Fish CuUurists' Association. 7 



REMARKS OF HON. ROBERT B. ROOSEVELT. 



In thanking you for the honor you have clone me in asking me to pre- 

 side over the deliberations of the Fish Cultural Association, I cannot do 

 better than explain what has been done b}" the Fishery Commission of 

 the State of New York. I do this with no purpose of arrogating praise 

 to myself and with no expectation of giving instruction to gentlemen as 

 experienced as _y ourselves in this special line of knowledge, but with the 

 intention of informing the public of what has been effected, and en- 

 couraging the skeptical to go and do likewise. 



The New York Fisher}^ Commission was created by an act of the 

 Legislature, passed April 22, 1868. Its first duty was to examine the 

 condition of the fisheries of the State ; these were found to be much run 

 down, and in some cases practically exhausted. Salmon no longer 

 entered the streams that flow northward into Lake Ontario on the St. 

 Lawrence, and which once abounded with them ; white-fish, salmon-trout, 

 pike-perch and the other fish of Lake Ontario were much less abundant 

 than they had been, while even the shad fisheries of the Hudson were so 

 greatly deteriorated that the fishermen were in man}' instances abandon- 

 ing them, and allowing their nets to remain idle. 



I think it may safely be asserted that but for the efforts of the Com- 

 missioners in restoring the supply and in restocking the river, the shad 

 fisheries would have been wholly abandoned before this. As it is, the 

 dearth of fish has been so great that the Commissioners have never been 

 able to obtain one quarter as manj' mature fish on the spawning beds as 

 the}' desired, and hence have effected much less good than the}- would 

 have done if a suflficient number of eggs could have been procured. 



In the spring of 1868 preliminary operations were commenced for 

 shad-hatching on the Hudson, but preparations were necessarily delayed 

 till so late that little was achieved beyond making a commencement. It 

 may be said that about one million of 3'oung shad were hatched that ^ear 

 and safely turned loose in the upper waters of the river. Not enough to 

 produce an}- perceptible effect. In 1869 about fifteen million shad were 

 hatched on the same stream, and from 8,000,000 to 10,000,000 have 

 been hatched yearly since ; ver}' much less than the Commissioners would 

 have raised if the proper number of spawners were to be had, but as 

 man}^ as can be promised until the Legislature shall see fit to pass a law 

 as requested by the Commissioner, to establish a weekly close time and 

 forbid all shad fishing from Saturday night till Monday morning. In all 

 some 50,000,000 of shad have been deposited in the Hudson and the 

 yield of fish has been greatl}' increased in consequence. The price has 

 fallen in our markets to a marked degree, and this valuable species of 



