The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-03-31
DELAWARE RIVER SHAD..
Last Years Great Catch to
Be Equalled or Exeelled
This Season.

The Delaware shad was TO nave made
its appearance on the Trenton breakfast
table tomorrow morning, but the fates
decreed otherwise. Lovers OF this spring
deiicacy viii now have 10 wait until the
river falls TO the fisaerman,s level. 1t is
too high now and TOO muddy.
Clinton Smith, one Of the New Jersey
Fish and Game Wardens. is probably
the most fish-wise man in this city. He
was seen yesterday by a state Gazette,
reporter and Intercepted on the ques-
ton Of fishing for shad.
You know the shad season is open
from the LIST OF December ill June TO-"
said the Fish Warden, land the only
reason we haven't had Delaware shad on
our tables Is because the conditions for
catching them are not right. not because
the season is still closed.
"The Fish IN Game Protector, Charles
=. schriner. has given permission to
fishermen above tidewater to fish fol
shad In the Delaware, but they are not
permitted to use nets with smaller
meshes than three inches. No set nets
or facinet net is allowed
"Have there been any sha caught
here YETI"
Only one. That one weighed two
and a half pounds and was taken last
Wednesday at Race Point. That is on
the Pennsylvania shore, just opposite the
State House,
Are the fishermen at work p
Not yet; the river is too high. They
We're going to start tomorrow, but the
recent rains have so muddied and raised
the river that the fishing will be post,
poned. Shad will not run up when the
river is muddy. just as soon as it gets
low enough the fishermen will put in
What do you know about last sea
sons catch?'
1T was the largest known in eighteen
years, ! can give you the exact catch
Fairview, caught 7,5l5; william H.
White, at Whites Island, caught 7,22l
Ebert Reed caught $40. and Jacob v.
Booz 4SS. just above; Edward Pidcock,
at the Yardley bridge, took out 4,229.
took out 1921. At Moore,.s Station Mr..
Moore took 4,620. This makes a total of
81 ,7S4 heads and tails. as the fishermen
call little and big fish, ranging in weight
from two pounds to eight or nine"
What can you say about the pros
pect for this seasons catch?'
Il cant prophesy. It's all guess work,
but should suppose, from the fact that
LII OIlileu 2tduGS l. ISL OUD1IIllSSlOil6I
put sc, 900, 900 shad fry in the Delaware
last June, that the catch this YEAR, will
equal, If not excel hat Of last year"
All of these do not come to maturity,
do they?"
mo; comparatively few of them do.
The Pennsylvania Fish Commissioners
are now finishing a shad hatchery at
Bristol, WHICH will add many hundreds
of thousands of shad fry to the Delaware
this season. 1t will begin operations
with thp fret aatoh nf ripp roe Gha6
With this additional hatchery and the
improvements made at the head OF the
water power the fishing about here
should be greatly benefited"
VIVA Improvement do you speak OF
at the water power?"
Formerly, when the young shad
were falling back from the upperwaters
of the Delaware many of them would be
drawn into the water power on account
of the dam at dts head. I have seen
young shad taken out from in front of
screens at the mills in the lower part of
town by the cart load. I called the at
tention of the Fish and Game Protector
to this and we had a screen put across
the entrance to the water power. This
sent the fry down the river instead of
destroying Them
At the Bristol hatchery the ripe roe
shad will be caught and the spawn
with running water. A large shad con-
uains about $1,000 eggs When these
hatch they are found to have a little bag
attached to their under sides, which
contains their nourishment for the first
| three or four days of their existence. AT
the expiration OF this period they must
be put into the river, as their food is I'M
known, and if not released from the jars
they die. 1t has been estimated that
not more thar twenty per cent. of a
shad's spawn matches under natural com
ditions. AT the hatcheries ninety per
cent. is hatched.-State Gazette.