188 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



the increased supply of salmon in these places to the establishments 

 for their preservation which have been instituted for the streams of 

 Finland, this conclusion may, of course, be entirely justified ; but so 

 far as Bornholm is concerned, from which place I have recently obtained 

 information from reliable men, I cannot omit adding a few words which 

 are worthy of consideration in this connection. 



It will be advantageous to distinguish between great salmon and 

 small salmon (the last from 1 to 4 pounds). The first are caught almost 

 exclusively in deep water by means of hooks; the latter, nearer to the 

 shore in nets. The first are naturally the most valuable ; the last, how- 

 ever, are salable at a weight of 2 pounds. Nevertheless it must be 

 admitted that every measure looking toward the prevention of the 

 capture of young salmon until they reach a weight of 5 or pounds must 

 be considered appropriate. Concerning the great salmon, the people 

 of Bornholm do not recognize any advancement in the fishery in the 

 last ten years; on the contrary, they maintain that there has been a de- 

 cline, which manifests itself both in the yield and in the number oi 

 fishermen employed in the salmon-fishery. The last winter has indeed 

 been somewhat better than the winter before, nevertheless it is said 

 that many fishermen have not caught enough to repay them for the 

 loss of apparatus. Ho new salmon boats have been built within the 

 last year. Several decked boats have been reconstructed as well boats 

 for the cod-fishery (three from Neroe alone), and the salmon fishery, so far 

 as these are concerned, must be considered ended. It is possible, they 

 say, that the net fishery for small salmon may have increased somewhat 

 of late years ; but according to Skrydstrup, who wrote ten years ago 

 (see Nordisk Tidsskrift for Fiskeri, vol. 2, p. 29), it was at that lime 

 unimportant, while at a still earlier period it was canied on more ex- 

 tensively. People do not now attach much importance to the belief 

 that the decrease of small salmon is injurious to the fishery. Accord- 

 ing to my opinion, however, they mistake in this; and I find that 

 there is every reason to recommend all contrivances that serve to re- 

 strict the capture of young salmon, and to postpone the fishing until 

 the salmon are larger and heavier. In consequence of this I entirely 

 agree with Professor Malmgren on the desirability of an international 

 agreement for the prevention of the capture of young salmon in the 

 Baltic. Although 1 do not overlook the difficulties in having the 

 measures necessary to this end agreed upon and carried out, I think 

 that much may be done by establishing a minimum size of mesh for the 

 nets, whether they are used as set-nets or drag-nets, which will prevent 

 the capture of small salmon under 3 or 4 pounds in weight. It seems 

 that an agreement in this matter should not be difficult to reach. As for 

 the efforts towards improving the Bornholm salmon-fishery by the aid 

 of artificial hatching, the utility of this plan seems to be exceedingly 

 doubtful, because of the circumstance already mentioned, that the island 

 lacks rivers and contains only some small streams which are well enough 

 adapted for the reception of trout but not for salmon. 



