Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-18
PLANS FOR FISHING SEASON.
Big Nets to Be Soon in Operation on
Potomac.

Within the next month, or six weeks at
the latest, the shad and herring fishing sea-
son on the Potomac will be in full swing.
and the packing houses on the fish wharf
here and down the river Will be working
night and day sailing the fish down for win
ter consumption The season may open
even earlier than the latter part of March,
for the fish seem to be coming up the coast
much more rapidly than usual. and it would
not surprise the fishermen to find them in
their nets even as early as the 10th of next
month. II is quite certain, however, that
the shad and herring viii not be caught in
any numbers much before April.
All the big nshing shores on the Potomac
will be operated during the coming season.
and in addition TO this Capt. Frank Price
will fish It a new shore near Stuart's wharf
Besides. the Ragged Point shore will be
operated this year for the ilrst time in sew
cral seasons. At a number of the shores a
large force of men is at work preparing for
the hauling of winter senes. and within the
next week or so the big nets at most OF the
shores viii be put into the water for the
first time. AT Marlboro, one of the big
shores in Stafford county, Va, the nets
were hauled for the first time last Thurs
day, and about 800 punches OF fish were
caught and sent to market. The size of the
nets fished al the Potomac fishing shores
W
four miles and large forces of men al re-
quired TO handle this big net.
When the season is at its height several
thousand men find employment at the va
riouS shores, and a fleet of several hundred
boats, large and small, are kept TO bring
the fish from the shores to the market here.
Along the Potomac from about April l at
any of the shores can be seen the great haul
seines, many of which require steam en-
CINE to land them, and others are brought
ashore by horse power. Two hauis are
made every twelve hours, on the tides, and
oftentimes a lighter load of herring Will be
caught on a single haul of one of the big
nets. Shad have been very scarce, how
ever, the past five six years, and the
fisherman who brings 200 or 300 ashore on a
haul is regarded fortunate
In addition to the big haul seines worked
from the shore hundreds of OILERS Will drift
nets on the tides day and night in order to
take advantage OF the run of the fish for
the limited time they are in the Potomac.
a strange feature of the fishing season is
that one day the fish will be plentiful, and
large catches will be made, but on the next
day they will have almost entirely disap-
peared and the seines will come ashore al
most empty. Where the fish go in that
short time the fishermen would ike to
know, as they seem TO get out of the river
almost entirely.
The largest nets are handled along the Po-
tomac, but the industry has also reached
considerable magnitude on the upper waters
of Chesapeake bay and on the Susquehanna
river, and many hundreds of men are given
employment at these shores as long as the
fish run and can be handled with profit to
the fishing-shore owners. In the height of
the season, when the herring are coming
by the millions. the local fish wharf is a
busy place. for night and day the cutters
are at work there preparing the fish to go
to the sailing houses in preparation for
packing.