Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-06-22
Skinning Sharks
by Frederic J. Haskin

| goat4kin. u very scarce and promises ~ be
scarcer, although the supply 50 far ~
holding out better than experts expected.
The Bureau Of Fisheries has taken ad-
vantage of this leather shortage to push
| one Of its favorite projects the use of
shark skin and other fish skins for leather
| The project has now reached the stage
Of "A very promising infant industry. A
number Of tanners are in the market for
shark skins they have been tanned IN
considerable quantities; and shoes and
other goods have been made from them
| cxpcrimcntally One tanner had pair
Of shoes for his boy made from shark
skin and asserts that they wore better
than any ordinary leather shoes the boy
ever had
The layrnan is apt 20 imagine that
sharkskln is queer, ex0ticlooklhg
product. like alligator skin. Such u not
The case You cannot tell 1t from coWhide
leather unless you are an expert. l)r-
Lewis Radc lift, Of the Bureau Of Fisheries,
who has charge Of The work Of populauz-
lng the ciespised shark, has whole draw
crful of tanned leather samples, made
from the skins Of various sharks, and
also of Goldfish. Gus k and menhadcn, and
from the intcstines of whales The tanned
shark skin looks, fec Is and smells IKE
ordinary leather and q high gun metal
finish has been successfully impaired ~ u.
u4rr0 WHALE IHrgsTINEs.
The most impressive piece Of leather
in the collection is that made from the
major intestine Of whale. II ls 80 thln
that light will pass through It-but Moth
ing else will Whenever tins sample y
shown TO a manufacturer with vlcw -
interesting him IN its use, ne always trles 70
poke hole IN it with his finger to show
how useless IL is, and nc always talls
There are not enough whales loft ahve
IN form the basis for much Of whale
leather industry: but there are plenty ot
sharks There are sharks in all the waters
~ tho world from the Arctic and Antarctic
| oceans to the seas under the equator For
| wears sharks have been neglected and
allowed to multiply at the expense of Tar
more vaiuablc fish upon which they prey
Now the Bureau Of Fisheries has shown
that they are excellent food; that the OF
of their ivers is a good grade of tshoii,
and that their skins make a good leather
and offer a large enough cutting surface
for the making Of boots and shoes, harness
and all other small leather articles There
Is every reason TO believe that the shark
il n be the basis Of an industry Of world
proportions.
The thing that is needed now is enter
prise IN the part of fishermen, tanners,
| manufacturers. Gamers and preservers oi
| foods Those who want to get n on the
proun 4 floor of a now and promising indus
try would a o well to look into the PROPOSE
ton which the shark offers. II is probably
the first safe . roject ever offered the public
hv shark, and the first opportunity TO
skin a shark with profit
NEW UsE FoR FISHERMEN
| 0ne vel known American who has gone
into the shark business in earnest ls
Russell J Coles, who recently came into
the limclight as the companion Of Coionei
Roosevelt in his expedition after devil
fish. Mr.. Col es is an angler and all-around
sportsna an He formed the habit OF visit
ing the experimental station and hsh
hatchery Of the Bureau Of Fisheries at
Beaufort, y G., and so became interested
in the scientific and commercial aspects
of fishing He is now considered an
| ichthyologist that IS a fshologlstj OF some
attainments, and IS giving most Of nus
time 70 the promotion Of the shark INDUS
| trv With some heavy nets, winch were
recommended TO him by the Bureau Of
Fisheries, he is catching fifty 70 sixty
sharks a day off the coast OF North
Carolina, for commercial purposes
This new shark business IS 70 serve q
ouadruple use. It IS to add 70 our iood
supply our oil supply, our leather supply,
and TO conserve other food fishes by re-
ducing the numbers OF the sharks-tor al
sharks are voracIouS beasts OF prey
The value of all the shark products has
been abundantly proved. The Bureau
OF Fisheries has succeeded IN popII arlzIhg
the use as food of one small kind OF shark
the grav FISH A few years ago 1t was
never eaten Last year four million pounds
Of It were used as food. But most OF the
hides of these gray FISH were wasted. And
IN ike manner. the meat OF most OF the
larger sharks. which were taken Tor their
hides, was thrown away. The future oi
the industry depends upon educating the
fishermen to use all parts of the shark, ana
the manufacturers 10 offer ready market
for them. When meat, hide and liver OH
are all properly utilized 3 big shark, now
often thrown away, will be worth good
many dollars.
PRICES GO Up, TOO.
Fishermen llst at present are getting
good prices for the fish which they have
been accustomed 10 catching, and 50 are
unwilling TO devote their time 70 new
and untried industry such IS shark hsn-
inr When too. many fishermen are now
engaged in war work, as are many boats
that would otherwise be available Tor
fishing. All of these factors, combined
with the well known conservation and
inertia which always operate TO prevent
the human animal from taking up new
projects and occupations, are apparently
all that prevent a rapid development Of
the shark industry No doubt a more
rapid expansion will come after the war,
when there is more capital and more labor
I available.
Sharks are found at some time OF the
year in practically all of the coastal water
! Of the United States Although the very
! large sharks are somewhat rare, those
from nine to twelve feet in length are by
! no means scarce. and these furnish leather
with large enough cutting surface for
! most manufacturing purposes. The Cult
: Of Mexico, the waters of the southern
! coast Of California. and those Of South
! east Alaska are mentioned by the Bureau
! Of Fisheries As specially promising locall-
! ties for shark fishing
! In the Gulf Of Mexico these hSh are 50
! abundant that attempts To seine menhad-
! en- have failed owing 10 the fact that the
: sharks always tore the nets to pieces
: off the southeast Alaskan coast, there Is .
: variety known as the mud shark which
! .,1.,,-e 80 ,,.,>aotu liz ,auar IN ~