314 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



northwesterly iu the spring, make their winter residence on the eastern 

 slope in depths varying from 100 to probably 400 fathoms. 



Fortunately, halibut were discovered in remarkable abundance in 

 the early summer on another and well-known fishing-ground, thus ren- 

 dering it unnecessary for the fishermen to be longer exposed to so many 

 losses and perils as they had experienced on the east side of the Bank. 



On the deeply submerged plateau which extends in a northwesterly 

 direction from the northwest prong of the Grand Bank to Saint Peter's 

 Bank, forming a sort of border to the southern end of Green Bank — 

 by which name this stretch of bottom is usually called by the fisher- 

 men — in depths varying from 112 to 250 fathoms, halibut of the finest 

 quality, and in extraordinary numbers, were found. This locality has 

 been famous for the abundance of halibut in the spring of the year 

 since the discovery of the deep-watefc^fishery in 1875. Iu April of that 

 year the vessels, driven off the shoaler parts of the Grand Bank by im- 

 mense masses of field-ice, sought to catch fish in deeper water, and hali- 

 but were found exceedingly abundant off the northwest prong of the 

 Grand Bank in depths varying from 100 to 200 fathoms. During the 

 whole season — even as late as September — these fish were caught at 

 about the same depths nearly the entire length of the slope extending 

 from the northwest prong to Saint Peter's Bank. And in such num- 

 bers did they occur that few vessels fishing in the locality failed to get 

 full fares, while most of the fleet made extraordinary catches. Since 

 1875, however, notwithstanding the fact that large schools of this 

 species have been found off Green Bank almost every spring, it has ap- 

 peared from the movements of the fish that they were migrating to 

 more northern regions, and that they were only passing over these 

 grounds, pausing slightly, perhaps, in their course, or, at least, moving 

 slowly.* 



For a period of four to six weeks, generally in March and April, 

 large fares were obtained between the northwest prong of the Grand 

 Bank and Saint Peter's Bank. After that interval, however, the fish 

 became scarce, and rarely did it happen that they were sufficiently 

 plenty during the summer for vessels to obtain good fares there.t This 



* On several occasions the movements of these fish have been pretty definitely 

 traced along the southwestern side of Saint Peter's Bank and into the deep water be- 

 tween this bank and the shores of Newfoundland. Without doubt a portion of the 

 Green Bank spring school is found in summer on the west coast of Newfoundland in 

 pursuit of capelin close into the shore. 



t Iu this connection it may bo well to mention that in the summer of 1878 the 

 schooner "Gwendolen" found a new fishing-ground some 'JO miles to the southwest 

 of Saint Peter's Bank, in a depth of about 200 fathoms, where no soundings are laid 

 down on the chart. She succeeded in taking several large fares, but other schooners, 

 learning of her good fortune, resorted in such numbers to the same grounds, that in 

 September of thai year the school had been broken up, nor has any large catch of 

 halibut been made on that ground since. Allusion to this fad is made here because 

 the locality is not far from thai region off Green Bank now under discussion, and also 

 because, with this exception, halibut have rarely been found abundant in the summer 

 in its immediate vicinity since 1875, until the present year. 



