Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-05-27

Products Of Land and Water That Are I'm
loaded at the Washington Wharves.

WHAT THE RIVER BRINGS Us.
Products Of Land and Water That Are Un-
loaded at the Washington wharves.
One who visits the Washington river front
viii discover. il he did not already know it,
that the commerce of the Potomac is not insig-
nifcant. The staple crop Of the river is her
ring The fame of the Potomac herring ex-
tends beyond the domain of Uncle SAM The
season for this fish opens ''along in February"
is at It's height in March and concludes in May.
At the beginning Of the season the price Of $50
per thousand has been touched, but ordinarily
the price vibrates between "a and IS. April is
the food month for the flow of herring, and
200 900 is not an unusual number to be received
in one day. For the most part they are landed
at Reilly's wharf, cut with two quick knife
strokes washed with hose and sailed in bar
rels for shipment. The fisheries are forty to
fifty miles down stream, the largest being
Neitze's. at Stony Point; Golden's. at Windmill
Point; Ballinger's. at Arkendale. and Travers at
Sandy Point. All these places are on the Vir-
ginia shore because of its being the least rugged
and abrupt. In the DAYS of yore Bryan's shore,
on the Maryland side. and Monkeys Point were
the great fisheries that supplied Alexandria,
Georgetown and Bladensburg. The shad in
dustry is collateral with the herring and opens
mp and shuts down at the same seasons.
FISH FROM THE SEA.
The season for saltwater fish opens in May
and ceases with warm weather. This class Of
fish comprises sea trout, bluefish, sheepshead,
maekerel crocuses and spots. They are brought
hither in barrels from the cape waters. Hamp-
ton Roads, Virginia Beach, Breton's bay. st.
Clements bay and Colonial Beach per steamer,
cut iced and sold to local consumers and
shipped to distant points. About 200 barrels
Iii. n. IL.
head TO mouth. are seined, trapped and Melted
in great numbers and shipped from Washing
ton. principally to Philadelphia. White perch
and rock are rare and costly and are consumed
mainly in Washington The former fish retails
for about Is cents per pound and the latter for
about 80 cents. Despite efforts of the fish COM
mission black bass are rarely found. German
and American carp abound in the harbor and
are esteemed as food by many people.
THE OYSTER.
Oysters arrive in large numbers from Sep
TENDER till the middle Of May and in small
numbers throughout the summer. In dry sea-
sons these are found as far inland ma Nanjemoy
creek. fifty-three miles down from Washington.
In dry seasons salt water backs away up stream,
while in rainy seasons the floods freshen the
river MANY miles seward. The bivalves of this
region are fat, but watery, and are what OYSTER
men call gally. Good oysters are dredged in
deep water and tOnged on the shoals around
Lower Cedar Point. Swan Point. Upper Macho-
doc creek. Cobb Point. ST. Catherine Island, st.
Clements and Breton's bays and Ragged Point.
The most esteemed by epicures are found be-
tween Norfolk AID Cape Henry. in Tangier
sound. Lynn Haven and Mobjaek bays and the
vicinity OF Hog Island The finest and rarest
oyster lie the ''siEgle," clam-shaped specimen
got by tOngmen on sand shoals of the Chesa-
peake. Oysters vary in price from IS cents to
81 so per busheL The total number of bushels
received in Washington cannot be readily calcu-
lated.
CLANS AND OTHER DELIcAcrEs.
Clans demand conditions somewhat similar to
those that make the oyster. Their season opens
May and continues till cold weather sets in.
The best come from Cherrystone, Eastern Shore
of Maryland, and sell at from 40 to 80 cents per
hundred. Ten thousand are consumed each
week in Washington during the summer.
Crabs constitute fair percentage of Potomac
products. They are worth S1.50 to $3.50 per
barrel At the Washington wharves. Their sea-
son continues from spring to fall and the
balance OF the year they lie buried in the mud.
They seek shoal and warm water in which TO
shed. and when caught after this process are
worth from 80 cents TO S1.25 per dozen as soft
shell crabs. About $500 arrive daily per
steamer and pungy boat.
Frogs are in season throughout the summer
are caught in the marshes along the river and
vary in price from 30 cents per dozen upward
according to size. They arrive only in small
lots.
About five barrels of eels are brought up
weekly and find market here. Turtles are
hooked in the shoals and marshes and dug out
of the mud in creeks all along the river. About
1000 pounds come up weekly and sell uncleaned
at from to cents per pound.
Sturgeon are caught during the summer fire.
quently as far up stream as Alexandria.
Several sLovelhcad sharks have been caught
IN seines- Some eight years ago tiger shark
was taken at Maryland Point.
PROPOSES frequently enter the river and race
steamers far inland.
FRUITS AND vEGETABLEs.
The berry ard vegetable season opens usually
in the first week of May. Straw berries. peas.
string beans. asparagus cucumbers and toma-
toes. grown mainly in North Carolina. come
through the Dismal Swamp canal to Norfolk and
axe thence shipped to Washington. The south
east Virginia truck opens later on and hundreds
of tons come mp the river to Washington to be
shipped hence TO northern points. Hundreds
OF crates Of Virginia strawberries are passing
through Washington daily TO Boston and New
England cities Twenty-forr hours after pick
ing they are Ona New England table,
spring lamb. calves sc. begin 10 arrive by
the first of June from Potomac landings and
b. the fifteenth of that month Georgia and
North Carolina waiermeions are in order In
the middle Of July Mar land and Virginia
cahl'siOti g aId NiicT,nclO.s enter the market
In sehO"IeT leads. the best coming from Yo-
eomIeo and COSn river. IlIis traffic lasts till
September al! tie fish and oyster times are
again with Us.
ICE AND LUMBER.
IL is estimated iha: Wa h,ngtoa and vicinity
consume 10000 tons of ice per annum. This
comes principally from the kennebec The
first ice-ladcn sEips clear Immediately upon the
opening OF IaN IgItioa. usually early in April,
and the trade continues sill November when
the river freezes NJ. Ice comes in from Booths
bay. Maine. n -oGyiOu. the year. but icemen
say tina; this product being pond ice is gray in
color and contains aIr bubbles. while Kennebec
ice, owing to the depth of water and swiftness
of current. a clear ard comnSct
CordwOOl Is another i'm fortant factor in
river commerce. 10 900 cords arriving annually
by ship The best wood is Gu: along the James
river. but ~ a rule this goes TO New York and
Philadelphia Washington is supplied from
the haPPahannoc& river and Aequis creek dis
triets.
Lumber comes from James river and heavy
timber from North Carolina and Georgia On
an average a schooner will carry 10000 feet.
and there were eighteen arrivals in our harbor
last week of lUrlber-la,len schooners About
Coo tons of coal is received weekly per barge
from baltimore and Philadelphia.
Real Estate Matters