THE WHITEFISH PRODUCTION OF THE GREAT LAKES. 677 
it now is limited is therefore not in itself sufficient to bring about an improve- 
ment of the fishery for whitefish. 
Under the regulations of the Dominion of Canada fisheries officers are 
empowered to regulate the distances between nets, and if the writer under- 
stands these regulations, the fishing grounds are leased and the fishermen 
licensed. The result of this system is that a much smaller number of nets, or a 
much shorter total length of nets, is in use in the Canadian waters of the Great 
Lakes than in the American waters. In tables 18 and 19 are shown the data for 
the plant and catch of whitefish for the Canadian and American waters of Lakes 
Erie and Ontario for the only years for which American statistics are available 
in which it is possible to discriminate the true whitefish from related forms. 
From these it appears that the total length of gill and pound nets in use in the 
American waters of Lake Erie was in 1893 about twenty times that in use in 
Canadian waters, although the Canadian and American waters have approxi- 
mately the same area. The Canadian nets in that year took about four times 
as many pounds of fish per fathom of length as the American nets. In 1899 the 
American nets are still of about twenty times the length in total of the Canadian 
nets, which are taking between four and five times the weight of fish per fathom. 
In 1903 the American nets still exceed the Canadian more than ten times, and 
the Canadian are taking more than ten times the weight of fish per fathom. In 
this year the weight of whitefish taken in the waters of the two countries is the 
same. An examination of tables 11 and 12 shows that in Lakes Superior and 
Huron the American nets exceed the Canadian in total length and the Canadian 
nets exceed the American in catch per net fathom. The latter statement is true 
only if we assume that the whitefish are taken in the waters of both countries in 
the same proportion to other fish. 
TABLE 18.—COMPARISON OF THE ANNUAL CATCHES AND PLANTS OF WHITEFISH AND TOTAL LENGTH 
or NETS IN USE IN UNITED STATES AND CANADIAN WATERS OF LAKE ERIE FOR THE THREE YEARS 
1893, 1899, 1903. : 
Canada, north shore, whitefish area 2,100 square miles. 
Catch. | Plant. Nets. 
| | | 
Year. Total | Pounds | Pounds Fry per Fry per | Total Fathoms 
pounds, per square per net- Total fry. square pound eae per square 
Re mile. fathom. | mile. | caught. . mile. 
= i S jas = <a 
256,000 121 5.17 | 58,000, 000 27,619 226 49,500 23 
431,000 205 3.99 | 60, 000, 000 28,571 139 107,900 51 
303,000 144 1.79 | 62,000, 000 29,523 204 169, 300 Bo 
United States, south shore, whatefish area 2,000 square miles. 
Tele) en eae gees I, 292, 000 646 rene} 22,570,000 Ir, 285 18 988, 900 485 
YAOOeS oo aon 2,066,000 1,033 .88 | 104,930,000 52,465 50 2,325,200 1,164 
NOM Re eee ee 303,000 152 -16 90,961, 000 45,480 30 1,816,300 908 
