and British America, and is not taken in the Atlantic Ocean south of New Jersey. It is most plentiful on the Grand Banks and off the coast of Newfoundland and New England. The weight varies from 3 to 75 pounds. The Alaska cod is found in the Pacific Ocean from Behring sea to Oregon. On account of the length of the trips made by vessels in the Pacific coast fisheries, often extending over a period of several months, the fish taken are salted on the vessels. Massachusetts and Maine furnish the salted cod from the Atlantic Coast. The amount salted in these two states is decreasing from year to year while the amount marketed in a fresh condition is increasing. As the cod feeds on the bottom they are taken with trawls and hand lines, though some are taken in pound nets and gill nets.

Crabs are found along all the coasts of the United States. The different species vary much in size, habit and use. The common edible crab has names applied by catchers describing the different conditions of the shell. While shedding they are known as "comer", "buster", "peeler", and "shedder"; while growing a new shell, as "soft-shell", "paper-shell", and "buckler". Crabs are used for food, bait and fertilizer. King crabs are sold for the latter purpose. All King crabs are taken from the Atlantic Ocean, along the Middle Atlantic states, most of them from New Jersey. The most common method of taking hard crabs is with meat-baited lines, hand or set, and a dip net in which the crab is caught when hauled to the surface. Two-thirds of the soft-crab catch is taken with dredges. King crabs were formerly all caught by hand, but the great bulk are now taken in pound nets.

FLOUNDERS The name flounder is variously applied to the flat fishes found on all the coasts of the United States, and known as "American sole", "Monterey halibut", "winter flounder", "long-finned sole", "sand dab", etc. They vary in size and shape and are sold for both food and bait. The catch is taken in weirs, nets, beam trawls and seines, and with hand lines and gaffs.

HADDOCK The haddock is a food fish found in the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Delaware Capes ; it is called "dickie" in some localities. The average weight is from 4 to 6 pounds. It is extensively used as a fresh food fish, and is also salted, pickeled and dried. The haddock is taken mostly with lines, but also with pound nets, trap nets and gill nets.

HAKE-The species included under this head are not true hakes, but comprise different varieties of food fish found off the Atlantic Coast from Newfoundland to Cape Hatteras, which are variously known as "Old England hake", "squirrel hake", "ling", "codling", etc. The average length is from 1 1/2 to 2 feet and the average weight from 3 to 8 pounds. The catch is taken principally with lines.

HALIBUT The halibut, the largest and most valuable of the flat fishes, is found in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It is one of the largest species used for food, sometimes weighing over 300 pounds, but the average weight is from 50 to 75 pounds. Small, young fish, weighing from 10 to 20 pounds, are called "chickens", and are much sought after by epicureans. Most of the Pacific Coast catch comes from the fisheries of Washington. Most of the catch is made with lines, while some of the catch is taken with trawls.

HERRING The herring is a very important food fish found in the North Atlantic as far south as Sandy Hook; it is never found in brackish or fresh waters. Herring weigh from one-half to one pound and average in length about 10 inches. As a food fish they are used fresh, salted, pickled, smoked and canned. They are also used extensively for bait in the cod, haddock, halibut and hake fisheries. A large number of vessels engage in the winter herring fishery off the west coast of Newfoundland. The greater part of the catch is taken with pound nets, trap nets and weirs.

LAKE HERRING The ciscoes, or lake herrings, are members of the whitefish family found in the Great Lakes and neighboring waters. They are caught with gill nets, pound and trap nets.

LAKE TROUT The common lake trout is found in the Great Lakes and in the smaller lakes of the Northern States. In different localities these fish vary greatly in color, size and shape, and are known by the local names "salmon trout", "lake salmon", "black trout", "reef trout", "longe", etc. The "siscowet" is another species of lake trout. It is found principally in Lake Superior. Next to lake herring, lake trout is the most valuable species taken in the Great Lakes. The bulk of the lake trout catch is taken with gill nets, others with lines, pound and trap nets.

LOBSTER The lobster, a crustacean of great economic importance, is found on the Atlantic Coast from Delaware to Labrador. It averages about 11 inches in length and about 2 pounds in weight, but the size varies with localities and seasons. It is caught in pots and traps especially constructed for the purpose.

MACKEREL The mackerel is found in the North Atlantic south as far as Cape Hatteras. It ranges from 9 to 18 inches in length and from one-half to 3 pounds in weight, and is caught in purse seines, pound nets, weirs, gill nets, etc., and with hook and line.

MENHADEN The menhaden is a fish of the herring family, found along the Atlantic seaboard from Maine to Florida. It is known by a great many local names, some of them being "pogy", "hard-head", "bony fish", "bunker", "cheboy", "alewife," "oldwife", "fat-back", "shiner", etc. The average weight of the menhaden is from two-thirds of a pound to one pound. They are caught in purse seines, gill nets, set nets, and weirs. Their economic importance is due mainly to the oil and guano which are produced from them ; they are also used as bait for mackerel, cod, halibut, haddock and sea bass. The menhaden is the most abundant fish found anywhere in the waters of the United States and forms one of the principal fishery products. Menhaden approach the coast waters upon the advent of warm weather and remain until the water cools. They are seen as early as March in Chesapeake Bay, but not until much later in the northern waters. Purse and haul seines are the principal forms of apparatus of capture; pound nets, gill nets and trap nets are also used.

Mussels The black, thin-shelled, salt-water mussel is found on the Atlantic coast as far south as North Carolina and on the Pacific coast north of Monterey. The shells are used as paint holders and as ornaments.

Large quantities of another genus are sold to farmers along the New Jersey and Long Island coasts for fertilizer. The fresh-water mussels are of much value as food for animals and birds, and the shells are used in making pearl buttons. Pearl fishing was followed throughout the Mississippi Valley by the Indians and by the early settlers, in a small way, but the first excitement in recent years was in 1878 in Ohio. Since that time at regular intervals "crazes" have developed in one section or another. Among the "crazes" may be mentioned that in Wisconsin beginning in 1889 and later extending down the river; that in Arkansas in 1895, that on the Clinch River in Tennessee in 1901, that on the Wabash in .1903, and that on the Illinois River in 1906. At the height of the excitement in Arkansas it is estimated that 10,000 persons were engaged in pearl fishing. The shells of the mussels were a waste product until the opening of the button factories. Now the shells are the important product of the industry, while pearls furnish the speculative element.

OYSTER— Oysters rank first in value among all fishery products of the United States. The oyster industry is re-ported for every state on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, with the exception of New Hampshire. The greatest production is from the beds of Long Island and Chesapeake Bay.

PIKE PERCHES The "wall-eyed pike" is known as "glass eye", "pike perch", "yellow pike", "dory", and "blue pike" on the Great Lakes, and as "salmon", "jack", "okow", "blow-fish", and "green pike" in other localities. It is an excellent food fish and sometimes reaches a weight of 20 pounds. The sauger or sandfish, which is smaller and less important as a food fish, is especially abundant in the Great Lakes. This fish is taken principally in gill nets and pound nets.

POLLACK The pollack, a food fish of importance, is found mainly off the New England coast. It sometimes appears as far south as Virginia. The average weight is about 10 pounds. The sounds are used in the manufacture of glue, the livers are sold in large quantities for the manufacture of oil, and the tongues are cut out and sold fresh. The catch is taken principally in the vessel fisheries and the most important apparatus used are lines.

SALMON--The salmon of the Atlantic coast is found along the coast of the New England states. At different ages this fish is known as 'parra", "smolts", "grilse", "kelts", and "salmon". The adults weigh from 15 to 40 pounds. The land-locked salmon, or fresh-water salmon is found, as the name implies, in fresh waters, generally land-locked. The steel-head is found in coastal streams from San Francisco northward. The blue-black salmon is found on the Pacific coast from the Columbia River northward; and the California salmon, or chinook salmon, or quinnat, is found from Monterey to Alaska. The dog salmon ranges from the Sacramento River to Behring Strait; the humpbacked salmon, or lost salmon from the Sacramento River to Alaska; and the silver salmon or white salmon is found in all rivers from the Sacramento River to Behring Strait.

Next to oysters, salmon is the most important of the fishery products. Most of the salmon catch is made on the Pacific coast.

SHAD The common shad is found .on all the coasts of the United States and in some inland waters, the most important shad fisheries being in the rivers of the Atlantic slope. The average weight is about 4 pounds and the aver-age length about 2 feet. Among fish proper it is surpassed only by salmon and cod. Gill nets are the leading apparatus of capture.

SHRIMP AND PRAWN The shrimp is a crustacean found in large numbers on all our coasts and in many inland waters. The usual length is about 2 inches, but some attain a larger size. They are caught in dip nets, purse nets, etc., and are used for food and bait. The prawn is generally larger than the shrimp, often having a length of 7 inches. The bulk of the shrimp and prawn products come from the warm western waters, and by far the largest portion from Louisiana.

SNAPPERS The red snapper which is the most important of the snappers, is a large fish, bright red in color, and is found from Long Island southward, but in greatest abundance along the coasts of the Gulf states. The red snapper product of Florida, Alabama and Texas contribute over 90 per cent. of the total value of the snappers caught in these Gulf states. The chief fishing ground is off the west coast of Florida. As these fish habitually feed along the ground in from 10 to 40 fathoms of water, lines are only used in their capture.

SPONGE The sponge which is of commercial value is found off the west coast of Florida.

SQUETEAGUE The common weakfish, or squeteague is found in abundance along the Atlantic coast from Cape Cod to Florida. It averages about 21 pounds in weight, but some attain a weight of 30 pounds. The spotted squeteague is found from New Jersey to Texas, and some-what larger than the other species. The California "blue-fish" and the great "white sea bass" of California are the other species of weakfish. Squeteague fishing begins in the latter part of April and lasts from six to eight weeks, until the school begins to move off into deeper and cooler waters. They are caught in pound nets, traps and weirs.

STURGEONS — Sturgeons are found on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and in many inland waters. The Atlantic sturgeon attains a length of from 5 to 12 feet and a weight of from 400 to 500 pounds. They are sold fresh, pickled and smoked, for food; caviar is manufactured from their eggs; the skin is made into leather; and the sounds are used in the manufacture of glue and isinglass. A valuable oil is sometimes obtained from the parts not used for food, and the refuse is used for fertilizing purposes.

WHITEFISH Whitefish are among the most important fresh-water fishes of America. The common whitefish is the most valuable species of all, although the others are highly esteemed as food. It is found in the Great Lakes region and is known as "humpbacked", "bowbacked" and "highback" whitefish ; it is also known as "Otsego bass" in the neighborhood of Otsego Lake, N. Y.

The whitefish catch is confined to the Great Lakes, Lake of the Woods, and Rainy Lake. In value it ranks fourth among the fishery products in those waters. Every state bordering on the Great Lakes share in the catch of white-fish, Michigan contributing the most. Nearly all the white-fish product is marketed fresh. Gill nets, pound and trap nets take nearly all the catch.

Extent and Value of Fisheries in Canada.

To say that Canada possesses the most extensive fisheries in the world is no exaggeration; moreover, it is safe to add that the waters in and around Canada contain the principal commercial fishes in greater abundance than the waters of any other part of the world. The extraordinary fertility of Canadian waters is abundantly proved by the fact that, apart from salmon, all the lobsters, herring, mackerel and sardines, nearly all the haddock, and many of the cod, hake, and pollack landed in Canada are taken from within its territorial waters.

The coast line of the Atlantic provinces, from the Bay of Fundy to the Straits of Belle Isle, without taking into account the lesser bays and indentations, measures over 5000 miles; and along this great stretch are to be found innumerable natural harbors and coves, in many of which valuable fish are taken in considerable quantities with little effort.

On the Pacific coast, the province of British Columbia, owing to its immense number of islands, bays and fiords, which form safe and easily accessible harbors, has a sea-washed shore of 7,000 miles.

Along this shore and within the limits of the territorial waters, there are fish and mammals in greater abundance, probably, than anywhere else in the whole world.

In addition to this immense salt-water fishing area, Canada has in its numerous lakes no less than 220,000 square miles of fresh water, abundantly stocked with many species of excellent food fishes. In this connection, it may be pointed out that the area of the distinctly Canadian waters of what are known as the Great Lakes Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario— forms only one-fifth part of the total area of the larger fresh-water lakes of Canada.

The fisheries of the Atlantic coast may be divided into two distinct classes the deep-sea, and the inshore or coastal fisheries.

The deep sea fishery is pursued in vessels of from 40 to 100 tons, carrying crews of from 12, to 20 men. The fishing grounds worked on are the several banks, which lie from 20 to 90 miles off the Canadian coast. The style of fishing is that of "trawling" by hook and line. The bait used is chiefly herring, squid and capelin ; and the fish taken are principally cod, haddock, hake, pollack and halibut.

The inshore or coastal fishery is carried on in small boats with crews of from two to three men; also in a class of small vessels with crews of from four to seven men. The means of capture employed by boat fishermen are gill-nets, hooks and lines, both hand-line and trawl, and from the shore are operated trap-nets, haul-seines and weirs. The commercial food fishes taken inshore are the cod, hake, haddock, pollack, halibut, herring, mackerel, alewife, shad, smelt, flounder and sardine. The most extensive lobster fishery known is carried on along the whole of the eastern shore of Canada, whilst excellent oyster beds exist in many parts of the Gulf of St. Lawrence; notably on the north coast of Prince-Edward Island, and in the Northumberland Straits.

The salmon fishery is, of course, the predominant one on the Pacific coast; but a very extensive halibut fishery is carried on in the northern waters of British Columbia in large, well-equipped steamers and vessels. The method of capture is by trawl-lining dories being used for setting and hauling the lines, as in the Atlantic deep-sea fishery.

Herring are in very great abundance on the Pacific coast, and provide a plentiful supply of bait for the halibut fishery.

In the inland lake fisheries, the various means of capture in use are gill-nets, pound-nets, seines, and hook-and-line to a great extent. The principal commercial fishes caught are whitefish, trout, pickerel, pike, sturgeon and fresh-water herring the latter in the Great Lakes of Ontario only.

The total market value of all kinds of fish and fish products taken by Canadian fishermen, in both the sea and inland fisheries, during the fiscal year ended March 31, 1911, amounted to $29,965,433.

This total is the highest yet reached in any one year in the history of the fisheries of Canada, being $336,26.32 greater than that of the preceding year, which was a record one.

To the total, the sea fisheries contributed $26,122,596 and the inland fisheries $3,842,837.

In obtaining these results, there were employed 1,680 vessels and tugs, and 38,977 boats, the whole being manned by 68,610 men; while 24,978 persons were employed in the various canneries and fish-houses, etc., on shore, in the preparation of the fish for market. From this it will be seen that almost 100,000 people were directly employed in this great industry.

Gasoline engines are being freely used as a means of propulsion for boats in the inshore and inland fisheries. During the year under review, there were 4,588 fishing boats using such engines. The following table shows the value produced by the fisheries of each province, in its respective order of rank, with the increase or decrease as compared with the year 1909-10.

Nova Scotia, it will thus be seen, has again taken its place at the head of the list of fish-producing provinces, with a phenomenal increase over the previous year.

The value of the British Columbia fisheries, although it shows quite a large decrease from that of the year before, is yet $2,698,197 ahead of that of the year 1908-9. Unfortunately, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Quebec have again fallen behind.

It is gratifying to note that there is a substantial increase in the value of lobsters over that of the previous year. The total value, however, is still considerably less than that of 1908-09.

Halibut maintains a steady increase from year to year.

A very striking falling off in the value of mackerel is recorded, the total value for 1910-11 being not more than half the average annual value of the last twenty years. The Nova Scotia coast is almost entirely responsible for the big decrease. It is rather interesting to note in this con- <> nection that Prince Edward Island produced a value considerably in excess of that of the previous year.

It is difficult to assign a cause for such falling off in this fishery; but there can be no doubt that the means of capture in common use had a good deal to do with it. Schools of mackerel are erratic in their movements, swarming into the bays and harbours in the course of some seasons, and practically deserting them during others. In the latter event there can be only one result : namely, a diminished catch even though the fish may be plentiful a few miles off shore owing to the fact that the fishing is largely fixed to the shore.

The increase in the value of oysters, which was recorded in last year's report, is more than offset by the decrease shown in the foregoing table.