The Penn's Grove record., 1906-02-02
A FALSE REPORT CORRECTED
In Regards To Fishing

Mr. EDIToR:-The Standard and Jer-
seynan III last weeks issue published a
report OF the annual meeting OF the Stur-
geon Fishernlen's Protective Association
which was held in Philadelphia. In con-
nection with that report there were some
gross misrepresentation i'll reference to
the Shad Fishermen and their business.
The statement was made that the Shad
Fishermen expressed a desire to cooper
ate with the Sturgeon Fishermen and
have a law enacted protecting the fishing
industry. Ii this desire was expressed
by any at that meeting it. was lone by
those who are much more interested in
Sturgeon fishing than shad. The shad
fishermen are satisfied with the law as it
is, with the exceptions of having a law
to protect the young frye from being des-
troyed by poisonous substances which
are dumped into the river by different
corporations.
Furthermore, the statement was made
in that report that fifteen years 9 the
average size net in the bay was fifty
pounds of Irvine and it took three men to
fish it. Now they use 100 pounds of net
to a boat and it takes but two men to fish
it. This statement is false. The average
size net is not any greater at the present
time than twenty years ago. | have
fshed about SO years in the bay. TWEEN
ty years ago l fisled rs lbs. OF, Irvine.
| Now | fish 90 tbs-with three meh~and a
snapshot
We caIf not fish a long net in the bay
at the present time to any advantage be-
cause there are many more obstru otions
| in the way now than there We're fifteen
| or twenty years ago, placed there by the
| government, such as buOys, jetties and
r%evetments. The government has placed
a revetment five miles i'll length, extend
ing from Alloway's Creek nearly to Hope
| Creek, completely destroying some of the
best fishing ground. Some years ago one
could fish a mile OF net if lie so desired.
At the present time II has to keep part
of his net in the boat nearly all the time
on account of these distractions
The article in the Standard and Jer-
seyman referring to Shad fishermen is
about as near the truth as the one | read
in a Philadelphia paper, which said there
were 800 Swedes fishing huge nets day
and night at Bay Side and the facts give
but % boats and but few OF these boats
will be there neXt spring.
| do not know who is responsible for
the article in the Standard and Jersey
man but he writes without knowing the
facts. | was told a Sturgeon fisherman
who runs a camp Of nets said he would
like to see a law enacted prohibiting shad
fishing for 5 years in order that young
sturgeon might not be destroyed by the
gill nets, so that they could grow up to
be large fish. think it would be the
part Of wisdom for such a one to see to it
and have a law passed for a closed sea-
son for all sturgeon nets. This is the
kind-of protection Sturgeon fishermen
need in order to protect their business in
the future.
The Shad Fishermen's Protective As
ISOLATION does not wish to ~antagonize the
Sturgeon Fraternity i'll any way, but
when they give publicity to a report
that we want certain laws enacted to pro-
tect our business, when it is just what
we do not want. We wish to make this
public announcement that the Shad
Fishermen's Protective Association is
abundantly able to look after its own
interest without any dictation from any
other organization. Respectfully,
E. S. II ARRIs.