﻿422 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  errnen 
  at 
  Ohamcook 
  stated 
  that 
  tbeir 
  weirs 
  had 
  been 
  full 
  of 
  herring 
  for 
  

   two 
  weeks 
  or 
  more, 
  but 
  they 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  seined, 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  

   transportation, 
  the 
  boats 
  getting 
  their 
  fares 
  in 
  more 
  accessible 
  places. 
  

   The 
  weirs 
  around 
  the 
  entire 
  shore 
  of 
  St. 
  Andrews 
  Bay 
  had 
  been 
  fishing 
  

   well 
  and 
  steadily 
  wherever 
  they 
  bad 
  received 
  regular 
  attention, 
  and 
  at 
  

   Northern 
  Harbor, 
  on 
  Deer 
  Island, 
  the 
  weir 
  had 
  been 
  catching 
  from 
  18 
  

   to 
  20 
  hogsheads 
  of 
  "oils" 
  daily 
  for 
  some 
  time 
  past. 
  After 
  September 
  

   1, 
  however, 
  the 
  weirs 
  in 
  St. 
  Andrews 
  Bay 
  caugbt 
  but 
  little. 
  

  

  There 
  were 
  more 
  fish 
  in 
  these 
  waters 
  in 
  1894 
  and 
  1895 
  than 
  for 
  many 
  

  

  years, 
  notwithstanding 
  the 
  great 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  amount 
  of 
  apparatus. 
  

  

  In 
  1876 
  there 
  was 
  but 
  one 
  weir 
  inside 
  of 
  a 
  line 
  drawn 
  from 
  the 
  head 
  of 
  

  

  iCtite 
  Passage 
  to 
  Clam 
  Cove. 
  In 
  1878, 
  as 
  nearly 
  as 
  can 
  be 
  learued, 
  

  

  here 
  were 
  7 
  in 
  the 
  district 
  so 
  defined, 
  and 
  in 
  1893 
  this 
  number 
  had 
  

  

  increased 
  to 
  about 
  33. 
  

  

  In 
  1895 
  herring 
  appeared 
  at 
  L'Etang 
  and 
  vicinity 
  about 
  July 
  20, 
  and 
  

   they 
  continued 
  in 
  abundance 
  during 
  August 
  and 
  September, 
  in 
  the 
  

   latter 
  month 
  great 
  quantities 
  being 
  taken 
  in 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  weirs. 
  There 
  

   were 
  many 
  more 
  than 
  could 
  be 
  utilized 
  for 
  food 
  purposes 
  and 
  many 
  

   were 
  used 
  for 
  fertilizer. 
  They 
  sold 
  for 
  a 
  trifle, 
  and 
  one 
  instance 
  came 
  

   to 
  my 
  knowledge 
  where 
  19 
  hogsheads 
  were 
  sold 
  for 
  $5, 
  or 
  at 
  the 
  rate 
  

   of 
  20 
  cents 
  per 
  hogshead. 
  In 
  other 
  cases 
  they 
  were 
  delivered 
  on 
  the 
  

   farmer's 
  shore 
  at 
  75 
  cents 
  per 
  hogshead. 
  During 
  a 
  large 
  portion 
  of 
  

   the 
  season 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  weirs, 
  both 
  here 
  and 
  in 
  St. 
  Andrews 
  Bay, 
  were 
  

   hardly 
  seined 
  at 
  all, 
  although 
  they 
  contained 
  large 
  numbers 
  of 
  herring 
  

   of 
  marketable 
  size. 
  There 
  was 
  an 
  overplus 
  offish 
  everywhere 
  and 
  the 
  

   boats 
  naturally 
  secured 
  their 
  fares 
  at 
  the 
  most 
  convenient 
  places. 
  Few 
  

   of 
  the 
  fishermen 
  made 
  much 
  money, 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  because 
  the 
  fish 
  were 
  

   too 
  abundant 
  rather 
  than 
  too 
  few. 
  

  

  At 
  Deer 
  Island 
  and 
  the 
  West 
  Isles 
  the 
  herring 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  come 
  earlier, 
  

   usually 
  in 
  June 
  and 
  July, 
  the 
  latter 
  month 
  and 
  August 
  being 
  the 
  best 
  

   for 
  the 
  fishermen. 
  Here 
  also 
  they 
  were 
  exceedingly 
  abundant, 
  but 
  as 
  

   there 
  were 
  fewer 
  fish 
  elsewhere 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  fishermen 
  had 
  

   a 
  profitable 
  season, 
  and 
  one 
  weir 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  stocked 
  between 
  $2,500 
  

   and 
  $3,000. 
  There 
  were 
  also 
  some 
  herring 
  at 
  Deer 
  Island 
  about 
  the 
  

   middle 
  of 
  Septem'ber, 
  and 
  one 
  weir 
  took 
  100 
  hogsheads 
  on 
  two 
  runs 
  of 
  

   tide. 
  In 
  1894 
  they 
  were 
  also 
  extremely 
  abundant 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  

   Deer 
  Island, 
  and 
  considerable 
  quantities 
  of 
  smoking 
  herring 
  were 
  

   caught, 
  although 
  but 
  comparatively 
  few 
  were 
  taken 
  in 
  1895. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  history 
  of 
  weirs 
  63, 
  64, 
  65, 
  and 
  66, 
  of 
  Dr. 
  B. 
  L. 
  Hardin's 
  

   chart 
  of 
  1893, 
  was 
  secured 
  : 
  

  

  No. 
  66 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  weir, 
  opposite 
  Kendall 
  Head. 
  In 
  1886 
  it 
  caught 
  40 
  

   hogsheads 
  in 
  about 
  three 
  weeks, 
  and 
  since 
  then 
  has 
  averaged 
  15 
  to 
  25 
  

   hogsheads 
  per 
  year. 
  

  

  No. 
  65 
  got 
  100 
  hogsheads 
  in 
  1893, 
  but 
  in 
  1894 
  it 
  did 
  not 
  do 
  so 
  well, 
  

   getting 
  only 
  40 
  hogsheads. 
  

  

  