The Washington times., 1913-02-10
COUNTRYSLARGEST
SEAFOOD PRODUCER
IS CHESAPE EAKE BAY
Annual Report of Fish Commits
sioner Gives Output Of
Various Sections.

Chesapeake bay, by reason Of its
physical and biological characteristics.
and its location with respect to the
great centers of population. is the
largest producer of sea food within the
territorial limits of the United States,
and Is exploited to a degree which re-
qulres careful administration for the
preservation of its resources accord
ing to George NJ. Bowers, fish COM
missioner of the United States.
In his annual report, Commissioner
Bowers, says :hat for these reasons
particular attention has been paid 10
the Chesapeake and its tributaries He
condemned the practice in the upper
bay of taking large quantities of food
fish for use as fertilizer. This abuse
Is especially prevalent in Maryland"
to vessels from Virginia in which State
the laws against the practice are
stringent"
Shad Fry In Potomac.
Eighty-one million shad fry were lib
Grated in the Potomac. With respect
TO shad in the Potomac, Commissioner
Bowers says.
while there was no apparent in
crease over recent years in the run of
shad In the Potomac river, record
was established in the take of shad
eggs at the Bryan's Point Station, the
collection amounting to S,12IOoO, and
the yield Of fry to s,0oo,0oo or SO per
cent of the eggs obtained The nearest
approach to his,record occurred in 1903,
the egg collections of that year num-
bering S,S7o,ooo. and the output of fry
The high degree Of success is at
tributed to the uniformly favorable
weather and water temperatures during
the spawning season, which permitted
Of the capture OF q larger percentage of
fish with unintured eggs. and also in i'm
proved methods Of handling. Though
the take OF eggs of yellow perch at this
station was somewhat curtailed by cold
weather at the beginning of the sea-
1ss. 900 900.
Nearly I7I,ooo,ooo Liberated.
A total Of 17s. 900 shad were liber-
sted from the fish haNheries of, the
country. while more than billion and
half of perch and sunfish were
liberated
Millions Of cod, pollock. lobster. had
dock. and fat fish were also liberated in
streams and coastal waters. More than
q million black bass, and many million
salmon were liberated
The oyster fisheries of the year were
valued at approximately 100000. for
31.z5S go bushels. OF this total the pro-
ductfon of the Middle Atlantic States
was 3.lss.557 bushels, valued at s10.-
So. .45, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsyl-
yania, Delaware, New Jersey, and New
York, producing more than half the oys-
ter supply of the entire country
Lobster fishing in the State of Maine
showed remarkable recuperation during
the year. as result Of artificial propa-
CATION and protection
Industry Is Prosperous,
Il
The nshing industries have shown gen.
eral prosperity and good condition.
There are 22s.0oo persons again in the
industry, 1850 vessels employed, with
q total capital invested of s65. COO, ,0oO.
giving q total yield of 5000, 900, this re-
presenting the first value of products.
At present the fisheries OF the United
States are more valuable than those OF
any other country with the possible
exception OF Japan.
The Bureau of Fisheries is at work
on Investigations looking to the ex'er-
mination of the oyster drill and other
animals destructive Of the growing
oysters. that do damage of hundreds of
thousands OF dollars annually.
The oyster Industry yields about one
third OF the total income derived from
fisheries In the United States, and by
far the LARGEST percentage of this sum
comes from Chesapeake bay fisheries, /
and those in New York.