370 BULLETIN OF THE UNTTED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



Terrv, e^sn., Tvr«j. John Horton, sr., Maj. John Taylor, Edmund Dodge, 

 jyiaj. Justus Gay lord, Gilbert Merritt, William Crawford, and William 

 Wigtou. Year after year, for a long time, these men operated this fish- 

 ery, generally taking the month of May and a part of June of each year, 

 always regaling themselves with a little good old rye, and having a fine 

 sociable every night when counting off and distributing the shad caught 

 during the day. Occasionally they sent substitutes, but the fishery 

 never changed proprietors. Some seasons they caught largely ; others 

 not so many. I well recollect one draught, or haul, when they caught 

 500, but ordinarily 20 to 50 at one drawing of the seine was considered 

 good. The average per day, according to the best of my recollection, 

 would be about 150. 



People came from the eastern part of the county, then just settling, 

 up to Wyalusing, as far or nearly as far as from Montrose, to buy shad. 

 The trade was quite large. Some of the time maple sugar was quite a 

 commodity, brought down to exchange for shad. 



Very few of any other kind of fish except shad were ever caught 

 Occasionally a striped bass, large pickerel, carp, sunfish, mullet, sucker, 

 or a bull-head was taken ; no small fish, as the meshes of the seine were 

 large enough to let them through. 



The shad were worth from 10 to 25 cents each, according to size. I 

 have seen them caught here weighing nine pounds; ordinarily their 

 weight was from four to seven j)ounds. If we could have that old shad 

 trade here again it would make us all, if not rich, merry again. But 

 very few are now left among us who saw those glorious old fishing days. 

 The fishing for black bass of these days does not begin with those old 

 fishing days. 



I cannot recollect of but one fishery between Wyalusing and Towanda, 



^nd only two between Wyalusiug and Tunkhannock. 



Hastily, but very truly, yours, 



GEOEGE F. HORTOX. 



FISH m THE SUSQUEHANNA AT WYOMING. 



In accordance with your request I will give you a few items in regard 

 to fish in the Susquehanna, in the early times. 



The present inhabitants of Wyoming have but a faint idea of the 

 value of fish to the early settlers. They performed as important a part 

 at Wyoming as they have in the history of all new settlements. A care- 

 ful study of the advance of immigration and the settlement of new re- 

 gions shows that those settlements have been guided and controlled by 

 the streams and waters in which fish abounded, and hence were made 

 along their shores. Fish furnished the i^eople a iilentiful and healthful 

 supply of food, easily attainable, until the forests could be hewn down, 

 clearings made, crops raised, and cattle could increase and multipl5\ 



It is unquestionable that the early progress made in settling up of 



