REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES [352] 



entire failure, numerous vessels returning without a single barrel. For- 

 tunately, but a small number of vessels visited those waters, and, not 

 finding fish, returned in time to secure enough of the home catch to save 

 them from a disastrous season. The total catch of inspected barrels by 

 the Massachusetts fleet is the largest since 1874, amounting to 255,986 

 barrels. This season's catch has been exceeded but ten times since 1804. 

 The total catch by the New England fleet is 349,674 inspected barrels, 

 a gain over the previous year of 99,861 barrels on the Massachusetts 

 catch, and total gain of 129,075 barrels. In addition to our own large 

 catch there has beenimported from the provinces 105,730 barrels, against 

 84,213 the previous year. 

 The total amount of mackerel received in Boston during 1880 from 



domestic and foreign ports, with home catch, 196,493 inspected barrels. 



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Our report and table of receipts, number of vessels, and crew, having 

 been confined to salt or cured fish, we wish briefly to call attention to 

 the impcrtance and steady growth of the fresh-flsh business, * * * 

 the abundance of mackerel at our doors most of the season resulting 

 in the receiving and distributing throughout the country of 75,000 bar- 

 rels of fresh mackerel. Day after day, for weeks, from 1,000 to 2,000 

 barrels were received. Notwithstanding this unusually large produc- 

 tion, all were used fresh. For the first year in the history of the busi- 

 ness not a week during the year has passed but fresh mackerel could be 

 bought at reasonable prices. 



1881. — What our/ government paid for. 



Inshore catch of mackerel in the Bay of Saint Lawrence by the Glou- 

 cester fleet this year, 18 barrels. That's what we helped to pay a twelfth 

 of $5,500,000 for for this year's fishery. Our herring and bait and ice 

 and other supplies we buy at a profit to the provincials, who send 

 thousands of barrels of mackerel and quintals of codfish to the Ameri- 

 can market free of duty, in competition with the American fishermen. — 

 (Cape Ann Advertiser, October 14, 1881.) 



1881. — The mackerel fishery of Gloucester. 



The records of the United States Fish Commission at Gloucester, 

 Mass., show that the total number of fares of mackerel received at that 

 port in 1881 was 713. The total number of sea packed barrels of mack- 

 erel landed was 165,497, equal to 148,948 inspected barrels of 200 pounds 

 each, equal to 29,789,600 pounds of salt mackerel, or 4-1,684,400 pounds 

 in a fresh condition. The entire catch, with the exception of one fare 

 of 48 barrels from the Bay of Saint Lawrence, was taken off the United 

 States coast. 



The records of the Cape Aun Advertiser for the year 1881 show that 

 the American mackerel fleet from Gloucester numbered 149 vessels, 81 



