182 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OE FISH AND FISHERIES. 



owing chietiy to a liifflier average priee per bushel and a comparative 

 scarcity of oysters in JJaltiinore, to wJiicli place a large i)art of the out- 

 jnit goes. The decreased yield in 1890-1)1 was princii)ally due to the 

 destruction of beds in the upi)er ])art of tlu; oyster region by the exten- 

 sion of the fresh water consequent upon freshets. 



Next to the oyster in value is the shad, of which 2,571,002 pounds, 

 ecjuivalent to 731,453 fish, were taken in 1S90, lor which the fishermen 

 received 875,935. The following year the aggregate catch was 2,."{5(),750 

 pounds, or 021,977 fish, the value of which to the fishermen was $09,100. 

 In 1891 there Avns a considerable diminution iu the abundance of the 

 lish iu the up[)(H' part of the I'otomac, although the fishing at the mouth 

 of the river was regarded as very good. In both these years, however, 

 the caf eh was nmch less than in 1889, which Avas one of the best sea- 

 sons during the past decade, 808,900 fish, valued at §85,378, being 

 taken. This presents a striking contrast with the condition of the 

 shad fishery before the eficcts of artificial propagation began to be 

 nianilested. The present Commissioner of Fisheries, writing in 1880 

 concerning this river, stated : * 



The fisheries of this river aiuiiiiillj^ decreasecl in value and prodnetion up to the 

 time of the war. The intermission which then ensued in the fishing- operations ou 

 aceouut of those of a martial character allowed the fisheries to recuperate, so that 

 in the years innnediately siicceeding the war it was found th;it they had in a meas- 

 ure recovered from their former depletion. In 1878 th(^ miuimum of productiim was 

 attained, during- whicli less ihiin 200,000 [about ]8(),000j shad were taken in the 

 entire river. In 1879 the results of previous artificial ])ropagati()n first manifested 

 themselves, and there was a (•onsidera))le increase in tlui run of shad, from which 

 time the Bhad fisheries steadily increased until, in the season of 1880, nearly (500,000 

 [.'582,872] were taken. 



The alewives rank next to sliad in importance, and during some sea- 

 sons, 1891 for instance, they liav<' had a greater value tiian shad. The 

 output is now considerably larger than in 1880, the Indk of the catch 

 being tjiken witli ])ound nets. In 1890, 7,508,410 jwunds, worth $07,481, 

 Avere obtained, iind, in 1891, 7,330,(}35 pounds wen; siH-ured, which yielded 

 the fishermen 871,402. 



The decrease in the inn of sturgeon is a noteworthy feature of the 

 fisheries; 288,9(10 pounds wcic taken in 1880. since which time the catch 

 has gradually dwindled until only 09,920 pounds were caught in 1890, 

 and 45,710 pounds in 1891, notwithstanding the greater demand in recent 

 years as shown by the highei- ])iices leeeived. The striped bass is an 

 important lish in the Potonnu^, ranking next to alewives in total value 

 and <(>mmanding a. better j)rice than any <»lher species; 333,304 pounds 

 WiTi'. secured iu 1890, the maiket value of which was $20,187. Among 

 the other fishes taken in tiie river the following arc; the most im])ortant, 

 and in 1890 yielded the amounts stated : Blnefish, $4,843 ; catfish, $7,555 ; 



' The River Fisheries of the Athintic States. By Marshall McDonald. • : The Fish- 

 eries and Fishery Industries of the United States, see. v, aoI. i. 



