458 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF PISH AND FISHERIES. 

 FISHERIES OF NEW JERSEY. 



New Jersey is very favorably situated for carry i no- on extensive 

 conimoroial fisheries, and, as all parts of the State have easy rail 

 coiunmnication with New York, Brooklyn, Philaddphia. Jersey Cit}', 

 Newark, Camden, Trenton, and the immense population of tho States 

 of New York. New Jersey, and Pennsylvania outside of the above- 

 iiaiiH'd cities, tlic tishermcn have a constant and nnidy market for 

 their c;itch. 



As New fJersey fronts on New York and Delaware bays, the Hudson 

 and Delaware rivers, and the ocean, both salt and fresh water species 

 are taken, and fishing is carried on throughout the year in at least 

 some part of the State. In the spi-ino- many of the fishermen along- 

 the coast and in tiie interior resort to the Delaware and Hudson rivers 

 and participate in the shad fishery, after the close of which some of 

 the river fishernuMi engage in salt-water fishing along the coast. 



An important feature of the fish(M'ies is tii(^ inci-easing num])er of 

 sailing vessels and boats fitted with g-asoiine and naphtha engines as 

 an auxiliary means of propelling tluMU. This applies not oidy to the 

 vessels used by clam l)uyers and clam and fisli transporters. Init many 

 boats under f) tons ])urden used in th(^ clam, shad, 03^ster, and pound- 

 net fisheries are so fitted, giving nuich gieatei" facility in carrying on 

 fishing operations in variable weathei'. 



The increasing use of steamei's in dredging oj^sters from the planted 

 l)eds in Monmouth County is a noticeable feature of the industr}'. 

 Formerly this work was done by sailing vessels owned by the planters, 

 l)ut lately they have been using these vessels merely in the preliminary 

 tiiinning out of the beds or carrying oysters to market, while steamers 

 are hired to dredge the main bod}" of market oysters. By operating 

 in this manner but few steamers and men are needed to do the work 

 which formerly required a much larger nuniber of sailing vessels and 

 men to perform. 



A point in connection with the pound-net fisheries which is not 

 shown clearly in the tables is that for every net set in tht» water the 

 owner has a duplicate on shore. As tln^ net after being fished for sev- 

 eral days nmst be l)i-ought ashoi'e to be cleaned and rc^paired, the 

 fishermen have the duj)licate net to j)ut in its ])lace, thus avoiding an}^ 

 loss of time in fishing. The valu(> of tiies(^ duplicate nets has l)een 

 inchided in \ho general \alue of the ])oun(l nets, but not the luuulx^r. 



During rtie past ten years the **sto]) net" has been nuich u^ed. i)rin- 

 cipally in catching (j(M-man carp. This is a long, fine-nu^shed net, 

 which is stretched across the moutii of a small creek or bight at high 

 tide, j)reventing the escape of the lish when the tide turns. As the 

 tide recinles flu^ gi-ound is left bare, and the fishermen walk along 

 the inner si(l(» of the net and ])i(k up such tish as they want. Unfortu- 

 natelv this net does considcM'able (lania»>'('. as the mesh is so fine that 



