BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 199 



105.-REPOKT OF A TRIP MAKE BV THE FISH HAWK TO THE 

 I.O^VEK PART OF €HE»«APEAKE BAY, TO ASt"ERTAII\ THE CHAR. 

 At TEK OF THE FB!^BIERIE$^ FOR SBBAW, HERRINO. ETC., IIV THE 

 SPUa^'O OF J»S4. 



By JLicut. W. ITI. WOOD, U. S. N. 



[From a letter to Prof. S. F.Baird.] 



In obedience to your instructions I left Washington on the 24th of 

 April on a cruise of investigation as far as the mouth of the York Eiver. 



I visited first the trap-nets on York Spit and in the Poquasin. 



There were about one hundred and eighty traps being fished here ; 

 but the fishermen report a very bad season. They say they have not 

 taken enough fish to pay expenses. At this particular time they were 

 taking more menhaden than anything else. They report having noticed 

 a good many young shad in their nets this spring, and I succeeded in 

 finding two specimens among a lot of recently caught fish. They were 

 respectively about 5 and G inches long. The probability is that these 

 are last year's young fish which have passed the winter in the bay. 



From York River went to Mobjack Bay. Found here one hundred and 

 seventy traps, and the same report as to a bad season. 



The next point was the mouth of the Eappahannock, where we found 

 about twenty-nine traps. They also reported a poor season. 



All these people ascribed the poor catch to the prevailing westerly and 

 northwesterly winds and gales, which they think kept the fish off" the 

 shoals and in deep water. 



I ran over to the Eastern Shore and touched at Watt's Island, at the 

 mouth of Tangier and Pocomoke Sounds, but could find no nets being 

 fished there. Then returned to the westward and entered the Great 

 Wicomico. Here they say they had a fairly good season for the first 

 two weeks, but that they had done but little since. About fifty traps 

 fished here. At all these points about the same number of traps are 

 being fished as last year. 



From the Great Wicomico entered the Potomac again, finding rather 

 fewer nets in the lower part than last year. The trap-net fishermen 

 near Mathias Point report the season as so far not good. Mr. Smoot, 

 who fishes two traps, says the biggest catch for one day, both nets, was 

 one hundred and fifty shad. At that time they were taking a good 

 many menhaden of a fair size. 



Mr. Ewing, who fishes at Windmill Point, the lowest seine haul on 

 the Potomac, reports a very bad season. He says he was behind in his 

 expenses until a week or ten days previous to my visit, when they had 

 a good run of herring, and he was enabled to catch up. Mr. Eobb, near 

 Aquia Creek, and Mr. Waller, at Clifton, are both reported to have done 

 well on herring. These seines all cut out between May 1 and 10 ; but, 



