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  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  Tlie 
  oyster 
  vidusfry. 
  — 
  Oysters 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  considerable 
  abundance 
  

   in 
  tbe 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Cedar 
  Keys. 
  Tbe 
  principal 
  grounds 
  are 
  as 
  follows: 
  

   Kg. 
  4 
  Channel, 
  between 
  Cedar 
  and 
  Derrick 
  keys, 
  connecting 
  Suwanee 
  

   and 
  Waccassee 
  bays; 
  Pelican 
  Eeef 
  Bar, 
  wbicb 
  extends 
  from 
  No. 
  4 
  

   Channel 
  2i 
  miles 
  up 
  Suwanee 
  Bay; 
  Fishbone 
  Bar, 
  which 
  extends 
  sev- 
  

   eral 
  miles 
  up 
  tlie 
  coast 
  from 
  the 
  north 
  side 
  of 
  Suwanee 
  liiver; 
  Corri- 
  

   giui 
  Keef, 
  which 
  runs 
  south 
  from 
  Cedar 
  Keys 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  about 
  4 
  miles, 
  

   and 
  Waccassee 
  Bar, 
  near 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  Waccassee 
  E-iver. 
  The 
  tirst 
  of 
  

   these 
  is 
  the 
  best 
  and 
  most 
  productive 
  ground 
  in 
  this 
  entire 
  region, 
  the 
  

   beds 
  occupying 
  nearly 
  4 
  miles 
  of 
  the 
  channel. 
  Owing 
  to 
  excessive 
  

   tongiug, 
  the 
  supply 
  has 
  been 
  decreasing 
  for 
  some 
  years, 
  and 
  in 
  1895 
  

   the 
  output 
  was 
  nearly 
  50 
  per 
  cent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1890. 
  

  

  In 
  1892 
  a 
  Cedar 
  Keys 
  citizen 
  leased 
  a 
  bar 
  about 
  2 
  miles 
  north 
  of 
  

   Cedar 
  Keys, 
  near 
  the 
  mainland, 
  and 
  the 
  same 
  year 
  planted 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   small 
  oysters 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  natural 
  beds. 
  He 
  continued 
  this 
  each 
  

   year 
  up 
  to 
  and 
  including 
  1895, 
  but 
  suffered 
  so 
  much 
  in 
  the 
  last 
  two 
  

   years 
  from 
  the 
  depredations 
  of 
  tongers 
  that 
  he 
  was 
  compelled 
  to 
  

   abandon 
  the 
  business. 
  What 
  the 
  tongers 
  left 
  on 
  the 
  bar 
  were 
  washed 
  

   away 
  in 
  the 
  great 
  storm 
  of 
  September, 
  1896. 
  All 
  of 
  the 
  oyster-dealers 
  

   and 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  tongers 
  are 
  advocates 
  of 
  the 
  sj^stem 
  of 
  increasing 
  

   the 
  supply 
  by 
  the 
  formation 
  of 
  artificial 
  beds, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  probable 
  that 
  

   most 
  of 
  those 
  interested 
  will 
  soon 
  be 
  believers 
  in 
  this 
  system, 
  as 
  the 
  

   natural 
  beds 
  become 
  more 
  and 
  more 
  exhausted. 
  

  

  In 
  1895 
  the 
  oyster 
  industry 
  of 
  Cedar 
  Keys 
  gave 
  employment 
  to 
  50 
  

   tongers; 
  the 
  boats 
  used 
  numbered 
  40, 
  valued, 
  with 
  outfit 
  and 
  apparatus, 
  

   at 
  $1,040. 
  The 
  product 
  consisted 
  of 
  3,200 
  barrels 
  of 
  oysters, 
  worth 
  

   $1 
  ,870, 
  or 
  19i 
  cents 
  a 
  bushel. 
  

  

  The 
  sj)onge 
  industry. 
  — 
  Although 
  the 
  best 
  sponge-grounds 
  in 
  the 
  Gulf 
  

   of 
  Mexico 
  are 
  located 
  adjacent 
  to 
  Cedar 
  Keys, 
  the 
  sponge 
  fishery 
  has 
  

   received 
  but 
  little 
  attention 
  from 
  the 
  people, 
  and 
  in 
  1895 
  there 
  was 
  no 
  

   sponge 
  trade 
  in 
  the 
  town. 
  A 
  number 
  of 
  vessels 
  that 
  were 
  documented 
  

   at 
  Cedar 
  Keys 
  engaged 
  in 
  the 
  sponge 
  fishery 
  from 
  Tarpon 
  Springs, 
  but 
  

   no 
  sponges 
  were 
  landed 
  locally. 
  In 
  1890 
  one 
  local 
  vessel 
  landed 
  

   4,100 
  pounds 
  of 
  sponges 
  valued 
  at 
  $5,000. 
  In 
  1878 
  the 
  business 
  of 
  

   purchasing 
  and 
  preparing 
  sponges 
  was 
  begun 
  at 
  Cedar 
  Keys, 
  but 
  was 
  

   discontinued 
  after 
  a 
  few 
  years, 
  and 
  only 
  spasmodic 
  attempts 
  to 
  reestab- 
  

   lish 
  the 
  trade 
  have 
  since 
  been 
  made. 
  A 
  favorable 
  opportunity 
  appears 
  

   to 
  exist 
  for 
  carrying 
  on 
  an 
  extensive 
  sponge 
  business 
  at 
  this 
  i^lace. 
  

  

  The 
  gill-net 
  fishery. 
  — 
  This 
  is 
  the 
  most 
  prominent 
  of 
  the 
  Cedar 
  Keys 
  

   fisheries. 
  More 
  persons 
  are 
  employed 
  in 
  it 
  than 
  in 
  all 
  the 
  other 
  fisheries 
  

   combined, 
  and 
  the 
  product 
  greatly 
  exceeds 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  branches. 
  

   A 
  very 
  large 
  variety 
  of 
  valuable 
  food-fish 
  is 
  taken, 
  although 
  the 
  mullet 
  

   is 
  the 
  principal 
  species. 
  In 
  1895 
  this 
  fishery 
  gave 
  employment 
  to 
  108 
  

   fishermen, 
  in 
  addition 
  to 
  whom 
  39 
  persons 
  were 
  engaged 
  in 
  transporting 
  

   the 
  catch 
  to 
  market; 
  30 
  of 
  the 
  latter, 
  however, 
  were 
  in 
  other 
  fisheries. 
  

   The 
  fishing 
  boats 
  numbered 
  48, 
  and 
  were 
  valued 
  at 
  $1,440; 
  the 
  trans- 
  

   porting 
  boats 
  consisted 
  of 
  15 
  sailboats 
  (used 
  in 
  the 
  turtle 
  fishery) 
  and 
  

  

  