The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-10-31

Ia nffa 0VS1efS Oh tIIC ~
They are found TO fatten n o
but they do not have any young,
the water being too cold Tor them
to breed. These oysters retain the
flavor of the eastern oysters ana
bring high prices in the
engaged in bringing one and TWO
wear old oysters from h Atlantic,
and transplanting them in San a
cisco bay. They grow rapidly and
are ready for market IN n OF TWO
years after planting. These oysters
holding about two hundred barrels
each. They are planted inside stock
AIDES which keep out the poachers
and certain fish enemies or the
oyster, and the plantations are also
overlooked by watch houses on piles.
The ordinary oyster OF our north
ern Pacific is small and it has a cop
perry 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
Government is now importing some
of these oysters which will be plant
ed along Puget sound and in a
Francisco bay. They are accustom-
ed to a colder water than that of
our Atlantic oysters and it is believed
hat they will thrive.
Our Great Fishing Grounds.
During my talk with DR.. Smith /
asked him where were the chief
fishing grounds of the United States.
He replied:
Roughly speaking, there are three.
First we have the coasts and the
estuaries of the rivers; second, the
interior streams and lakes, and third,
the high seas. One of our greatest
fishing grounds is the Banks of New
foundland and another is the high
seas of the Alaskan waters. Both
of these places are subject to
what the same conditions. They have
food for fishes brought in by great
ocean currents. On the Banks of
Newfoundland this food comes large
ly from the gulf stream and a cold
arctic current, and in Alaska it comes
from an arctic current and other
currents. The result is that the fish
are found there in great numbers.
They move over the banks seeking
the best feeding grounds. It is
strange to think Of fish out at pas
ture, but hat is the condition on
these banks.
1.-The Alaskan banks are about 100
miles or more long. They have con-
siderable width and are inhabited by
millions Of cod and halibut. | have
a photograph Of a catch of cod and
halibut which our men took in twenty
minutes on h Alaskan. banks. These
fish are so plentiful that the catch
ing of them will some day be a very
great Industry"
Our Alaskan Fisheries.
Give me some idea of the Alaskan
fisheries"
They are Of enormous value. In
Guiding the seal we have already got
ten about $50, OOO,O 900 out of Alaska
fish products. The salmon has Melted
over $100, 0O0,0 600, which is more
than fourteen times what we paid
for the territory. We are now re-
ceiving upward Of s10,OO0,O0O a year
out Of Alaskan salmon alone.
I'm addition to that there is the
Alaska herring" DR.. Smith contin-
ued. "There~are so many of them
that they are caught and sold as
fertilizer. They should supply the
United States and take the place of
those which we are importing.
1.-The cod and halibut are likely to
yield a great deal The halibut is
now being caught in Alaska and
taken down to Seattle and Van
couver and shipped to the East. They
are as good as the Atlantic halibut,
and they are SO abundant that it is
possible to carry them this long dis
lance and sell them at a lower cost
in the markets of Boston. When the
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway is COM
pleted these fish will go to Prince
Rupert and thence to all parts Of
the United States and Canada"
Are the Alaskan fisheries we'll
managed?"
Yes. They are under the United
states Government and the fish con
mission controls the planting and
n AS a result the fisheries
are being preserved, and they will
give us salmon for all time to come.
We are now regulating the methods
of catching and marketing and have
our agents on the ground to see that
our regulations are respected. We
rC0f1rQ t1cQHS0 fayNC h,,f ,~:k L--
upon all fisheries or fishing com
panies which return 1000 young sal
mon to the streams for every ten
cases of salmon they can. Some of
the canning interests have private
and are planting millions
of young fish. The Government has
its hatcheries. There is one at Yes
bay which during the past two years
has let free $1,000, 600 salmon"
Fish Immigrants.