The sun., 1907-08-04
THE OCEANS TEEMING LIFE.
Immense Numbers Of the Herrinss What
They 1--we On.

Immense Numbers or the Herrings what
Thcy 1--we On.
GAsPE BASIN. Canada. Aug. IA trip
with the fishermen who go to meet the great
armies Of herring on their leisurely semi
annual migration to the spawning grounds
Is revelation in the way Of affording con-
ception Of the immense number OF these
fish.
II Is even exciting to catch sight of the
herring school for the first time. The sea
glitters far as the eye can reach with the
reflected sheen from the silver sided multi
tude. The air vibrates with the wings OF
innumerable gannets and other gulls.
swooping an often as appetite calls 20
snatch another meal from the prodi gal pro-
vision beneath. There is splashing,
romping fringe on three sides OF seals.
white. piglike porpoises little blue herring
sharks. with now and then the fiukellke tail
Of grampus. standing bolt upright dozen
feet out OF the water.
The great curtain nets. as we'll as the
seines have TO be OF the stoutest materials.
or they would be. as indeed they often are.
smashed by the dead weight Of the multi
tude. The side ropes and mesl,es are at
certain seasons encrusted several inches
thick with herring spawn, which gives the
water milky appearance for miles. But
all this does not give one such an idea Of
the amazing size OF these silverclad armies
Of the sea as does walk on the beach in
SONS Of the New Brunswick coast coun-
ties after heavy gale in the spawning
time. The eggs OF the herring fall at that
season through the water, and in gummy
clusters af1lx themselves to rocks and stones
at the bottom.
Each one is about a quarter Of an inch in
size. protected by fairly stout gelatinous
slightly horny shell. These are often
thrown out by heavy gales and lie upon the
shore knee deep. Farmers busy them
selves for days carting these eggs to their
fields. where they form valuable manure
An observer in Pleasant Bay, on the Mag
dalen Islands, reported that the sand was
covered two or three feet deep with them
for several miles" No uninstructed person
could believe that these incredible masses
OF marine hotsam were of animal origin
There are thousands Of tons Of them, each ton
aggregating millions Of potential herrings.
The shoals Of herrings are never ap-
Preciably smaller. in spite Of the vast
quantities Of spawn thus destroyed by
gales or high tides Each herring, il has
lately been demonstrated, produces about
30, 900 eggs each season. The old naturalists
used to calculate the number as ten times
as great.
The fishermen take thousands Of barrels
Of mature herrings each year. The lobster
fishery alone uses 10000 barrels for bait;
the cod fishery many times that number.
The manufacture Of herring oil dsposes
OF immense numbers also. Each barrel
OF fish produces nearly three gallons OF
oil and a fifth Of a ton Of expensive fish
guano. Only the best fish are barrelled for
sale.
On the Pacific Coast the fish are even
more numerous than on this side of the
continent. In one year one OF the Ameri-
can companies the Alaska Oil and Guano
Company. shipped l72 900 gallons of herring
oil, 200 tons Of guano and 1872 barrels
Of choice herrings. This represented about
10000 barrels Of herrings Hundreds Of
| thousands Of barrels are taken altogether
in American waters each year,
How these prodigious armies Of Ash get
their living in the sea has only been exactly
determined during the past few years. In
fact experiments to perfect the proof are
still going on along this coast.
Following to a logical conclusion the argu-
or indirectly upon the vegetable kingdom,
a dragnet composed OF the finest sort of
bolting cloth used by millers was drawn
slowly behind steamer across bay. The
result was surprising. An acre OF salt
water. it was discovered. produces about
as much vegetation in a year as an acre of
good meadow land.
One great naturalist has computed that
II one of a countless number OF varying
minute organisms was allowed perfect
development without any counteracting
destruction for one month the product would
be a mass Of protoplasm many times larger
than the sun. Ono little plant multiples
itself by breaking in two about five times
day and becomes mature in three hours
An immense number Of tiny animals
browse upon this rapidly increasing herb
age. and together with 1t constitute plank
ton, which is the scientific name for this
prepared ration of meat and green's dealt
out in amazing quantities at natures free
lunch counter.
The herring family is provided with an
automatic strainng apparatus Of the utmost
fineness whereby as they breathe the
water through their gills they unconsciously
sift out their daily food. Thus they have
the happiness Of feeding without effort
and Of finding their supplies without exertion.
and thus they stand at the very apex Of
idealistio trampdom.
To one who knows the secret OF the green
oolorng OF the ocean the wonder is not how
do it's countless animals get their living.
but how the amazing vegetation OF the
plankton can possibly be kept under. even
by the multitudious grazing things which
throng those aqueous pasturages.
PIRATE LAFITTES TREASURE.
Its Hiding Place Has been Pointed Out