122 American Fisheries Society 



at this time from every variety of conditions, no shrimp could be 

 obtained anywhere during the month of May that were between 

 the sizes of 2\ and 5 inches. From May on we had two series of 

 figures to guide us, the minimum sizes of the old crop and the 

 maximum sizes of the young crop. By June all shrimp of the old 

 crop had disappeared from inside waters as they assumed the adult 

 form at a general average of six inches for minimum sized speci- 

 mens. Far out from shore in the Gulf adults of eight inches and 

 over are not uncommon. At this season, that is early summer, 

 it is absolutely impossible to obtain any shrimp of commercial 

 size in the inside waters. The new crop is as yet confined to shallow 

 water near the coast and specimens are as yet too small to be taken 

 in quantities by the general methods used by the fishermen. 



In the early days of the fishing industry of Louisiana it was 

 learned that, because of the fact that shrimp are gregarious, 

 accumulating at times in very large schools, the most profitable 

 method of taking them was by means of seines. As the size of the 

 catch over a long period was in direct proportion to the size of 

 the seine, large seines became very common and some were as 

 long as two thousand feet. In the early days of the shrimp industry 

 the seine crews went out in large row-boats equipped with sails 

 in case of favorable winds, and for large seines a crew of twenty 

 men was not uncommon. These boats searched the bottoms of 

 the various lakes and bays, locating the shrimp by means of small 

 cast-nets, and when a school was found, the size and extent could 

 easily be determined by the fishermen. The seine was then laid 

 out and, if it were possible, the entire school would be surrounded 

 and taken, only a negligible per cent escaping. The shrimp 

 were then separated from the balance of the catch, which was 

 considered worthless and practically all fish, crabs, etc., were 

 thrown overboard whether of food value or not, as it was unprofit- 

 able to market them at that time. The shrimp were then mostly 

 taken to the drying platforms and a small per cent iced and taken 

 in their fresh state to the New Orleans markets. 



With the advent of the gasoline launch, shrimp were more 

 easily and quickly located and more extensive was the territory 

 covered; the shrimp industry growing by leaps and bounds, 

 canning factories were established, while, at the same time, 

 there was a proportionate increase in the wasteful and destructive 



