8 FISH AND GAME. 



Marine Fisheries. 



For nearly three hundred years the waters of our coast have 

 proved a veritable bonanza, not alone for the fishermen but 

 also for the food-consuming public. In the past these coastal 

 waters have been remarkable in the large variety and almost 

 inconceivable quantities of commercial fish, such as codfish, 

 mackerel, pollock, halibut, bluefish, striped bass, shad and 

 herring. We have, however, unwisely devoted excessive atten- 

 tion to the exploitation of these fish for the purpose of providing 

 food, and have thereby permitted an undue increase in the 

 destructive species, notably the dogfish and shark. Owing to 

 the unintelligent destruction of the more "fashionable" fish, it 

 will probably soon be necessary to utilize the less desirable 

 species, to some extent, as food, and certainly for fertilizer and 

 oil Further, we must deal with the fisheries in such a manner 

 that the destruction of adults may not seriously diminish the 

 aggregate number of eggs produced annually by any species. 

 The principles of economic biology must be applied to the 

 fisheries in the same manner as they have been used to secure 

 satisfactory agricultural conditions on land. 



Molhisk Fisheries. - - The land under the waters must be 

 intensively cultivated in order to insure increased production 

 as well as a just distribution of the rewards of labor. The 

 utilization of our coastal flats is destined to pass through the 

 same stages of developmental evolution as our farming lands, 

 which were formerly held in common, but which, after the 

 requirements for increased food production made necessary 

 individual initiative and control, passed into the hands of 

 private owners. The natural change from communism to in- 

 dividual ownership came at a period when the amount of land 

 available was sufficient to meet normal requirements, and was 

 in accordance with ancient legislative acts. A similar situation 

 now exists with our coastal waters. The right of fishing for 

 certain fish and shellfish is the last remnant in Massachusetts 

 of that primitive communism which on land was so unsatis- 

 factory to our ancestors. We believe that the land under 

 water, except such portions as may be set apart for public use, 

 should be leased by the State to individuals for a limited period 



