The morning call., 1890-05-01
SCARCE PAMPANO.
A Falling Off in the Supply OF
SHUTTER Fish,"
Sweet Water Perch and Barracuda Not Over.
abundant-Too Much Salmon in
the Market.

Where am going to get my pampano
If this sort of thing keeps up?" is the ques-
ton that is just now bothering the minds OF
leading caterers and observation-disclosures.
or course, there are seasons and seasons,
and just now IL is betwixt aud between the
off and the on. Still, there are growing
yearly indications that the steady placing
of this pet fish dainty on the bills Of fare.
even in the supposed season, will be pretty
risky experiment So, connoisseurs, be-
ware! Like the oolahan, the candle fish d"
of the Indian, the choicest fish morsel Of
northern neighbors in British Columbia.
it is a favorite that, at its appointed time, is
supposed to appear on every well-regulated
table with the clockwork punctuality of
tidal wave or there is disappointment.
"What are the prospects for good PAM
pano season this year?" was the question
put to a leading wholesale dealer in the fish
line.
"Well, all hope and pray is it will be
reasonably good. Pm just now done to
death with inquiries for pampano. Yes, if
L could guarantee the filling of orders Gus
toners would go down on their knees for
the privilege of filing them with me six
months ahead at any figure chose to name.
Just now, wholesale, the first lot I've hand
led for some time this morni ng, the price is
81 so a pound.
ONCE WORTH NOTHING.
That's big money. Yet ten years ago
these pampano, or, as they call them in the
East, the butter fish," were comparatively
speaking worth nothing. You could
scarcely give them away: Even now half
the people don't know them when they see
them. The principal, I may almost say
the only pampano fishing grounds are at
Camp Capitola and at Santa Cruz. and be-
ing only four hours distant by rail the fish
loses none of its freshness in transit. Last
year they were scarcer than for some sime.
How this season will pan out l can't tell.
Three years ago they were as plentiful
as you please. They've the same queer, &C.
centric ideas in the matter of running as
the salmon. AS you have seen yourself the
salmon on the Frazer and Columbia rivers
Will run, some seasons, till they can run no
longer, while i'll others you may whistle for
sight OF one. The pampano's season is
summer-when he deigns to have one.
Here's one OF my regular pampauo fishers
accounts:
Just run your eye down thatl Some
times he makes a fair haul, and then you'll
notice skip and a gap of entries for eight,
ten or twelve weeks. Yet he's fishing hard
all the time: It's just luck How many to
the poundp Well, take seine-hauled fish
OF small variety and you can safely lump
them at about five to the pound. Take the
drlft-hauled-well, they'll run two to the
pound.
OTHER FISH ARE SCARCE.
No. Pampano's are not the only scarce
fish just now. Barracuda, for example, are
as scarce as they well can be at 10 cents per
pound. Now, with these again last year
there was big run. Why, we were liter
ally throwing them away. For three years
previously again they were scarce, very
scarce. just shows the eccentricities of his
fish-ship, doesn't it? Sea bass, too, last
year we could scarcely give away. and from
present signs | don't know but what they
are going to be as cheap and plentiful this
year.
The whole truth is, there's too much
salmon coming forward. Pm simply speak
ing now from a wholesale fish-dea!er's
standpoint Salmon bosses the market
Cheap, plentiful salmon and the smaller
fry have got to come down with a run.
Now, too, while saltwater perch are very
plentiful, sweet-water Iereh is as scarce as
an honest man. TRACE a lot of this scarcity
to the drying up of the TuIare Lake. l used
to get tons from there; now they are grow
ing peaches instead of perches. l guess"