The New York herald., 1922-08-27
/ E 4
The Prohibition of Beam TrawIinr.

There appears TO be an ever present and
unworthy desire in the minds Of many who
go down 70 the sea- In party boats N N
legislate the beam trawler out OF New York
State waters and drive him outside Of the
three mile limit.
The claims are made: % that fish spawn
Is destroyed, (2) that many small fish are
killed. and (3) that beam trawers come so
close 10 fishing boats that fishermen lose
their tackle.
Before taking the proposal to Albany
again-I assume II Is the same bill that was
thrown out last March-and again consuming
the time OF the conservation committees.
TO say nothing Of imposing upon themselves
and the opponents OF the measure the ex-
pcnse and Inconvenience OF journey TO the
State Capitol, Il would be mighty well for
the advocates OF the restrictive legislation
to examine their own position carefully and
to look over the ground upon which their
opposition viii eurely be based.
First and foremost the Joint conservation
COMMITTEES viii be asked. In effect IL not
In words. to consider an Issue raised by the
fellows who fish for fun against the fellows
who fish to feed the public. This phase viii
stick out like sore thumb In game OF
poker except that the fellow who wears Il
doesn't realize that It's there, IL demarks
n line OF cleavage which we seldom realize
but which the fishing industry and the legis-
lators never overlook. II gets us thrown out
OF court almost before we begin and we
come home claiming the hearings are packed
against US and that the Legislators are
under sinister influences bent upon robbing
the public and turning every natural resource
Into dirty dollars.
or late years we have been playing the
so-caled ostrich trick Of sticking our heads
In the sand. meantime frantically waving
tthe flag OF conservation and thinking we
have completely hidden the selflshness OF our
purposes.
Before buying tickets for the Albany flIer
to 40 up the river and claim that the beam
travis destroy spawn It would be well TO
determine Just what spawn IL IL that we
may have observed coming up on the nets.
The Bureau of Fisheries publishes a manual
OF fish culture which, on pages 24G and
2t7. exhibits the spawning season Of many
of our most Important fishes together with
application TO the bureau, no doubt. any
one desirous Of f.studying this angle OF the
question can obtain a photostat copy of
these pages, or he may find an enlarged
draft OF the tabulation framed and hapgifs,
on tho walls OF the Aquarium. right down
at the Battery.
Bu' Of all the species tabulated on the
pages mentioned there are but two salt
water examples carrying heavy eggs tile
fiatfirh and the sea herring, and am not
grounds over which the beam trawlers
work.
The flatfIsh spawn Is Indicated TO hatch
In seventeen or eighteen days during the
period February 10 April. 30 n these fish
spawn on the grounds IN question the adj
to prohibit beam trawing for 3Bj days TO
avert a possible hazard OF less than three
weeks duration.
Pretty thinl
Some Of us now and then have seen with
our own eyes masses OF spawn brought TO
the surface during the summer but what
spawn Is it2 II II is the spawn Of the
angler or fishing frog, or that OF the sea
robin. or the toadfish. which am Informed
arc about tho only dcmersal or heavy eggs