AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 2739 



not know whether the fish would be inshore or off shore ? A. No ; I 

 oever saw the mackerel inshore until I made my last voyage there. 



Q. Is it a fact, that you do not know when you enter the bay whether 

 the fish are inshore or not ? A. No. 



Q. You made your last voyage in the bay in 1874? A. Yes. 



Q. And that was the only time when you ever saw the fish inshore? 

 A. Yes. 



Q. If that was the case, what induced you in 1868, six years previously, 

 to take out a license, when you did not want to go inshore at all? A. 

 There had been some trouble, and a license had been demanded once, I 

 think. 



Q. When you had only fished off shore? A. We did not know about 

 the mackerel being inshore. 



Q. Is it not necessarily a privilege to be able to follow the mackerel 

 when they run inshore in the bay and wherever they may go ? A. Yes. 



Q. If successful, is it not a privilege to be able to follow the schools 

 wherever they may go ? A. Yes. 



Q. In that view of the matter, the right to fish inshore in the bay is 

 very important to the American people? A. Yes. 



Q. Could they, in your opinion, successfully prosecute the fisheries in 

 the bay without the right of going inshore to fish ? A. As far as my 

 experience goes, I think that this is not necessary. We always got the 

 principal part of our fish offshore; and I think the off-shore fisheries 

 alone could be prosecuted successfully. 



Q. Did you not tell me just now that it was a great privilege for the 

 Americans to be able to follow the schools inshore ? A. Yes ; that is a 

 benefit to a certain degree, I think. 



Q. Did you not tell me that this was a great privilege ? A. Well, it 

 is a privilege. 



Q. And a valuable privilege ? A. Well, it is a privilege worthy of a 

 certain amount of consideration. 



Q. Is it or is it not a valuable privilege ? A. It is valuable to a cer- 

 tain extent. 



Q. To what extent is this the case ? A. Well, I could not say. 



By Mr. Foster : 



Q. Have you seined in United States vessels off our coast ? A. Yes. 



Q. When ? A. Last year. 



Q. How many barrels of mackerel did you get ? A. About 250, taken 

 in six weeks ; we got about 100 in one haul. 



Q. You did not have very good luck ? A. The vessel had not done 

 anything previously. 



Q. Did you ever seine during any other year ? A. Yes ; I did so the 

 year before, but 1 only seined a short time ; about four weeks. 



Q. You speak of seeing a large number of seiners together; but where 

 have you seen as many as 500 vessels fishing at once with seines or 

 hooks off the American coast ? A. I saw them in Gloucester Harbor ; 

 they had gone in there for a harbor. 



Q. Where do these vessels usually fish ? A. I never saw that num- 

 ber fishing together ; they fish all scattered around the coast. 



