Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-05-11
WHAT THE GOVERNMENT is DOING

living problem is the opinion OF DR.. Hugh
NJ Smith. the new commissioner. who in
recent days has been confirmed for the
important office given him by President
Wilson.
DIR. Smiths appointment was in the ma
tire of a promotion. and during the years
in which he has served in subordinate
positions in the bureau of which he is
now the head he has become an authority
on the work which the government is do
ing to increase the fish food supply of
the United States.
I'm the conservation of fish food re-
sources. our activities are both direct
and Indirect" said Commissioner Smith in
explaining the interest of his bureau in
the cost-of-living problem. by its very
extensive fish cultural operations in all
parts of the country the bureau each
year is bringing into existence and start
ing on their career hundreds of millions
of food fishes that. without the govern
ment'S work. would never have gotten
beyond the egg stage. Overwhelming evil
dence is available to show the value Of
this work in maintaining the fish supply
of streams and lakes, in restoring de-
pleted waters. in stocking artificial ponds
and in establishing fishes in new waters.
There Is scarcely community in the
entire country that has not profited by
these operations of our government.
'"These direct efforts have been sup
plemented by most valuable service in
saving the lives of
Saving Flood fishes t hat are
cA,- stranded every year
pi river and its tributaries go on the
rampage. When the waters subside the
cry OF Rescue the perishing! goes up in
behalf of millions of the best food fishes
Of the interior waters, and the cry is
responded to by the agents of the fish
cries service, who seine out the tempo
rary ponds and pools left in open places
by the receding floods and restore the
fishes to the main streams.
''One important point in increasing the
fish food supply is the encouragement
of the utilization of many kinds of good
fish which are now neglected Our faS-
tidious tastes and the abundance Of our
water products have caused us to dis
card many excellent resources which
other nations have been utilizing for
many centuries. A recent inquiry by me
has shown that each year over 1O0OO,OOO
pounds of single fish now caught
in our east coast fisheries are thrown
away. not single pound being sold or
consumed. Yet this is one Of the best
ndNOre0 nSneS IN our waters. anu IdSL
fall 1 saw it being sold in Hamburg at
several times the price commanded by
mackerel. Dozens Of other fishes which
Europeans eat are regarded by us as
beneath notice. l may mention in this
connection the very abundant and wide
ly distributed sea musselS which are eX-
tensively eaten in all the coastwise coun-
tries of Europe. while we for years have
entirely ignored these wholesome shell
fish and have only recently begun to
recognize their value.
"Our people were once even more
today. i remember to
Waste of have seen as a boy the
-, shores of the Potomac
1ASA 1V0u' river below Mount Yer
non piled with the remains OF sturgeon.
whose meat is now relished but which
the fisherman at that time threw away.
Some of the fish weighed as much as $50
pounds, and one Of that size caught to-
day. now that the sturgeon is almost ex-
tinct in our coastal rivers, would give a
fisherman fair income for almost an
entire season. The time will come when
we shall be using and esteeming many
excellent fishes which today we ignore or
reject.
AN important role for the bureau OF
fisheries to play is to advance the day
when now discarded fish food products
will be utilized. Enormous quantities of
such are now caught incidentally and
discarded. whereas a proper conception
Of our responsibilities would lead us to
bring these products into the markets
and sell them at low prices"
!: x
Experts in the United States bureau of
standards are now making plans for an
vestigation
Investigation Into of the dangers
Electricity Dangers. u ~ n,e fr rmu
electricity provided for i'll the amendment
to the appropriation bill of the last Con-
gress introduced by former Representa-
tive James Nj. Cox. now Governor of
Ohio. This investigation will be started
during the coming summer and the work
will be conducted by DR.. f. b. Rosa and
his assistants of the bureau Of Standards
under the direction of DR.. s. w. Stratton
This study of methods of safeguarding
life is looked forward to by electrical
men to produce results in the line of
human conservation more important than
any other work of the government to
lessen industrial accidents. except per-
haps the Investigations to make less
hazardous the work of men engaged in
mining and the interstate commerce
commissions railway safety investiga-
tons.
With the rapid increase in the use of
electricity as force of production and
transportation and for purposes Of light
ing and heating there has been a marked
increase during late years in the number
of lives lost and persons injured by
electric shock. While reliable figures are
not available. it is shown that many
men are killed throughout the country
each week in electrical accidents, and it
Is also known that the number of acct
dents could be greatly lessened if safety
measures now in use in some places
could be standardized and generally
adopted.
In outlining the investigation which
has been planned, DR.. Rosa. who is chief
of the electrical division
Scope of of the bureau of stand
ards, says that the stud
INJURY les taken up will include
the construction of electrical apparatus,
methods of installation. inspection of APP
paratus and system of testing. With the
growth Of public service corporations and
the need of standardized knowledge relat-
ing to the electrical industry, number Of
cities now have systems of inspection
and testing of apparatus, but these sys-.
TENS are not standardized, nor are they
,rcn oil oil 49,