178 



FISHERIES OF THE UNITED STATES, 1908. 



TABLE 3. MINNESOTA FISHERY PRODUCTS OF LAKE SUPERIOR DISTRICT: 1908. 



i Less than $100. 



MISSISSIPPI. 



The fisheries of Mississippi may be grouped in two 

 divisions, including, respectively, the fisheries of the 

 Gulf of Mexico and those of the Mississippi River and 

 its tributaries. Of the total value of the state product 

 in 1908, the Gulf fisheries contributed 82 per cent. 

 Biloxi is a center for the wholesale dealers and the 

 canners, and here oysters and shrimps are both 

 canned and prepared for shipment fresh, in large 

 quantities. 



The following statement presents a summary of 

 the chief statistics for the state fisheries in 1908: 



Number of persons employed 2, 037 



Capital: 



Vessels and boats, including outfit $418, 000 



Apparatus of capture 58, 000 



Shore and accessory property and cash 46, 000 



Value of products 556, 000 



Comparison with previous canvasses. A slight falling 

 off in the number of persons employed is shown for 

 each district in 1908, as compared with the last can- 

 vass, as well as a decrease in the quantity and in 

 the value of the product. An increase, however, is 

 to be noted in the investment in equipment for each 

 district. 



The decline in the products of the Gulf fisheries in 

 late years is not due entirely to natural causes, but is 

 to be attributed, in part, to a recent decision of the 

 Supreme Court of the United States, by which the 

 jurisdiction of the oyster and other fishing grounds 

 about Pear Island was transferred from Mississippi to 

 Louisiana. 



The following tabular statement presents for each 

 district comparative statistics as to persons employed, 

 value of equipment, and products, as returned at the 

 canvass of 1908 and certain earlier canvasses: 



Persons employed. The following table gives sta- 

 tistics of persons emplo3 r ed in the fisheries of Mississippi 

 in 1908: 



1 Exclusive of 47 proprietors not fishing. 



Includes provisions furnished to the value of S4>,000. 



'Includes. crew of one vessel engaged in fishing. 



