The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-09-22
SCIENCE CASTS BOUNTIFUL NET
 TO FISHERMEN
U. s. Bureau Helps Turn Tide of diversity for
 Thousands
BY HARRY W. FRANTZ Limited Press Staff Correspondent

iUulttu FrNSa 0toht OONhUoNuMNNuH
 washington, Sept. p. - CUPl-- Science has cast a net of research into the North Atlantic, and has brought aid to fog-shrouded fish- ing banks where for three centu- rtes fishermen of many nations have struggled for livelihood.
 After improvements in ship motors, refrigeration, packing and marketing methods turned the tide of diversity that had beset New England fisheries In early stages of depression, the U, s, Bureau of Fisheries turned Its attention to measures of conservation which promise to give permanence to the fish supply of the North Atlantic and promote It's economical ex- ploitation.
 Most extraordinary development, however, Is the project of the bureau to determine the Abun~ dance of many species of New England groundfish. This ulti- mateiy may enable . scientific system of forecastlng for the an- nual fishermen's catch comparable to tho forecasts made by the De- partment of Agriculture for farm products but far more difficult due to many variable factors,
 Sixty Different Varieties
 The various scientific programs promise ultimately to have great international importance, since the North Atlantic fisheries long have been one of the worlds most valuable sources of food supply Tho humble cod - known to the spanish and Portuguese as "haca- lao" for example, was once the sole commercial variety sought In New England waters, but now Ot least 60 different fish are regularly caught for market. As early As l491 kho English explorer John Cabot reported abundance of codfish off the Newfoundland coast, Cod be- came in Colonial times and re- mains today, e staple article of food in many Latin American countries,
 Although the fishing on the New England banks is largely controlled by American capital, due to the tariff-free entry of fish caught by American vessels, large numbers of Portuguese, Italians, and other nationals are engaged, With new motiriged vessels, the range of tho fishermen has been extended to the Nova Seotian banks, once occupied chiefly by Canadians. Bee yond are the Grand Bank, visited S.. M.unaln,a aud Uhaah |lohAva,a at, RMa tho larger American vessels.
 To Aid Foreign Fleets
 Scientific work by the bureau tn reference to fish migration ana numbers also will become of great importance to tho Island fisheries area, visited regularly by many trAwlers from Great Britain, Ger mAny, and France. An object les- son of the importance of conser- walton measures was afforded in the case of the threatened eXtine- ton of the ,once-great halibut fisheries of the North Pacific,
 Modern statistical methods for counting the fish in the seq are being employed in . study of the abundance of nearly dozen Eunecies of New England ground IRish, according to Acting Com Enissioner of Fisheries Charles E lJAckson.
 Tn addition to New EnglandS psacred codfish" on which the lRroundfish industry was founded, haddeck, pollock, hake, ousk, wolff Fish. rosefish and the various flat GRishes are being included In the survey recently launched by the Bureau.