Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-04-09


Ihn season with the fishermen along the Po-
tomac Tor distance Of eighty miles below this
city has proved . success, and the quality -
wei as the quantity has fully paid them for
their labors.
1nere are not 40 many shores in operation
along the line Of the Potomac as there were q
rev years ago, but there are enough not only to
supply the demand in this city and Alexandria,
put also to give q surplus used for packing in
ADDITION to the many thousand that are sent to
Baltimore and Philadelphis.
just now fish town in Alexandria and the fish
wharf in this city present scenes of life that are
only visible when shad and herring arc run
ming. Ihe daily arrivals of fish at each place
rs large, and II being impossible to dispose of
the STOCK 10 dealers about the city, the hsh are
packed In barrels and kegs and put away for
the winter, when many are used for smoking.
CLEANING THE FISH.
before the fish are packed away some prep
aranon has to be made in the way Of cleaning
them, and In this city such work 10 done chiefly
oy men, while in Alexandria the work Of clean
Ing the hsh is done to large extent by colored
razors.
Next Sunday the fishing season will be at it's
height and then the receipts of shad and
herring Will, so the fishermen think, begin to
decrease. Last week there arrived at the
wharf, here 2S4, 500 herring and 10, 1873 shad, and
the receipts this week we're even larger. These
nsn are caught in various kinds of nets from
tne dip net welded by the man who is too poor
to own any other kind to the prosperous fisher
man who makes daily haul by steam of Q net
measuring more than one mile long.
Inc fsh that are caught at the different
shores are gathered up at least once in every
and 90 10 A. L.,
tug employed for that purpose.
Durlng the earlier part of the season the
wlno and tide were against the fishermen, and
for while they were not SO successful but
AFTER the last snow and rain the water got in
peter condition and the fish were caught in
larger numbers and they we're Of excellent
quality.
sHAD AND HERRING.
The shad and herring have been in excellent
condition, while the white perch have been
better this season than for the past fifteen
years. They have not only been larger in size
and more plump, but the catch has been
larger. The same is true about the rock fish
or striped bass, which have not been plentiful
Tor several seasons. Some few carp are also
being caught and the fishermen think that the
prospects were never brighter. The catch of
carp averages about q dozen a day at present.
Last season great many black bass were
caught in the seines and trap nets None have
uoeh eauSht shus Iar tnls season, although the
nshermen expect to catch them soon. Just
below Mount Vernon where Accotink creek
empties into the river is a favorite fishing
ground for this species Of fish, and seldom is
haul made there that there is not q bass or
two found in the net.
THE PENDING BILL IN CONGRESS.
Above and about here some net fishing is
done, although the uncertainty Of the fate of
the bill now pending before Congress makes
the fishermen move slowly toward purchasing
nets and other paraphernalia. That measure
is intended to protect the fish in the river near
the head of tidewater where the spawn is
dropped. The five years law for the protection
Of the fish in the Potomac included that part of
the river within the limits of the District
and the result of its enforcement
was SO apparent to the fishermen that they
were heartily In favor of its re-enactment; but
objection was made to the act because of few
persons Oh tho Virginia side Of the river, and it
was impossible during the last Congress to get
the bill out Of the hands of the committee As
the measure now stands it has been reported
favorably and its friends are sanguine as to the
ultimate result. This measure does not refer
In any manner to angling, but only to such
fishing as is calculated to interfere with or de-
stroy the Matching of fish.
THE CATCH BY DIP METZ
Along the upper Potomac few shad and
herring as well as carp and other fish are
caught by persons who use large dip nets
during the run of shad and herring At other
seasons OF the year this mode of fishing is not
SO profitable, although men have been known
to catch bass in this way after the close of the
season mentioned, as the fish are sold to
anglers, who are often willing to pay excessive
charges for them rather than return home
empty-handed after an unsuccessful fishing
trip. Since the freshet several years ago.
when the ponds of the fish commission were
emptied into the river by the freshet. gold hsh
have been caught in large quantities, and it
was then that the Potomac was SO well stocked
with carp, Gold fish are now found in almost
every haul of the seine in the Potomac, and
about the fish wharf they are sometimes sold,
although it takes long string Of them to bring
q few pennies.
The seines and nets which are operated about
this city take from the water thousands of sand
perch. This fish is a pretty specimen, but per-
sons who ale acquainted with the number of
bones they contain will never buy them.
GOOD FISHING SPOTS.
Anglers have already made a start for the
season and some good-size fish have been
caught The principal fishing done now is in
the small streams, where silver mullets or
suckers and clubs are caught. In Rock creek
large numbers Of mullets have been
OF caught T.. s especial. where in h ins vicinity
mitted any day in the week except Sunday.
Catfish, cells and small fish have also been
caught there. The principal club streams
fshed in this locality are IN Virginia One
stream is that which runs near Carlin Springs
and empties into the river near the Four-mile
run and the other is the Accotink creek, which
passes beneath the tracks of the Alexandria
and Fredericksburg railroad few miles below
Alexandria. This stream is 6shed by only q
few persons and the consequence is that those
who 60 there find it pretty well stocked with
good-sized fish.
In Occoquan creek anglers find sport in
catching large catfish, perch and other fish
such ss are found in the Potomac, while in the
upper part Of the stream near Occoquan Q great
many bass are caught at times.
THE HATCHERY AT FORT WASHINGTON.
Superintendent Worth Of the fish commission
expects to have the hatchery at Fort Washing
ton in good working order soon 90 that the
work of stripping the roe shad of their eggs
thought that tbs plant Of shad this season will
be at least 100000. Since tho commission
first commenced the work of stocking the Po-
tomac the catch of shad, as well as other fish,
has increased from year to year until the catch
last year caused glut in the market and it
was almost impossible to dispose of the fsh,
and herring sold a. low as five for cent
The Harmless Cosmetic.
From the Detroit Free PrsssL
She didn't have the best complexion In the
world and she commended with her father and
family that cosmetics were not injurious. The