398 GEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF THE FISHERIES. 



men of the shore, who formerly engaged in the fishery -to a limited extent, Lave also given it up, 

 and in the fall of 1880 there was but one net, 150 fathoms in length, set off Cape May. This was 

 fished but a few days and took only twenty-five fish, or an average of 250 pounds, daily. 



THE WINTER ROCK AND PERCH FISHERIES. The winter rock and perch fisheries of the district 

 arc confined largely to Mullica and Great Egg Harbor Rivers, where these species remain in the 

 fresh waters during the winter months. At the former place the fishing is prosecuted from Novem- 

 ber to April by means of diving-nets, hoop-nets, and haul-seines. The diving-net originated in 

 and is peculiar to this locality. It consists of a large funnel shaped net opening into a small bag 

 or pocket, and is so arranged that it can be set at various depths. The hoop-net is simply a large 

 bag attached to poles, by means of which it is raised and lowered through an opening in the ice. 

 In Great Egg Harbor and Great Egg Harbor River seines are extensively used for the capture of 

 the above species iu the principal channels and in the numerous creeks, and the catch is often very 

 large. Small gill-nets of 3J inch inesh, without lead-lines, are also fished to a limited extent along 

 the grassy flats iu the larger bays during the first of the season. 



There are one hundred and twenty men engaged in this fishery during a part of the winter, 

 most of them being included with the clammers or with the summer fishermen. The catch reaches 

 fully 200,000. It is shipped largely to Philadelphia and New York, about one-third going to the 

 latter place. The net value of this fishery to the fishermen is about $10,400, divided equally 

 between the two species. 



THE MENHADEN FISHERY. The menhaden fisheries of Southern New Jersey are quite impor- 

 tant. According to Capt. George Hildreth, the first oil and guano factory built in the district was 

 located on the shores of Delaware Bay, some distance above Cape May, in 1SG1; but this, on 

 account of the shoal water, proved unprofitable, and was soon abandoned. In 1874 another factory 

 was built at Dyer's Creek, but it was run only a year or two. Mr. J. E. Otis informs us that the 

 first factory on the oceau side was built at New Inlet, near Tuckerton, by Mr. C. N. Smith, in 1808. 

 In 1880 there were five factories in the district, three of them being located at New Inlet and two 

 near Great Egg Harbor Inlet, all being provided with kettles and pans for cooking the fish. These 

 five factories employ eighty-nine fishermen, with eleven sail vessels and one steamer which 

 was brought into the district from Long Island in 1880. The catch during the season reached 

 nearly 19,000,000 of fish, making 1,138 barrels of oil and 1,850 tons of crude dried guano. There 

 were sixty-two laborers employed at the factories. In addition to the catch of the factory fisher- 

 men, a good many menhaden are taken in seines by farmeis and professional fishermen for use on 

 the laud, and many are taken in the pound-nets of Delaware Bay. A purse-seine was also fished 

 for a few weeks near Cape May, in the summers of 1879 and 1880, by one of the farmers, who used 

 the fish for enriching his land. The total catch, therefore, for the entire district must have reached 

 about 21,000,000 of fish. 



THE CLAMMING INTERESTS. Probably no portion of the Atlantic coast has such extensive 

 quahaug fisheries as that at present under consideration. Almost every bay of any considerable 

 size between Barnegat Inlet and Cape May contains large numbers of these clams. Especially is this 

 true of Little Egg Harbor, Great Bay, and Great Egg Harbor, w T hich are doubtless the most impor- 

 tant clamming grounds in the United States. They occur only in limited numbers in the waters 

 of Delaware Bay, and the fishermen of that region are obliged to cross to the ocean side to engage 

 in the fishery. 



Nearly all of the fishermen and oystermen living along the shore engage, in clamming during 

 certain months, while many follow it throughout the entire year. In some localities the fishing is 

 chiefly in spring; in others, in the spring and fall, and iu still others during the summer also. It 



