602 MISCELLANEOUS 







I will direct your attention to the modes of catching and of curing 

 that fish, its yearly value for the Dominion, and the different markets 

 we send it 'to. The haddock (Morrhua aeglefinus) and the hake 

 (Phycis Americanus) being taken in the same waters, caught by the 

 same means, and cured the same way as the cod-fish, will be comprised 

 under the title of cod fishery. 



The cod is so well-known everywhere that I may dispense with 

 giving any description of it. Let it suffice to say that there are sev- 

 eral kinds, of which the only one of any consequence to Canada is the 

 common cod (Gadus Morrhua) which is found along the coast of 

 the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 



Speaking of the habits of the cod-fish I cannot do better than to 

 quote here the words of the Honourable Dr. P. Fortin, M. P.. now 

 representative of the county of Gaspe, in the House of Commons of 

 Canada, who has been for years commander of the armed schooner 

 " La Canadienne " employed in the protection of our fisheries, and 

 who is considered an authority in this matter. " The cod inhabits 

 cold and temperate climates. It is found along the coasts of Green- 

 land, Labrador, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the United States. 

 Everybody has heard of the great banks of Newfoundland and of 

 the immense quantity of fish to be found there." 



" It abounds on the coasts of Iceland and Norway, visits the coasts 

 of Scotland, England, and Ireland, and is also taken on the coast of 

 France. But it does not appear to go beyond the latitude of Gibral- 

 tar, and has not, that I am aware of, been seen in the Mediterranean." 



The cod generally stays in the sea at a depth of from twenty to 

 sixty fathoms, but 'when the instinct of reproduction is felt it ap- 

 proaches the shores, in pursuit of the caplin, of which it then makes 

 its chief food, and remains six or eight weeks in twelve, eight, and 

 even five fathoms of water. It is then that the taking of this fish can 

 be, and is, most successfully carried on." 



" The cod appears on the Canadian coast at uncertain dates, gener- 

 ally between the 10th of May and the 1st of June, though in many 

 instances it has made its appearance in the latter end of the month 

 of April. It has some favourite spots where it is found in greater 

 quantities. These are the places which present the best advantages 

 for the preservation and hatching of the spawn." 



" Having deposited its spawn the cod withdraws to the shallow 

 places called banks, where it finds always food in sufficient quantity 

 to satisfy the well-known voracity of its appetite." 



Formerly cod were found in great quantities and taken in abun- 

 dance from Rimouski to St. Anne des Monts in the river St. Law- 

 rence, and as far as New Richmond and even Carleton in the upper 

 part of "La Baie des Chaleurs," but it has now almost entirely 

 disappeared from those places, and fishing in them had to be given up. 



About the 15th of December cod-fish appear to leave shallow sound- 

 ings and the inshore banks, and go farther out to sea. 



The season for cod-fishing vanes with the different provinces. In 

 Quebec and Nova Scotia it is generally from April to November. 



The cod-fishery is carried on in Canada either in vessels of a ton- 

 nage of from 60 to 100 tons, or in open boats similar to those that are 

 now exhibited in the Canadian Court. 



The fishing in large vessels is carried on principally by the fisher- 

 men of Nova Scotia. 



