30 EEPORT OF ONTARIO GAME No. 52 



its commercial fisheries to be depleted to the advantage of a neighbor- 

 ing nation is failing to secure for the present population of the Province 

 the benefits that should properly be derived from this great asset, or to 

 assure a continuance of the same to future generations. In illustration 

 of this state of affairs may be cited the results of an investigation con- 

 ducted by a gentleman, who is much interested in these matters, in 

 regard to one particular fishing station on Lake Superior. He computed 

 that from the licenses issued to the fishermen operating from this station 

 the Government secured a revenue of |310, and assumed that out of this 

 sum would have to be provided the salary of the overseer, the cost and 

 maintenance of his equipment and in addition some portion of the cost 

 of the annual or bi-annual inspection carried out by a senior official of 

 the Department of Game and Fisheries, pointing out that the sum avail- 

 able was none too ample for these various purposes. On the other hand 

 he ascertained that from the duty levied on the fish imported from this 

 station in the year of his investigation the Government of the United 

 States derived a revenue of approximately |2,600. 



The price paid to the few would-be independent Canadian net fish- 

 ermen for their fish by the alien corporation which practically controls 

 the output of the Canadian fisheries, is approximately 4 to 5 cents per 

 pound, and the fish retails in the greater American markets at from 12 

 to 40 cents per pound, so that the profit to the corporation is apparently 

 great. In addition to this, however, since the commercial control of the 

 fisheries lies principally in the hands of a foreign corporation, it is but 

 natural that citizens of a foreign nation should be largely concerned in 

 its exploitation, so that as the matter stands to-day it would appear that 

 while the cost of protection may be said to practically swallow up all 

 the revenue derived from the fisheries, not only is the United States 

 securing a considerable yearly revenue from them, the bulk of the pro- 

 fits and of the actual fish, but also no small proportion of the initial cost 

 of capture, a situation which is obviously most unsatisfactory. 



It would seem, then, but just and reasonable that those who derive 

 the greatest benefit from the fisheries of the Province should be assessed 

 for the privilege on a somewhat higher scale than is in force to-day. 



In this regard the notorious fact must be noted that in a great many 

 instances far greater lengths of gill nets are still made use of by tugs 

 than are called for in their licenses, it being usually claimed that if the 

 nets used were restricted to the legitimate amount, fishing operations 

 would cease to be profitable. It is plainly not advisable that such a 

 state of affairs should be permitted to continue. If it be deemed desir- 

 able to restrict the nets in a given area to the quantities called for on 

 the licenses issued, and it is true that the present limitations of lengths 

 prevent, in certain areas, commercially profitable operations, then there 

 should obviously be issued a lesser number of licenses, vsanctioning 

 greater lengths for those areas, and all such cases should be promptly 

 and carefully investigated by the Department responsible, but under no 



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