The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1874-05-16
The Fishing Business.-The shad and

Inc FISHING DuSlncsS.-lne shau anu
herring fisheries of this county have been
extremely prosperous the present season.
Large quantities of shad have been caught
and of the finest quality. Old fishermen
pronounce the average of the shad larger
and fatter than they have seen caught in
these waters for many years previous. The
weather has been most favorable for hand
ling the catch and good prices and ready
sale were obtained. Until within a few
days the price per hundred for shad has
averaged SIS.
We made flying visit on Wednesday to
the Messrs. Wilson & Rutter's shore at the
mouth of North East river, called the
"Gridiron Fishery" While on the shore
we saw them make one haul, which brought
to shore eighteen hundred shad and ten
thousand behring's. The shad were the
largest and finest we ever saw caught in
these waters. Taking the average of the
haul, the majority of them would weigh
four and five pounds. On Monday they
caught forty-five hundred shad and on
Tuesday nearly as many.
When we saw the large roe shad Tapping
and floundering by hundreds on the sandy
beach, we thought what splendid sppor-
tunity was here presented for Seth Green
to obtain millions of roe, if the great pisca-
cultorist had been present. There might,
at little cost, be millions of shad roe pro-
cured at these fisheries about the head Of
Chesapeake Bay, every Spring; sufficient
to stock all the shad streams in the country,
and by putting few hundred thousand of
the fry in the upper waters of the Susque-
hanna, North East, Elk, Bohemia and Sas-
safras rivers the shad fisheries might in
few years be increased to what they were
fifty or sixty years ago. Then thousands
of the finest shad were taken in small seins
at almost any favorable beach for fishing
on those rivers. The former great abun-
dance of those fine fish could certainly be
again restored in a few years from the
roe which is destroyed every Spring by
the fisheries at the mouths of the rivers
above mentioned. Let our Fish Com
missioners attend to this business, and
by furnishing the former abundance of these
finest of fish, the public may be able to pro-
cure them at something approximating the
old time prices which were often as low as
four cents piece, which was little more
than cent pound for the finest fish that
swims.
After sharing the proverbial hospitality
of the fishing shore, in dinner of the most
delicious fried shad, the fish being con-
veyed fresh from the net to the frying pan,
before particle of its rich flavor was lost
by too long contact with the atmosphere,
and witnessing the landing of the three
mile seine, we had our horse hitched to and
started for Elkton, richer than when we
arrived on the shore, by pair of five
pound shad, which one of our kind hosts
had selected from the Topping hundreds of
slver-scaled beauties, and presented us
with. May his shadow never grow less, as
Pat would say in such an emergency.
To enjoy in their utmost perfection
white shad or Eastern Shore peach, the
latter must be plucked fresh frem the top
most branch of the tree and eaten on the
spot; and the former must be conveyed
from the net to the frying pan, and cooked
and eaten Immediately. Unless you have
enjoyed either the fruit or fish under these
most favorable circumstances you have
never realized all the real pleasure they pos
sess for the gastronome.
On Thursday we learn that the largest
haul of the season was made at this fishery,
$500 shad of uncommonly fine quality and
$4,000 herring, being the product of one
haul.