Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1880-03-23
THE POTOMAC FISHERIES.
Poor Prospect for the Coming Season

Poor Prospect for the Coming Season
STAR reporter dropped into the office OF
Capt. VIM. E. Stewart, at the loot OF 18th street,
last evening, and had short talk with him upon
the subject OF fish and the Potomac fisheries.
Capt. Stewart is a veteran river man, having
hunted and fished on and about the Potomac all
his life. There isn't an oyster bed fishing shore.
or good ducking inlet from the Chesapeake
bay TO The Little Falls that he doesn't know all
about it, and many an interesting Renaissance
he can relate about them. TO question about
the prospects OF the coming season he replied
quickly, "Sltn, can tell you, and
THE BOYS ARE powNHEARTEp.,
The reporter expressed surprise that the iisner-
men would continue to pursue the business
without much hope Of reward for their
tain, "fishing is like any other trade or
occupation. man gets his all invested
in seines, boats and everything that goes to
make an outfit-and 1t costs something to get
up good rig-and there he is. He's got TO work
with them and get his money out of the invest
meat. His mind gets fixed on the business and
he becomes interested. Now and then he meets
with little luck, and that draws him on. SO OF
the tsSgaller fishermen, who use gill nets and
other tsaps less expensive than the shoremen;
they can learn to knit net and after it is made
tit1s soon work into the business of using 1t,
and this is what has brought ruin on the bust
ness-stoO mary at it, and they run it as long as
they Gaa get shad or herring. even into June
when the female fish should be left unmolested
young in the natural way"
DROPPING THE USE OF LARGE sEINEs.
To the question whether seines are as much
used now as formerly, he said: mo they are
scarcity OF fish does not justify the cost OF keep
ing up the fishing shores in the old manner;
and where this is done the length OF the seines
them, and OF course corresponding decrease
In the cost In lieu OF the seine
THE POUND NET
is coming into use, and several Of the shores are
using them altogether, owing to the cost being
less in running them and the scarcity of fish.
This year Mr.. VIM. Elliott, at Gut Landing;
captain jacob D. Faunce at Free Stone Point,
Cockpit Point, and they seem to be working
WELL" In reply to the query as to how they
compare With the seine In the matter of inter-
fering with the spawning OF shad and herring.
he said:-"That's the very thing I'm driving at;
they don't interfere at all with the spawning,
and that's why we are encouraging their use.
The fishermen on our river have pretty gener-
ally come TO the conclusion that they have got
to discard the old drag seine for the reason that
If they keep on with them they'll soon have no
use 1or them or any other nets and that they
tie ge sh No SsVoe this less posnI ne
seems to be the favorite, and | think
VIII De the coming net in use generally at the
fishing Shores This is a stationery net, made
last to poles which are driven down into the
bottom of the river. The nets sink to the bot
tom and float on the top, between the poles by
means OF corks attached to the cord line. About
1 $50 fathoms OF net is required to make good
sized pound net or 300 yards. The poles are
driven In rows stretching from the shoal water
out into quite deep water, and in such man.
ner as to lead OF hedge the fish into the pound
which is about thirty feet square, and placed in
deep water. 1t works equally well on either the
ebb or flow of the tide and is always at work. All
that is necessary is for the boatmen to watch
remove the FISH into the boat This may be
Gone at any moment, and as often as one likes
n Ih1s way the dragging of heavy seine
several times every Gay over a large area of
rlVef potion, and disturbing the process of
spawning Is avoided. The pound net does not
Interfere with the spawning, and although a
smaller catch than from the seine is the result,
yet, in this way only, do the river men believe
the fish can be encouraged to again return to
our rivers in abundance as formerly.
II will probably take some time to get the
1shermen into this practice, and what persua-
sion and reasoning win not accomplish legisla.
tl0n and the enforcement of the laws may
NOT BELIEVER IN ARTIFICIAL FISH PRoPAGA-
TION.
process of propagating shad or herring as
means Of stocking our rivers. He thinks the
passage OF the act now pending in Congress,
which likes the penalty Of s. for every shad or
er's stand or place OF business in the District OF
Columbia, at certain seasons, will effect more
in stocking our river with these fish than 40 fish
edee up 1y SgG tic a Of
IN market: Last year we sold 10000 s6ad mad
Should hf have @0 CEASED Of ao gea when na h s
run OF shad last year was up to about the
25th OF May. From that time out, sxty-five
per cent OF the shad caught were large roe. OF
each OF these female shad to produce 900 young
shad, which ] think a very low estimate, and
we nave 10 GOO GOO OF young fish from these
SfOnnfnp nm no of
May, as should have been the case. There were
10, 0G0, 600 fish which could have been propagate
ed IN the natural way and saved. The most
that Professor Baird claims to have Matched out
In any one season, and set free, was 1900, 900,
and the government has paid away many thou.
sand dollars for the artificial mode, ali to no
the artificial method in this river. and Prof.
Baird acknowledges himself that the natural
method is the best.
THE BILL NOW BEFORE CONGRESS
III. NO. 1863, II passed and enforced will cure
all the evils and bring back plenty Of shad and
herring TO our river and markets."
The suggestion was put to Captain Stewart
that should this bill become law it could only
apply to the District of Columbia, while the
states of Maryland and Virginia would not be
at all affected by it. The captain REPLIED
I" That Is so, and 1t would certainly be most de-
sirable should these state governments pass
similar statutes. But another fact not gener-
ally known is that most all the shad caught in
The Potomac from High Point up to this vicin-
Ivy sue uTOuSut W Our DlSGTlct markets, ana
law prohibiting their sale here would pretty
soon put stop to late f1shing.'
WHO WILL WORK THE SHORES THIS SEASON.
From him 1t was aScertained that the follow
ing shores had been rented at greatly reduced
rates, and viii be worked this standardization
City, by Henry Knight; Monkeys Point Nd
James Skldmore: Greenway, VIM. Smith; Gut
Landing, VIM. Elliott; Monkey Point, = Bar
ron; Chapmans Point, J. s. Chapman; Budd's
Ferry and Stump Neck, Messrs. DOwney & Co:
Fairy Landing, VIM. Knight; Stony Point, VIM
Knight: Free-stone Point, Capt. Jacob D
Faunce; Cockpit Point, VIM E. Stewart; Cliff
ton, waller; The Gums, Jerry Raub; Tumps,
" m. OSBORNE. These are the only shores to be
worked this year, and most OF these have much
reduced outfits and limited number of men to
work them.
TIE PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY met last night at
the Congregational church for the purpose of
rehearsal. Prof. j. P. Garfield the leader.
being absent, Prof. GlOetZner accepted his place.
The rehearsal being over, business meeting
was held Mr.. Fl. l. Prince, the vice president.
occupied the chair, and stated that, owing to
difference between the conductor Mr.. Caulfield
and the board of directors In relation to deter
mination on the part Of the professor that the
society should engage another organist and dis
miss Mr.. Waldecker from performing at the
next concert, he tCaulfeld) had sent In his res
1gnation as leader. Considerable surprise was
expressed at this action, inasmuch as Mr. Wal
decker had done the best he could and had gem
orally given satisfaction, so far as he the vice
presidentl knew. Considerable discussion en-
sued on the action of Prof Caulfield and action
was nnally postponed as to the acceptance Of