﻿26 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  At. 
  the 
  two 
  great 
  fishing- 
  ports 
  of 
  Gloucester 
  and 
  Boston 
  the 
  quantity 
  of 
  

   tish 
  landed 
  by 
  American 
  fishing 
  vessels 
  in 
  1902 
  was 
  about 
  168,000,000 
  

   pounds, 
  valued 
  at 
  14,380,000, 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  17,000,000 
  pounds 
  and 
  

   $130,000 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  1901. 
  The 
  mackerel 
  catch 
  has 
  never 
  since 
  

   reached 
  the 
  proportions 
  attained 
  in 
  the 
  years 
  preceding 
  1887, 
  although 
  

   it 
  is 
  now 
  greatl}'' 
  in 
  excess 
  of 
  the 
  product 
  during 
  the 
  first 
  half 
  of 
  the 
  

   present 
  period 
  of 
  unprecedented 
  scarcity. 
  The 
  tendency 
  of 
  late 
  has 
  

   been 
  upward, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  believed 
  that 
  in 
  a 
  comparatively 
  f 
  ew^ 
  years 
  the 
  

   mackerel 
  will 
  have 
  again 
  become 
  abundant 
  on 
  our 
  shores. 
  

  

  The 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  lo])ster 
  fishery 
  has 
  been 
  practically 
  unchanged 
  

   for 
  several 
  years, 
  although 
  it 
  can 
  not 
  be 
  doubted 
  that 
  the 
  tendency 
  is 
  

   downward. 
  The 
  catch 
  fluctuates 
  somewhat 
  from 
  year 
  to 
  year, 
  and 
  cer- 
  

   tain 
  localities 
  may 
  show 
  a 
  decided 
  increase; 
  but 
  if 
  the 
  general 
  output 
  

   in 
  a 
  state 
  is 
  greater 
  in 
  one 
  year 
  than 
  another, 
  the 
  cause 
  may 
  usually 
  

   be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  fishery 
  was 
  prosecuted 
  for 
  a 
  longer 
  time, 
  

   or 
  that 
  more 
  men 
  and 
  more 
  apparatus 
  were 
  employed. 
  It 
  seems 
  very 
  

   improbable 
  that 
  there 
  will 
  be 
  any 
  general 
  improvement 
  in 
  the 
  fishery 
  

   until 
  new 
  methods 
  of 
  conducting 
  it 
  are 
  adopted 
  and 
  shall 
  have 
  con- 
  

   tinued 
  for 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  years. 
  Uniform 
  protective 
  laws 
  are 
  greatly 
  

   needed, 
  and 
  without 
  them 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  Commission 
  in 
  lobster 
  

   cultivation 
  will 
  have 
  but 
  little 
  efl'ect 
  at 
  this 
  stage 
  of 
  the 
  decline. 
  

  

  The 
  oyster 
  fishery 
  is 
  engaged 
  in 
  by 
  more 
  persons 
  than 
  any 
  other 
  

   branch 
  and 
  contributes 
  nearly 
  one-third 
  of 
  the 
  annual 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  

   United 
  States 
  fisheries. 
  A 
  verj'^ 
  satisfactory^ 
  feature 
  of 
  this 
  industry 
  

   during 
  recent 
  years 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  increased 
  interest 
  manifested 
  in 
  

   oyster 
  culture, 
  more 
  especially 
  in 
  the 
  Middle 
  Atlantic 
  region, 
  where 
  

   the 
  most 
  beneficent 
  results 
  may 
  be 
  expected 
  to 
  follow 
  the 
  adoption 
  of 
  

   proper 
  laws 
  for 
  the 
  promotion 
  of 
  oyster 
  planting. 
  

  

  The 
  Pacific 
  salmon 
  industry 
  in 
  1902 
  reached 
  larger 
  proportions 
  than 
  

   ever 
  before, 
  and 
  became 
  the 
  leading 
  branch 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States' 
  fish- 
  

   eries, 
  if 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  product 
  as 
  prepared 
  for 
  market 
  is 
  considered. 
  

   The 
  pack 
  of 
  canned 
  salmon 
  was 
  more 
  than 
  3,500,000 
  cases 
  of 
  -48 
  one-pound 
  

   cans, 
  and 
  in 
  addition 
  upward 
  of 
  12,000,000 
  pounds 
  of 
  fresh, 
  smoked, 
  

   and 
  salted 
  salmon 
  were 
  marketed. 
  The 
  pack 
  of 
  canned 
  salmon 
  in 
  

   Alaska 
  was 
  over 
  2,500,000 
  cases, 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  half 
  a 
  million 
  cases 
  

   over 
  1901. 
  In 
  the 
  Puget 
  Sound 
  region 
  the 
  supply 
  of 
  fish 
  was 
  nmch 
  

   smaller 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  previous 
  year, 
  but 
  the 
  season 
  was 
  considered 
  suc- 
  

   cessful 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  good 
  prices 
  received. 
  The 
  fall 
  run 
  of 
  salmon 
  in 
  

   Columbia 
  River 
  was 
  remarkably 
  large, 
  and 
  for 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  three 
  weeks 
  

   the 
  canneries 
  were 
  unable 
  to 
  handle 
  the 
  catch. 
  At 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  seine 
  

   fisheries 
  20 
  tons 
  of 
  chinook 
  salmon 
  were 
  sometimes 
  taken 
  in 
  one 
  day, 
  

   and 
  the 
  gill-net 
  fishermen 
  had 
  no 
  difficulty 
  in 
  loading 
  their 
  boats 
  in 
  a 
  

   night. 
  From 
  a 
  careful 
  computation 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  Commission, 
  it 
  

   appears 
  that 
  in 
  1902 
  the 
  wonderful 
  Pacific 
  salmon 
  fisheries 
  yielded 
  

   about 
  280,000,000 
  pounds 
  of 
  round 
  fish 
  whose 
  first 
  value, 
  as 
  placed 
  on 
  

   the 
  markets, 
  was 
  $18,000,000. 
  

  

  