40 THE REPORT ON [ No. 27 



The sucker, while admittedly a superior edible fish to the carp, is only in demand 

 and acceptable as food in the spring when it is running. It, too, is a most voracious 

 feeder on the spawn of other fish, chiefly upon that of the trout and whitefish, on whose 

 spawning beds fishermen cay it can be found in millions as soon as the trout and white, 

 fish have left. A correspondent estimates that over one thousand millions of fish eggs 

 are consumed annually in Lake Superior by this " more than worthless fish " — a modes 

 estimate. Many remedies have been suggested for its extermination, one being to 

 dam the mouths of streams up which it goes to spawn, prevent its return to deep 

 water, and wage a wholesale slaughter upon it. 



Exportation op Logs. 



The fishermen on the Georgian Bay and Lake Huron had long complained that they 

 every year sustained great loss from the towing of logs to American ports, by the bark 

 and fibre which were ground from the logs clinging to their nets in such a manner as to 

 make them almost useless. Ihey also represented that the same substance settling on the 

 feeding and breeding grounds of the fish destroyed those grounds and forced the fish to 

 leave their accustomed haunts, and that if the towing continued it would ultimately ruin 

 the industry. These large rafts in rough weather would sometimes be anchored on the 

 fishing grounds for three or four days, or a week at a time, and the deposit would no 

 doubt be considerable. Whether their fears were well founded or not, the Ontario Regu- 

 lation requiring the manufacture of saw logs into lumber in the Province has removed the 

 grievance, and the action is heartily commended by the fishermen. 



Sawdust and Fishways 



Many complaints have during the year been made that mill owners were permitting 

 sawdust and mill refuse to be dumped into the water, and that fishways had not been 

 provided in dams. The attention of the offending parties was immediately directed 

 to the law on the subject. If fishways were put in when dams were being erected, 

 the work could be done with greater facility and at much less expense. There can 

 be nothing more destructive of fish life than the depositing of sawdust in the rivers 

 and lakes. It is said to absolutely kill all vegetation, and is is well known that in 

 waters where there is no vegetation fish life is noticeably absent. Minute Crustacea 

 of various kinds feed upon the juices of the plants which are to be found at the 

 bottom. These afford food for the smaller fish, and again these famish food for others 

 of larger size. Both subjects appear to come within the jurisdiction of the Dominion 

 Government. 



Official Visits. 



During the year the undersigned paid official visits to the Counties of Essex, 

 Simcoe, Grey, Lincoln and Bruce and the Districts of Muskoka and Parry Sound and 

 Nipissing ; and in August attended the International Anglers' Association at Ganan- 

 oqne upon the joint invitation of the American and Canadian Secretaries. The meeting 

 was called for the purpose of further considering the matter of the desirability of estab- 

 lishing an International Park on the St. Lawrence River ; the enactment of uniform close 

 seasons for bass; and the prohibition of all netting in the river between Snake Light, west 

 of Kingston, and the Town of Prescott. The undersigned, in addressing the meeting, 

 explained that the fee of the Islands being in the Dominion and not in the Province, the 

 establishment of the park was a matter for arrangement between the Federal Govern- 

 ment and the United States Government ; that there was divided jurisdiction between 

 the Dominion and Province in respect of fishery matters, and that the regulating of cloee 

 seasons was a matter with which the Dominion could alone deal ; the policy of this 

 Government with respect to licensing netting near "Wolfe Island and east of Snake 

 Island ; and that, while gill netting might be objectionable, no objection could be urged 

 against the licensing of hoop nets, as it had been demonstrated beyond doubt that, where 

 those nets were fished in strict accordance with the conditions of the license, they were a 

 benefit rather than a detriment to the game fish, removing from the waters only the 

 coarse and spawn devouring kinds. 



