Evening star., 1925-07-12

Continuing, Barstow says:
within a few years fish and crabs,
Sonce so abundant in this section of the
country, will become practically eX
stinct. l have noted. alonga with many
Others of the 'old-timers the rapid
~decline in the past few years, and can
aattribute it to no other cause than
that of commercial fishing.
'Seiners, trap-netting, purse nets.
-and dredgers are everlastingly taking
Afrom the water small fish unfit for
rfood, yet converted into fertilizer, and
excellent food fish are at times di-
everted the same way. The crabs are
taken from their winter bed in the
mud, thus destroying the next sea-
Sson's source of propagation.
I'm most of the rivers that are
tributaries to the bay one is amazed
at the number of nets reaching out
Aon every hand. Fishing shores
zabound where seines miles in length
are put out from shore, and in fair
Eweather one can see the purse-net
fishermen sailing up and down, ready
to put a net around any school of
fish that swim near the surface of
the water.
: These conditions can be remedied
by the enactment and enforcement of
Rproper laws. Rigid restrictions should
be placed on all net fishing, allowing
' it only one or two days a week;
.making it an offense punishable by
heavy fine to convert food FISH into fer
stilizer; a closed season on crabs from
October Is, the time when the season
for dredging begins, to May 10;
rmaking the possession of crab be-
tween those dates punishable by a
kS5 fine for each crab; the establish
ing of a restricted zone in which no
nets of any kind are allowed, where
fish can run in and spawn unmolested,
and L would suggest that the Potomac
sand Patuxent Rivers would be
splendid propagating grounds.
This program, If an attempt was
smade to put it through, would meet
with a stiff opposition from those
Swho are financially interested and are
.busiIy engaged in killing the goose
-and a few rich epicures who put
rtheir appetites above the conserva-
ton of natural resources. The situa-
ttion is one that need radical action
by the Legislatures of Virginia and
MARYLAND and the Federal Govern
,ment. If the citizens fail to get to-
gether and enact proper laws, then
sit is up to the Federal Government to
take the matter in hand, as 1t did the
migratory bird law of 1916. Since
.the enactment and the enforcement
of that law, wild fowl have increased
"a thousand per cent.
Within a day or two this column
is going to ask Secretary Hoover to
srall a conference of the fish commits
sioners of Maryland, Virginia and
tWest Virginia, to map out some pan
for the protection of fish and crabs.
Saltwater fishing continues to at
tract many anglers, but their sue
Icess, in the ma jority of instances, is
nothing to brag about: Once in a
while a lucky boatmau will land his
party over school of fish, hard
.heads, spots or perch, but so far this
season the fishing cannot compare
with past years.
f., A great many week end parties
selected Rock Point to spend July 4.
.Early Saturday morning the many
oyster beds were well covered with
hooks and lines thrown by the anglers
seeking, principally, hardheads. Their
luck was anything but satisfying.
The hardheads were not found in any
great numbers, but the Norfolk spot
:and both white and King William
perch furnished fairly good sport.
Last Monday evening Pop Nichol-
sson of Rock Point evidently landed
his boat in the right place, because
shis party caught a large number OF
.hardheads, rockfish and white and
King William perch. Nicholson
scaught two King William perch on
No. 19 hook. Capt. Price and his
eson, who witnessed this catch, says
he has been fishing all his life and
ne. has see. 1t done before. Both