The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1892-04-28
A Bad Bill.

OF MENHADEN. EFFECTS OF EN- CESS
I'VE FISHING. IMPORTANT THAT THE
STATE LAWS SHOULD BE MAINTAINED.
philadelphia Ledger.
1t seems as though many legislators are
not satisfied unless they are tinkering at
some existing laws which are good enough
to he let alone Fortunately enough this
| mischevous practice is usually directed
against some minor statute not calculated
10 seriously injure the tinker with his CON
>tituent>. But now and then an assault
is made which, if not lepulsed, is calcu-
lated to cause widespread disaster a bill
recently introduced by Congressman lap
nam. OF Rhode Island, comes under this
category.
The bin proposes in effect that menhad-
en- and mackerel may he taken with purse
seines 10y citizens OF the nited States III
all navigable waters within the jurisdic-
ton and control of the United States,
where the tide GIBBS and flows. so far as
the | nited States has the rights of fisher
les therein, any State law or usage to the
contrary notwithstanding.
As the menhaden. or moss bunker, as it
is sometimes called forms the principal
food of numbers of valuable larger fishes,
most of th" States on the North Atlantic
coast have passed laws restrictin" THEN
capture. These beneticent statutes Mr..
Lapham wishes to have overlid1len. This
appears a clear invasion OF State $ rights,
and, therefore unconstitutional. Auda-
cious as this seems. however, the bill may
be fairly termed outrageous in other re-
spects. 1T is calculated to destroy the
business of the smaller coast fishermen,
threaten the speedy humiliation of the
menhaden. and drive many of the food
fishes from the North Atlantic States.
That this is not a oroundless assertion is
readily shown by a reference to the habits
OF the menladen. their tinny enemies, and
the methods used in their capture by the
people in whose selfish interests this bill
is evidently drafted and introduced.
The menhaden is a small fish, little
larger than river herring, that swarms
in vast schools along the northern coast
during the spring, summer and early au-
tumn. They keep close to the surface. so
that THEN presence may be detected long
distance away. They are continually be
set by enemies: whole schools are some
times destroyed by sharks in short time
Whales porpoises and sword fish work al
| most equal destruction among them
schools Of blue fish and wcaktish follow
them for days at a time, killing and devour-
ING. Even smaller fish attack and cat
them. Destructive. however, as these
large fish are to the menhaden. man is
perhaps even more SO. To him the men
hadon is valuable in more ways than one.
/ The fish are eaten fresh. Saltcl and Smok-
ed: are put up in the torn Of sardines,
and are used for the manufacture OF oil
! and fertilizers. The value of the menhaden
alone commercially amounts to several
I million dollars annually.
For years the menhaden fishing indus
Try WAS carried on by individual fishermen
in small sailing vessels. In time, however
wealthy firms began fitting out steamers
and other large craft. with purse seines.
for the purpose Of catching the fish on a
| grand scale AS a result OF this. in 1871
according to the stated official report of
the United States Memhaden Oil and Qua
10 association. there was employed by
them 3OS steamers and sailing vessels.
= 4:S men. with an invested capital of ,
300 600. The purse seines employed, mn
douhtcdly the most effective fishing appa-
ratus ever devised, could easily secure a
school of almost any size without the loss
OF single fish.
The effect of this excessive fishing soon
became apparent. The menhaden We're
| either driven from the shores to more dis
tant points. or We're remarkably less in
numbers, and many Of the food fishes de
creased in the same ratio. The report OF
! the same association issued only ten years
later amply proves this. According to this
report it then required three times as
many men, three times as many steamers.
and double the invested capital to get
fewer fish and only one third the oil they
did in 1874.
Nor have the owners of these fleets of
steamers confined their efforts to the Ci-
rect destruction of the menhaden. There
is abundant evidence that they had no
hesitation in casting their deadly Seines
about schools OF weak fish. blue fish OF
other food fishes and adding them to the
stock to he devoted to the oil and phos-
plate factories.
1t is no wonder, then. that the States
| bordering on the SeacoaSt should enact
and enforce laws restricting the operation
| of the rapaciou> mcnhaden fishermen. and
it is highly important that these laws
should continue to be maintained. The
wonder is that any one in Congress could
he found to father such an iniquitous
measure us the one proposed 10y Mr.. Lap
ham. But such being the case the duty
OF Congress is plain. The bill should. and
doubtless will, be killed as etfectually as
the last one of similar import introduced
by Mr.. Lapham.