FISHERIES OF THE GREAT LAKES. 409 



from 10 to 20 miles from shore; after that date they move the nets to 

 the outside grounds, where they remain until the last of October or the 

 tirst of iS'ovember, when they again move their nets to the inside 

 grounds, some vessels going to the trout grounds and some to the 

 whitefish grounds about 8 miles northeast of Thunder Bay Island. 



The principal grounds resorted to by the sailboats Uoinggill nets for 

 trout are outside of Tliunder Bay and Middle islands, while during the 

 latter part of the season fishing is carried on for whitefish in the imme- 

 diate vicinity of the islands. The gill-net fishing carried on from row- 

 boats is prosecuted within a few rods of the shores of Middle, Sugar, 

 and Thunder Bay islands, trout being there found in the early part of 

 the season and whitefish during the month of November. 



The gill-net grounds in Iosco County are from 6 to 15 miles offshore, 

 the great amount of mill refuse preventing the satisfactory use of 

 gill nets nearer to the shore. The same condition is unfavorable to the 

 use of pound nets, which can be used to advantage oidy where narrow 

 ridges running out into the lake are kept comparatively clean by the 

 action of the water sweeping up ami down the shore, 



A few small pound nets are fished in Saginaw Eiver, but the 

 principal fishing-ground for pound nets is the bay. The grounds on 

 which the bay pound nets are set extend all along the east and west 

 shores of that body of water. Pound nets are also fished around the 

 Big and Little Charity islands lying off the mouth of the bay. It is 

 in the latter region that the greater part of the trout are caught. 

 In former years, before lumbering was extensively carried on, this 

 region contained excellent grounds, where whitefish resorted and were 

 caught in large numbers. The present whitefish catch, however, is 

 small in proportion to the large number of nets. 



The grounds off the shore of Huron County were formerly among the 

 best wiiitefish grounds in Lake Huron ami, while a great deal of bark 

 from rafts is now scattered along the bottom, these grounds are in good 

 condition as compared with a few years ago, when lumbering was car- 

 ried on more extensively all along the shore and many sawmills were 

 throwing sawdust, bark, and slabs into the lake. The fishermen think 

 that if large plants of whitefish were now made here the results would 

 be more satisfactory. 



Off the shore of Sanilac County the gill-net grounds are in the track 

 of the regular steamers plying up and down the lake, and often after a 

 gale the fishermen will find their nets full of coal clinkers, which have 

 been thrown overboard from steamers and which, when the nets are 

 spread out on the bottom by the force of the current, become entangled 

 in the meshes; the clinkers also cut and destroy the nets. Great injury 

 to the fishing-grounds has naturally been tlie re ailt of this condition. 

 Tlie grounds off" this shore have in past years been very productive; 

 they were, however, destroyed by refuse from sawmills. At the pres- 

 ent time the absence of sawmills along this part of the lake makes tlie 

 fishermen desirous of restoring the productiveness of the grounds, and 



