﻿442 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

   QUODDY 
  RIVER 
  HERRING. 
  

  

  The 
  justly 
  celebrated 
  herring 
  which 
  were 
  kuowu 
  in 
  the 
  markets 
  of 
  the 
  

   country 
  under 
  this 
  name 
  appear 
  to 
  have 
  occurred 
  practically 
  nowhere 
  

   but 
  in 
  '' 
  Quoddy 
  Eiver," 
  the 
  waters 
  lying 
  between 
  Campobello 
  on 
  one 
  

   side 
  and 
  Deer 
  Island 
  and 
  the 
  shores 
  of 
  Maine 
  on 
  the 
  other. 
  

  

  The 
  fishery 
  began 
  in 
  1829, 
  although 
  the 
  fishermen 
  appear 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  aware 
  of 
  the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  these 
  large 
  fish 
  prior 
  to 
  that. 
  In 
  the 
  

   year 
  mentioned 
  Mr. 
  Parker, 
  a 
  fisherman, 
  brought 
  a 
  gaspereau 
  net 
  from 
  

   St. 
  John 
  and 
  determined 
  to 
  catch 
  these 
  herring 
  for 
  the 
  market. 
  This 
  

   was 
  the 
  first 
  net 
  used 
  in 
  the 
  herring 
  fishery 
  in 
  the 
  I^assamaquoddy 
  dis- 
  

   trict, 
  and 
  it 
  met 
  with 
  immediate 
  success. 
  The 
  large 
  herring 
  were 
  found 
  

   to 
  be 
  more 
  abundant 
  than 
  had 
  been 
  supposed, 
  and 
  the 
  pecuniary 
  results 
  

   were 
  such 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  year 
  fishermen 
  came 
  from 
  St. 
  John 
  to 
  

   get 
  their 
  share 
  of 
  the 
  fish 
  which 
  found 
  such 
  a 
  ready 
  market. 
  The 
  local 
  

   fishermen, 
  not 
  to 
  lose 
  such 
  an 
  opportunity, 
  soon 
  provided 
  themselves 
  

   with 
  nets, 
  and 
  the 
  fishery 
  developed 
  within 
  a 
  few 
  years 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  

   extent 
  that 
  40 
  or 
  50 
  boats 
  were 
  engaged 
  almost 
  nightly, 
  the 
  herring 
  

   being 
  caught 
  by 
  '' 
  drifting." 
  The 
  fish 
  arrived 
  in 
  August 
  and 
  continued 
  

   through 
  September 
  and 
  October 
  each 
  year 
  until 
  1877, 
  when 
  they 
  rather 
  

   suddenly 
  disappeared. 
  It 
  was 
  not 
  until 
  1892 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  again 
  

   caught, 
  but 
  in 
  that 
  fall 
  they 
  again 
  appeared 
  in 
  limited 
  numbers 
  and 
  

   have 
  since 
  come 
  each 
  year 
  without 
  any 
  increase 
  in 
  numbers. 
  

  

  The 
  Quoddy 
  River 
  herring 
  were 
  very 
  large 
  and 
  fat 
  and 
  always 
  

   brought 
  high 
  prices. 
  They 
  were 
  usually 
  pickled, 
  and 
  in 
  1894 
  eighty-nine 
  

   selected 
  ones 
  filled 
  a 
  half 
  barrel, 
  and 
  after 
  taking 
  first 
  prize 
  at 
  the 
  

   New 
  Brunswick 
  Fishery 
  Fair 
  were 
  sold 
  for 
  |5. 
  The 
  nets 
  used 
  had 
  a 
  

   3-inch 
  mesh 
  and 
  were 
  30 
  fathoms 
  long 
  and 
  150 
  meshes 
  deep 
  — 
  about 
  2^ 
  

   fathoms 
  when 
  hung. 
  

  

  These 
  large 
  herring 
  never 
  contained 
  spawn, 
  but 
  spawning 
  fish 
  were 
  

   sometimes 
  mixed 
  with 
  them. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  impossible 
  at 
  present 
  to 
  establish 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  this 
  school 
  to 
  

   the 
  others 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity, 
  and 
  no 
  good 
  reason 
  can 
  be 
  assigned 
  for 
  their 
  

   disappearance. 
  At 
  all 
  times 
  the 
  school 
  was 
  a 
  small 
  one, 
  and 
  fish 
  of 
  

   similar 
  character 
  were 
  rarely 
  caught 
  elsewhere 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  waters 
  

   mentioned. 
  

  

  