AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 3307 



No. 238. 



GLOUCESTER, Aug. 28, 1877. 



I, Charles Lee, Master of the schooner 1. 1. Claris, of Gloucester, on 

 oath do depose and say, that I was born in New York, ain 40 years of 

 age, and have been engaged in the fisheries 20 j-ears. 



I have just returned from a trip to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 



I commenced to fit my vessel for this trip on the 1st of July, sailed 

 from Gloucester on the 5th of July, arrived in the Bay on the 12th of 

 July. I caught my first mackerel off the east point P E. Island, taking 

 one hundred barrels in the seine. This was outside of the three-mile 

 limit ; caught the rest of my trip 130 barrels on the hook, about 12 

 to 15 miles from the shore of Prince Edward Island. We set our seine 

 about 20 times to take what mackerel we got in it. The entire time con- 

 sumed in this trip is just two months. My vessel is nearly new; cost 

 $9,000. She is 70 tons new measurement, carries 14 men. My two 

 seines and boat cost me $1,500. 



The charter of my vessel is worth $250 per mouth $500 00 



The wear and tear of seines, boats, &c 200 00 



Wages of 14 men two months, at $30 per month 900 00 



Outfits, including provisions, brls. salt etc GOO 00 



Insurance 1 00 00 



Packing 173 00 



Lines, hooks, etc 25 00 



Total cost of trip $2,498 00 



RECEIPTS. 



230 barrels of mackerel, at $11J 2, 645 00 



Net profit $147 00 







With one exception, this is the best trip taken that I know of in the 

 Bay this year. I spoke a number of American vessels when I came out 

 of the Bay, and they would not average 25 brls. each. 



I have been in the Gulf of St. Lawrence 13 seasons mackereling; 

 about ten years as master of the vessel. 



During that time it was necessary to stock 5,000 dollars in a season, 

 in the Bay, to pay the bills. I have, as a general thing, done much better 

 than the average of American vessels in the Bay. Most of the time I 

 have owned my vessel. I have also fished for mackerel on the American 

 shore, and I have always done better there than in the Bay; take ten 

 consecutive years, and I have landed double the amount of mackerel 

 from shore mackereling than from Bay mackereling, and the American 

 shore mackerel are of better quality and sell for more money. In all the 

 mackereling I have done in the Bay I have not taken one barrel in ten 

 within three miles of the shore. The boat fishing from the shore is 

 seldom, or ever, interfered with by the schooners, and I never knew of 

 any boat being injured by our vessels. I have always found the people 

 anxious for us to trade with them, and in the trans-shipment of mack- 

 erel a large portion used to be in British bottoms, before the steamer 

 run. 



I have been to the Magdalens this Spring for herring, in the schooner 

 Orient, 94 tons. Took 652 brls. of herring for Boston. We calculated 

 to take 1,400. We bought all our herring from the English seiners. 

 We hired boats at Canso to take the herring from the seine to our ves- 



