El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-10-28


exterminated as far as it is concerned
DR.. Smith says that If law were en-
acted keeping strip one-thlrd the
width of the river free Of nets enough
a plentiful supply. 1t is the same in
many other parts Of the United States.
Fish Ponds for the Farmers.
The day will come when every farmer
who has a pond or stream on his place
viii raise his own fish, and at the same
time produce fish for the markets. DR..
Smith tells me that this is the case IN
many Of the countries Of Europe ana
that il is so in Germany irrespective OF
the fact whether the farmer lives in the
interior or along the sea FROM Ger
many the fish commission has imported
carp, and these are now being raised
here IN such quantities that they sell
for more than $l,OOO,00O year. In
1908 5000, 600 pounds Of them were
caught in our public waters, and IN
addition a vast number were taken from
private streams and ponds.
Big Money in Oysters.
Some Of the farmers of the south are
now making money out Of oysters. This
is so all along the Atlantic coast, and
especially on the Louisiana shores or
the Gulf of Mexico Uncle Sans fish
ermen have explored those waters and
shown the men how to smooth over the
bed Of the gulf in various places and
cover it with such material that the
oysters cling TO.
Dr. smith tells me that upon many Of
these beds there had been no oysters
before, but that a year or two after
their making they were producing them
at the rate OF about EOUO bushels TO the
acre. Those oysters sold for so cents
busheI, making the shore waters yield
product worth $1,000 per acre, many
times the money product Of the best
cotton or rice fields in any part Of the
south.
Oyster planting is now done TO such
an extent that the greater part OF our
oyster supply comes from oyster farms
The bivalves grow in warm water as
well as IN cold, and along the Gulf OF
Mexico they are eaten all the year
around. Farther north they are not
so good in July and August
japanese Oysters for san Francisco.
The fish commission has tried the
experiment Of transplanting the Allan
tic oyster on the Pacific coast they
are found to fatten and grow, but they
90 not have any young, the water pc
ing TOO cold for them 70 breed. These
oysters retain the flavor Of the eastern
oysters and bring high prices in the
markets
A number Of companies are now en-
gagged in bringing one and -year-old
oysters from the Atlantic and trans
planting them IN san Francisco bay
They grow rapidly and are ready TOT
market in one or two years after plant
.
refrigerator cars holding about zoo bar
rels each. They are planted inside
stocEades which keep out the pOachers
and certain fish enemies Of the oyster,
and the plantations are also overlooked
by watch houses on piles.
The ordinary oyster Of our northern
Pacific is small and Il has a cOppery
taste. A better oyster is grown In
Japan, and especially in the cold waters
along HokkaidO, which is the northern
island of that country. The govern
ment is now importing some OF these
oysters which will be planted along
Puget sound and in san Francisco pay.
They are accustomed to colder water
than that of our Atlantic oysters ana
Il is believed that they viii thrive
Our Great Fishing Grounds.
During my talk with Dr.. Smith ]
asked him where were the chief msh-
ing grounds OF the United States He
replied
5Roughly speaking, there are three
First we have the coasts and the estu-
aries of the rivers5 second, the interior
streams and lakes, and, third the high
seas One of our greatest fishing
grounds is the banks OF Newfoundled
and another is the high seas OF the
Alaskan waters. Both Of these places
are subject to somewhat the same con-
ditions They have food for fishes
brought in by great ocean currents On
the banks Of Newfoundland this food
comes largely from the gulf stream and
a cold arctic current, and In Alaska
| TT comes from an arctic current and
Z other currents. The result is that the
fish are found there in great mum bers.
! They move over the banks seeking the
I best feeding grounds. 1t is strange to
think of Fish out at pasture but unat is
the condition on these banks.
''The Alaskan banks are about l2u
miles or more long. They have consid-
cradle width and are inhabited by mil
Z lions Of cod and halbut. I have pho
tograph OF a catch OF coz ana naIlo l
which our men took in 20 minutes on
Z the Alaskan banks These 1ish are SO
plentiful that the catching Of them viii
some day be great industry
our Alaskan Flseries.
"Give me some idea Of the Alaskan
I fisheries"
"They are Of enormous value. InclUd-
ing the seal we have already got
about $50, 100000 out of Alaska fish
products. The salmon has netted over
s1OO. OOO OOO which is more than il
I times what we paid for the territory
We are now receiving upward Of $40,
/ 000 900 q year out of Alaskan salmon
/ IN addition to that there is the
I Alaska herring" DR.. Smith continued
{ There are so many OF them that they
{ are caught and sold as fertilizer. they
! should supply the United States and
I take the place Of those which we are
/ importing.
/ .'The cod and haIibut are likely to
l yield q great deal The halibut is now
/ being caught I'm Alaska and taken dOwr
I to Seattle and Vancouver and shipped
! to the east. They are as good as the
] Atlantic halibut, and they are so abun-
Z dant that IL is possible to carry them
! this long distance and sell them at a
/ lower cost in the markets Of Boston
/ When the Grand Trunk Pacific railway
/ is completed these fish viii go e
] Prince Rupert and thence to all parts
Of the United states and Canada"
Are the Alaskan fisheries we'll man
/ aged2"
yes. They are under the United
] States government and the fish com
/ mission controls the planting and
catching. AS @ result the fisheries are
! being preserved, and they viii give az
I salmon for all time to come. We ar,
| now regulating the methods of catch
+ ing and marketing and have our agents
I on the ground to see that our regula
I lions are respected. We require license
I taxes, but omit them upon all fisheries
or fishing companies which return 100
Z young salmon TO the streams for ever.
/ ten cases of salmon they can. SOM
Of the canning interests have privat