Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1904-05-19
THE FISH COMMISSION
GAVE GOLDSBORO TIE GO
BY IN DISTRIBUTION
OF Young Shad For North Caro-
lima Waters: Adverse Conn
ment: Peculiar Habits Of
This Fine Fish.

Fred. L. Merritt, special Wash
ington correspondent Of the Raleigh
News-O Observer, writing in that pa
per last Saturday, has the following
to say concerning the shad fishing
industry in North Carolina, which
is Of peculiarl local interest on account
OF its explanation in part of the
scarcity Of shad IN the waters of the
Neuse, and which has o~ccasioned no
little concern ard much comment
and discomfort hereaborts recently Z:
"Washington, d. G., May 13.-One
Of the Fish Commissions cars left
here yesterday morning with three
million fry shad which are to be dis
tributed in North Carolina waters.
The car went from here to Goldsboro
and from there it wiiI.send out ship
ments Of from 800, 600 10 5O0,0 o0 fish
each, to the following places:
"Fayetteville Cape Fear), Will
nnington Cape Fear, Lumberton
river, Clinton six Runs rIver), New
port NewriveD, PollocksviIle CTrent
river, and two points on the Pee
Dee river in South Carolina.
"Last week when a car Of fish was
sent to Augusta, Ga, it planted fish
at two North Carolipa ioints-one in
Pee Dee river and the other in Ca
taWba river. Two or three other
shipments are scheduled for North
Carolina waters later in the season,
but are Of course dependent in large
measure on whether or not the COM
mission will have the fish necessary
the hatch so far having been far be-
low what is usual at this time. This,
Of course; viii be in part made up
later, there being two seasons of
distribution-fry in the spring and
fngerings in the fall
cat the Edenton station, for in
stance, the hatch has been only 1O,-
900, 900, whereas il usually runs from
two to three times that number.
These have already been distributed
in the Albermarle Sound and its trib-
utaries. The decreased hatch, Of
ficials here say, is due almost exclu-
sively to the decrease in the catch of
fish in the sound and the decrease,
therefore, in the supply of eggs.
"The shad is both a fresh and salt
water fish. It is Matched and spends
the first six or eight months of its
life in flesh water. Then it goes out
into salt water to come back to fresh
water two or three years later to
spawn and reproduce itself. Fail
ing to reach fresh water it does not
spawn. Taking advantage of this
condition, local fishermen have lined
with pound nets the sides Of thechan-
neIs CT thesOunds and rivers of North
Carolina, at the point where the fish
come out of the salt water to spawn,
and in many instances they have
put gill nets across the channel,
which they watch and remove only
when compelled to do so in order not
to obstruct navigation. Under these
circumstances, few of the fish ever
get beyond their first spawning sea-
sOnand wen Of these few ever spawn.
The commission IS Investigating the
matter, and will formulate some.
recommendations on this important
point, which will very likely be
brought to the attention of the North
Carolina Legislature next winter"
The car referred to above reached
this city Friday afternoon. From a
glance at the points Tor distribution
of the young shad it will be noted
that no fish were allotted for distri-
button at this point. In this the
commission has erred, for Little
river, q tributary of the Neuse and
which empties into it at a point
about a mile distant from this citv.
is one Of the finest spawning streams
for shad to be found IN North Caro-.
lima, on account Of its clear, crystal
like waters and practical freedom
from the fish that destroy the shad
spawn, and when properly opened
up at its mouth, is a favorite play