The sun., 1894-12-20
DEsTR UCTIoN or FooD FISH
Disastrous Work or the Pound Fisherm.n
Along the Coast,

Along the Coast.
Now that the cold days have come and the
tackle has been laid away for the winter, the
members OF the angling clubs are beginning to
discuss the Improvement and protection Of their
local fishing waters The increased penalties
for poschng and tho appointment Of ADLER and
more active officials from year TO year are grad
ually bettering the condition of most of the
inland ponds and rivers. a grand work is being
done, too by the Fish Commission in its labor of
restocking the streams and lakes with game
fish. But with all this very little is being done
TO stop the annihilation of our salt water Ash
ing. Each season finds the bays. channels and
creeks moro and more depleted and where the
fisherman could formerly land big string near
home. he Is now obliged to journey many miles
down the coast, and even then gets but scanty
return.
Tho all-devouring fish phosphate factories arc
one potent cause of this disappearance OF our
bluefsh. bass, and soup. In vain the employees
and proprietors OF these concerns plead that
their nets are too deep or too shoal. or too wide
meshed or too fine to catch anything but the
clumsy menhadon. Too many fishing on the
docks have seen the murderous craft come In.
their holds filled to overfowing with dead and
decaying bluefsh, soup, bass, and tautoH. The
gil-net at the entrances to bays and rivers have
almost externnated the striped bass that once
swarmed along our shores. Early in the spring
the pounds are set for alewives, fathsh. smelt,
and founders. These are caught by the ton.
and spread upon the land In April tom Gods
are added to the list, and this toothsomo pan
fish is allowed to rot and later to fertize field
corn. True, there some pound and seine
fishermen who assort their hauls and throw
back all good sized fish. but they are very few
The prices OF to-day also tell a fearful story.
In days gone by all along our shores striped bass
were hawked along the streets b. venders and
went begging at five and seven cents u pound.
And even at that low figure the quantiti taken
were 40 great and the labor expended so slight
that there was big margin OF profit. Nowadays
when bass bring thirty cents a pound no one
pcnses. let alone making any profit. The same
thing is true OF all our table hsh in greater or
The pounds are the most destructive OF all
nets, They are as rule made Of hne-meshed
netting and cover an immense area; In old
for n set pound, but the modern fish killers
spread their filmy webs until acres ana acres OF
fish on the shore is fated to death. The soup
pounds sometimes are nearly 1000 feet in
TO Capture cunners, kiiics, butteriish. white
perch young fry of black fish, and sea bass. And
number OF pounds they do not land one-fiftieth
part Of the soup and bass taken in the old-fash-
are as many fish as ever on our coast.
The autumn pounding is the great massacre
and river mouths, are alive with young tautor
fathsh and sea bass. Pounds Of quarter-nch
meen are SCI at tne mouth OF every tlutway,
and the result IL best described in the reply ~
the proprietor Of several pounds on the stated
said he. exulting in the efficacy Of his public
nuisance. from minnies to dog sharks. and
there's nothing too small 10 spread on the land.
The littler they be the better they be to haudlo
and pack"
The cOncensus OF the ablest opinion in the
fishing clubs and societies seems TO be that
stringent laws only will save the fish. There
must be an entire stopping of tho net work in
the inland creeks and bays for period of not
less than three years. The great increase in the
numbers OF marketable food fish would ia the
end repay all temporary loss TO the Founders,
while ii would bring back to cur shores what we
have not had for many year-gopd rod and
line fishing. Hotel keepers, tackle dealers. bait
in ali seaboard towns and cities would profit
by the return of the sport. But to make the
improvement complete and permanent. the out
side fishing must be subjected to severe regula-
tons as TO size Of mesh permissible in purse.
trap, and seine fishing. and prescribing n fair
distance which must intervene between nearby
nets. in order 10 leave at least some FREQ pas
saReway, however small. 10 the fish, making the
escape OF a few. however improbable at least