Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1900-08-02
philadelphia Record, July 18th.


doned, at Least For a Time, and the
turcsque villages will BIO Deserted.
Philadelphia Record, July 18th.
Delaware Bay sturgeon have b
SO eagerly sought Of late, owing
their remarkably high Price, that
have become well-nigh extinct.
years catch has proved q severe
appointment to the many hundreds N
sErend their nets up and down the b
add from all indications it will soon
Us difficult to hook a sturgeon 10 thy
waters as II 10 to shoot o moose ID II
Maine woods or bison on the prairl
Of the West. For 25 years these fisherI
have made up a ,flourishing incustI
but now they will have to be ADD
doned, at least for time, and the pI
turesque shanty villages which BID
beun built along shore will be DESERT
The oaviare, which is manufactpS
from the roe OF the Delaware sturn
has q dalioacy Of flavor that 10 BID
priced by epioures whose tastes iniel
toward this Wand, and the demanery
1t cannot be met in any other pdy2
the world. 1t is this that has oheI
the sturgeon to be pursued 50 rex
| lessly, although the meat may noul
sold for good price and thu swiinm,
bladders have always been In
demand for Using glass.
"When first went into the
| ness, :" remarked an old fisherman
terday, "oatohing sturgeon at
mouth OF the Delaware was q nj
matter of lifting your net and haul
in the fish. The water was full Of vi
in the spriEg of the year, not onl,
the bay, but for miles mp the river,
remember very well when We first 4
call for caviare for the Russian trnl
A ros could be bought then forI
cents. IL wasn't long, though, Esd
the price advanced to 81, and Since til
il has kept rising. In several instan
lately / have known q single roe
bring M high as sl20. As the fish HI
grown scarce the nets have becol
more plentiful. There have never 81
go many fishers before as there 81
this year. The high prices seemed
set the men crazy. They came d
pretty much dise usted, though. Tin
must have boon 1000 nets 10 the wal
and some days the whole number wt
bring In no more than one or
sturgeon.
"Wnen there were sturgeon In plej
the season used TO open right after
Patrich's day, and last until the L
Part of July, but for the past few vi
IL hasn't been worth while to 81
out before the last OF April, and ttF
has been no luck to speak Of after
first of Jnne. / quit this year.
, Decoration Day. The general Nj
, seems to be that the business is Al
, for, and the men are Offering Oh
! fleets for sale dirt cheap. The rigs
Z usually made on purpose for the bf
| ness. ShRd boats wont do for sturgd,
, they are too light. and would be ap)x
=. get upset In landing fish that shu y
f; fight Large gill-nets are used, pet n
! 300 fsthoms long, with meshes N
l enough apart so that smaller fish n
: pass through unmolested. The ~
, buoyed at each end, with the u
near the middle All along the ns N
/ corks, which stand up on the sur II
i. of the water. When one OF thess d,
$ out CT sight the men in the Goat
> that a sturgeon has struck the net
!, Sturgeon give up pretty easy u
y rule. | have known them to lie j
il and te pulled in when the net VI e
Q touching them at al. When then
hooked, though, they wall sonnet
fight like ali possessed, especist,IS
- bucks. When you consider thv
4 sturgeon Is six or eight feet long n
= weighs anywhere from 800 to u
! pounds, it stands to reason that II
I can give a man a good deal Of tuS
: a have known q fighting stnrge' n
y strike with his tail and break N
= leg in being hauled from the stern Il,
= into the boat, and | have frequff
!, seen them throw q man overby ~
y Usually most of the trouble comes VI
sturgeon not being hooked ~
: should be. The right way to b r.
: sturgeon is just back Of the fin.
y you get him there be seems to be
= less. 81
= About 30 per cent of the stu "A
h caught are females, and the roe b
n times amounts to one third the "a
: fish. The best catch ever madjd
Oh May morning some u or 10 IL
"a ago, when / drew out % from Il
y place. Twenty-four OF them were
4 sturgeon and l got els roe, nie0
y $3.50 for the cayiRre alone.
known Of 30 sturgeon being taka1
- one catch OF Bowers Beach. A
- was when n roe brought about g. n
!, The csyisre industry herA was je
N up ty German. who Is said 70
- made millions from his orelate
- Peter Fsttersnn is his name, althtr
! few people know it, He starteer
"a practice of catching the siurgeont1
~ Zig scale when thsy came up IN ID
No to srawr in the spring Of the year N
~ helped mea TO 90 into the businefnl
!, fitting them OUT with boats Att]
"a the fishing vas carried Oh by 3
- few men along shore. who knew w
M TO so in the bay 10 find free PIN
their nets, and who studied the H
Of the tish and came 10 know Eleif ln
and theit feeding grounds Gra "
they took in other men as helpers u
OF soon as the latter had mastered ~
be and learned something OF tae j
Ct which were 10 he made ny WI:
AZ struck out on their OWL hook,
he this way the industry grew up ~
Oh The more advanced way OF So Il
g sturgeon is 10 have hset OF, sipg
e. beats with schooner or scnE us
be about from ore 20 another and iRf
u the fish, On eauA boat there ailra
50 men, sho fish u the dsytius ana :
at eoard the schooner AZ night int y
"a Good many, though, who nsltH
IT siness hosss and 60 sshcre every
Il, bot they count On selling the 5,
on to some schnoseS IS fast as H
- them, as the oss; caSiste c']l
ohtsinNa oaly SHEA the roe IS sn{
fron = live fish. ~
But am StraiS the siurseopiu'
neSs is doae for in these paris "
artificial Asteassies should pe VI
V sished, OF TIE capture Of the y
~ hieised s.sosataer foe The nsSI W.