FISHERIES, BY STATES. 



85 



Comparison with previous canvasses. The statistics 

 reported for the years 1904 and 1899 are not in all re- 

 spects comparable with the returns for 1908, on ac- 

 count of the inclusion in the earlier canvasses of the 

 capital and number of persons employed in the can- 

 neries and packing houses with the data for the fisher- 

 ies. The following figures, however, which are exclu- 

 sive of statistics for shoresmen, capital invested in 

 shore and accessory property, and cash capital, may 

 be considered as comparable : 



In 1908, as compared with 1904, the number of per- 

 sons employed, exclusive of shoresmen, shows a de- 

 crease of 7 per cent and the capital invested in floating 

 craft and fishing equipment an increase of 5 per cent, 

 while the value of products shows a material loss of 22 

 per cent, the larger portion of which can be attributed 

 to the decrease in the value of products of the oyster 

 industry. From 1899 to 1904 there was an increase 

 of 27 per cent in the number of persons employed, and 

 decreases of 5 per cent in the capital invested and of 1 

 per cent in the value of products. 



Persons employed. The number of persons em- 

 ployed and the salaries and wages paid during the year 

 1908 in each branch of the industry were as follows: 



' Exclusive of three proprietors not fishing. 



2 Includes provisions furnished to the value of $85,000. 



Of the 4,129 persons engaged in fishing, 16 per cent 

 were connected with the vessel fisheries, 80 per cent 

 with the shore and boat fisheries, and 3 per cent with 

 the transporting vessels, while only 1 per cent were 

 employed exclusively as shoresmen. Of the total 

 number of proprietors and independent fishermen, 99 

 per cent were reported by the shore and boat fisheries. 

 These fisheries, however, employed only 49 per cent of 

 the total number of wage-earne'rs, while the vessel 



fisheries employed 41 per cent. The vessel fisheries 

 and the shore and boat fisheries are not comparable 

 with respect to the number of proprietors and inde- 

 pendent fishermen, inasmuch as many of the vessels 

 are owned by corporations, while the percentage of 

 the shore and boat fisheries conducted by corporations 

 is very small. 



Only 29 of the shoresmen were reported as being 

 directly connected with the fisheries. It must be 

 borne in mind that this number does not include 

 employees working in canneries, packing houses, or 

 fish markets. 



Equipment and other capital. The description and 

 value of vessels and boats engaged in the fisheries of 

 the state and the value of apparatus used, together 

 with the amount of other capital invested in 1908, are 

 given in the following tabular statement : 



The number of the various kinds of apparatus of 

 capture used was as follows: 



Products, by species. Table 1, on page 89, shows the 

 quantity and value of the fishery products of the state, 

 by species and by apparatus of capture. 



A comparison of the chief species included in the 

 catch reported by the Bureau of Fisheries foi 1899 



