﻿296 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISII 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  [80] 
  

  

  tion 
  it 
  was 
  so 
  limited, 
  and 
  carried 
  on 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  desultory 
  and 
  primitive 
  

   manner, 
  that 
  little 
  importance 
  was 
  attached 
  to 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  fishery. 
  Indeed, 
  

   it 
  may 
  fairly 
  be 
  said 
  that 
  the 
  catching 
  of 
  snappers 
  did 
  not 
  attain 
  pro- 
  

   portions 
  to 
  entitle 
  it 
  to 
  the 
  distinction 
  of 
  a 
  separate 
  fishery 
  until 
  about 
  

   1870. 
  

  

  In 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  discovery 
  of 
  the 
  habitat 
  of 
  the 
  species, 
  the 
  same 
  au- 
  

   thority 
  says 
  that 
  the 
  snapper 
  grounds 
  were 
  found 
  in 
  a 
  somewhat 
  acci- 
  

   dental 
  manner. 
  Sometimes, 
  in 
  going 
  along 
  the 
  coast, 
  the 
  shore 
  -seine 
  

   fishermen 
  would 
  find 
  themselves 
  becalmed 
  in 
  their 
  sail-boats, 
  and 
  not 
  

   unfrequently 
  they 
  would 
  drift 
  several 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  land. 
  At 
  such 
  

   times 
  they 
  would 
  put 
  out 
  hand-lines 
  to 
  catch 
  barracouda, 
  kingfish, 
  and 
  

   other 
  varieties 
  that 
  are 
  found 
  near 
  the 
  land, 
  in 
  this 
  region, 
  during 
  spri 
  ug 
  

   aud 
  summer. 
  But 
  occasionally 
  the 
  boat 
  would 
  drift 
  over 
  a 
  school 
  of 
  

   red 
  snappers, 
  which 
  would 
  bite 
  eagerly, 
  so 
  that 
  sometimes 
  considerable 
  

   quantities 
  were 
  caught. 
  At 
  first 
  the 
  excitement 
  and 
  sport 
  attending 
  

   the 
  capture 
  of 
  the 
  fish 
  was 
  probably 
  more 
  of 
  an 
  incentive 
  for 
  the 
  fish- 
  

   ermen 
  to 
  take 
  them 
  than 
  anything 
  else, 
  for 
  it 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  comparative 
  lj 
  

   little 
  was 
  then 
  known, 
  even 
  by 
  the 
  coast 
  population, 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  quali- 
  

   ties 
  of 
  the 
  snapper, 
  and 
  a 
  small 
  quantity 
  sufficed 
  to 
  supply 
  the 
  demand. 
  

   But 
  the 
  merits 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  came 
  to 
  be 
  gradually 
  known 
  in 
  the 
  Gulf 
  

   States, 
  where 
  it 
  steadily 
  grew 
  in 
  favor, 
  and 
  the 
  demand 
  increased 
  pro- 
  

   portionately, 
  though 
  it 
  necessarily 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  large 
  in 
  a 
  sparsely 
  set- 
  

   tled 
  region. 
  Notwithstanding, 
  however, 
  that 
  the 
  red 
  snapper 
  came 
  to 
  

   be 
  highly 
  prized 
  in 
  Southern 
  markets, 
  little 
  or 
  nothing 
  was 
  known 
  of 
  it 
  

   as 
  a 
  food-fish 
  in 
  the 
  North 
  and 
  Northwest 
  until 
  after 
  1870. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  some 
  

   what 
  significant 
  fact, 
  as 
  illustrating 
  this 
  point, 
  that 
  several 
  years 
  later 
  

   the 
  snapper 
  was 
  described 
  by 
  Messrs. 
  Goode 
  & 
  Bean 
  as 
  a 
  species 
  new 
  

   to 
  science. 
  

  

  " 
  In 
  the 
  year 
  1869 
  Mai 
  John 
  C. 
  Ruse 
  and 
  S. 
  C. 
  Cobb, 
  who 
  had 
  bought 
  

   out 
  the 
  stockholders 
  of 
  the 
  citizens 
  in 
  the 
  'Ice 
  Company,' 
  preceded 
  to 
  

   add 
  to 
  that 
  business 
  the 
  catching 
  and 
  selling 
  of 
  the 
  Gulf 
  deep-water 
  

   fish. 
  They 
  bought 
  the 
  smack 
  Gladiator, 
  of 
  22 
  tons 
  burden, 
  and 
  began 
  

   in 
  a 
  small 
  and 
  irregular 
  way 
  the 
  sale 
  of 
  that 
  famous 
  fish, 
  the 
  red 
  

   snapper. 
  Upon 
  the 
  death 
  of 
  Major 
  Ruse, 
  his 
  interest 
  was 
  purchased 
  

   by 
  A. 
  F. 
  Warren, 
  aud 
  so 
  little 
  was 
  the 
  business 
  [of 
  snapper 
  fishing] 
  valued, 
  

   owing 
  to 
  the 
  rates 
  of 
  express 
  to 
  various 
  points, 
  that 
  the 
  ice 
  com- 
  

   pany 
  added 
  a 
  coal 
  business 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  keep 
  their 
  men 
  and 
  teams 
  em- 
  

   ployed 
  the 
  year 
  round. 
  Little 
  by 
  little 
  concessions 
  were 
  obtained 
  from 
  

   the 
  express 
  company 
  until 
  187C, 
  when 
  L. 
  H. 
  Sellers 
  became 
  an 
  active 
  

   stockholder. 
  In 
  the 
  mean 
  time 
  the 
  fish 
  business 
  grew 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  require 
  

   the 
  catch 
  of 
  several 
  Yankee 
  smacks, 
  who 
  came 
  into 
  the 
  Gulf 
  during 
  the 
  

   winter, 
  and 
  returned 
  North 
  in 
  May."* 
  

  

  The 
  formation 
  in 
  1871 
  of 
  the 
  Pensacolalce 
  Company, 
  which 
  included 
  

   the 
  above-named 
  parties, 
  is 
  an 
  event 
  worthy 
  of 
  note, 
  since 
  this 
  firm 
  

   continued 
  the 
  fish 
  business 
  begun 
  two 
  years 
  previously. 
  For 
  sonic 
  

  

  * 
  Extract 
  from 
  article 
  by 
  S. 
  C. 
  Cobb, 
  in 
  Pensacola 
  Commercial, 
  December 
  10, 
  1884. 
  

  

  