AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 1105 



and when the markets are up it is a great advantage to be able to trans- 

 ship and catch the market. The schooners can refit here just as cheaply 

 as at home, and without losing much time. 



7. The fishing grounds are best near the shore. The best catches the 

 Americans ever make is in near the shore. The best fishing grounds 

 are at the Magdalen Islands, up the Bay Chaleur, and at the north side 

 of Prince Edward Island. In all these places they fish in near the shore. 

 I should say that fully three-quarters of the mackerel caught on board 

 the vessels in which I fished were caught close inshore. The way the 

 Americans do is to come inshore, throw bait, and drift off, carrying the 

 fish off with them. The Americans could never make good catches when 

 kept from fish ing within three miles of the shore. It would not be much 

 worth their while to come into the bay at all, if they could not fish within 

 three miles. 



8. When the cutters were about they did a great deal of harm to the 

 American fishing. When the cutters hove in sight the vessels, even if 

 they were getting the mackerel, had to leave and make off the land. 

 Half a dozen schooners, as cutters, would keep the American fishermen 

 clear of the fishing places off this island. 



9. The American schooners do a great deal of harm to the island 

 fishermen. They come in and heave quantities of bait and drift off the 

 shore, drawing the mackerel after them. They are also a great nuisance, 

 as they come in and lee-bow the boats: that is, they run up to leeward 

 of the boats, and throw bait and sail up under the lee-bow of the boats, 

 drawing the fish clear away from the boats. 



10. This year promises to be a good year for mackerel. I have seen 

 more schools of mackerel this year already than I have seen any year 

 during the last six years. 



JAMES SKEERY. 



Sworn to at Cascumpec, in Prince County, Prince Edward Island, 

 this 30th day of June, A. D. 1877, before me. 



JOSEPH MACGILVRAY, 

 J. P. for Prince County, Prince Edward Island. 



No. 10. 



I, JOHN CHAMPION, of Cascumpec, in Prince County, Prince Edward 

 Island, fisherman, make oath and say : 



1. That I have been engaged in fishing for ten years, and have a 

 practical acquaintance with all its details. Part of my experience has 

 been in boats, and four years iu island schooners, of which I was master,, 

 and one summer in an American fishing schooner. 



1. That there are fully fifty boats sailing out of Cascumpec Harbor 

 engaged in fishing. During the last five years the number of boats 

 along this shore engaged in fishing have fully doubled. The boats 

 are very much better than they were then ; they are now a splendid 

 class of boats. I do not think they can be much better. They are 

 better in sailing, better sea-boats, and better equipped in every way for 

 fishing. 



2. That the reason I would assign for the increase in the number of 

 boats is that people find that the fishing business is a paying one. 



3. The average crew of the boats all through, large and small, would 

 be four men each, clear of the men employed about the fish ashore ;. 

 there are a considerable number of men employed on shorfr iu couuec> 

 tion with the boats. 



70 P 



