AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 1711 



Q. I don't think you will find any. You see, fish may be damaged on board a salt- 

 bait vessel fishing on the Banks as well as on a fresh-bait trip f A. I see it. 



Q. Now you find there are damaged fish as well with salt-bait fishing a with fresh. 

 A. I do find it. 



Q. And it is upon that one case of damaged fish with fresh bait that you arrive at 

 this conclusion ? A. I could not account for it in any other way. 



Q. But it is this one case that you draw the conclusion from T A. Yes. 



Q. And you would lead the Commission to believe, then, that fish was 1 able to be 

 damaged because of vessels going in for fresh bait, because of this one vessel on this 

 one cruise? A. No, I don't now. I have seen that other case. 



Q. You withdraw what you said before? A. I withdraw as far as that is concerned. 



The gallant major has at last collapsed. 



Mr. Atwood is also a great authority upon this point. He evidently 

 belongs to the old school, being seventy years of age. He had not fished 

 on the Banks for five and twenty years, his last voyage was November, 

 1851, and was really incapable of expressing an opinion from experi- 

 ence, having never used fresh bait. He endeavored to lead you gentle- 

 men to believe that it was the opinion of all vessel-owners and agents 

 of vessels in Provincetown that the going in for fresh bait was of no 

 advantage, and that they purposed discontinuing it. He said that -he 

 had interviewed the agent of every vessel in Provincetown, but upon 

 cross-examination it really appears that out of twenty-three or twenty- 

 four agents of vessels he had held communication with four only, Cook r 

 Waugh, Paine, and Joseph (p. 58, ibid.), and it would seem that Mr. At- 

 wood had certain theories, and that he tried to enforce his opinion upon 

 others as to this question of fresh bait. But what say practical wit- 

 nesses, who have been called on the part of the United States and ex- 

 amined by my learned friends upon this subject. Edward Stapleton 

 has been using fresh bait, obtained on the coast of Newfoundland, for 

 the last three years, and carrying on the Bank fishery, and says at page 

 12 : 4 ' If a vessel alongside of you has fresh bait, you are not goiug to 

 catch your share of fish with salt bait." And at page 18 : 



Q. You consider salt bait superior to fresh bait, I believe ? A. O, no ; I think fresh 

 bait is the best. 



Q. You do admit, then, that fresh bait is the best ? A. O, certainly, when other 

 vessels on the Bank have it. 



Q. When codfish see fresh bait they prefer it to salt bait ? A. Yes. 



Q. Cons qnently you admit that it is of some advantage to you to be able to go to 

 the coast of Newfoundland and get fresh bait ? A. O, yes, certainly it is. 



Mr. Francis M. Freeman also says, at page 80 : 



Q. Is salt bait just as good as fresh ? A. Fresh bait is the best. 



Q. Is it not more generally used ? A. When you can get it. 



Q. If you can it is much better than salt ? A. Yes. 



Q. Practically, the salt bait cannot compete with the fresh bait ? A. No ; it 

 as good as fresh. 



Q. Don't the vessels that run over here from the United States and get bait from 

 Nova Scotia use fresh bait altogether ? A. Yes; the Cape Ann vessels do. 



Q. Don't they from Gloucester as well ? A. The Gloucester vessels use fresh bait 

 altogether. 



Q. Then you consider salt bait preferable ? A. No; I never said so. 



Q. The fresh bait you consider preferable ? A. Certainly. 



Q. But surely you don't mean to say that fresh bait is better than salt bait , 

 Yes. 



Q. Do yon mean to say that you can catch more fish with fresh baitf A. Always. 



Q. You can catch them faster ? A. Yes. 



Q. You are certain of it ? A. Yes. 



Mr. Lewis, at page 90, says, in answer to the query : 

 Q. It has been stated before us that trawls require fresh bait. Has that been your 

 experience? A. It is better to have fresh bait. .... 



Q. Witnesses have told us that with trawls the bait lies on the bottom, at 

 not fresh the fish will not take it?-A. They will not take it as well as fresh bait, 

 they will take it if they cannot get anything else, and if they cannot get 



