REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 93 
11,449,752 pounds salted, valued at $1,359,416. There was, there- 
fore, a decrease in the quantity in 1915, as compared with the previ- 
ous year, of 1,991,749 pounds in the fresh and 481,979 pounds in the 
salted cod landed. 
Several large fares of cod were caught during the season of 1915. 
trip amounting to 359,483 pounds taken on trawl lines was landed 
at Gloucester in July, and one of the dory hand-line fleet brought in 
478,365 pounds in September, this being the largest fare taken since 
1909, when the same vessel weighed off 479,433 pounds. 
Haddock.—The haddock fishery in 1915 was carried on with about 
the same success as in the previous year. The quantity of haddock 
landed was 57,943,644 pounds, valued at $1,307,813, an increase over 
the previous year of 189,516 pounds in quantity and a decrease of 
$73,343 in value. The catch of haddock by line trawlers landed at 
Boston amounted to 30,776,733 pounds, of which 16.57 per cent were 
“‘scrod.”’ The greater part of ‘ae scrod haddock brought in by line 
trawlers came from the inshore grounds, the offshore banks supplying 
a greater poner ten of large haddock. On the inshore grounds the 
amount of scrod haddock taken varied from 18 to 22 per cent of the 
total catch and on the offshore grounds from 2 to 8 per cent. 
Pollock.—The pollock fishery, which in recent years has supported 
a considerable fleet of small craft employing purse seines as a means of 
capture, was carried on with greater success than in 1914. The total 
catch of paiark landed at Boston and Gloucester, including those 
taken on hand and trawl lines and in gill nets, was 13,195,953 pounds, 
having a value of $253,258, an increase of 741,230 pounds in quantity 
and $53,522 in value compared with 1914. As in previous years, 
most of the pollock landed by purse seiners and gill netters were 
caught in spring and fall months. 
Halibut.—In the last few years the halibut fishery on the Atlantic 
coast has fluctuated but little. The yield of fresh and salted halibut 
in 1915 was 3,870,685 pounds, 3,584,175 pounds of the former and 
286,510 pounds of the latter,: valued at $323,296, an imcrease of 
491,100 pounds and $46,946 over 1914. The largest catches of this 
species were made on Georges, Browns, La Have, Quereau, Western, 
and Grand Banks, the last-mentioned bank supplying the greatest 
amount. The fishery was conducted throughout the year, but the 
bulk of the catch was taken during the early spring and summer 
months. The vessels regularly employed in this fishery numbered 33 
sail, although many of the cod hand-line and trawl-line fishermen fre- 
quently caught halibut in considerable quantities. The usual activity 
was displayed in this fishery in the spring of 1916. At the end of 
_ May the fleet engaged numbered 26 vessels, and a considerable num- 
ber of fairly large fares were landed. 
The otter-trawl fishery.—This method of fishing, as in 1914, was 
carried on by 12 steamers. With the exception of several trips 
landed at Portland and an occasional trip disposed of at Gloucester 
during such times when there was a glut of fresh haddock in the 
market, the bulk of fish caught by otter trawlers was landed at 
Boston. The year’s catch was 21,116,300 pounds, representing 380 
trips, an increase of 8 trips. There were landed from Georges 105 
trips, from South Channel 248, Western Bank 26, and Browns Bank 1. 
As in the previous year, Western Bank was resorted to in March, 
April, and May, when haddock were less plentiful on Georges and 
6111°—17——_7_ 
