84 Tliirty-iiiiitli Animal Meeting 



my mind, f(ir I lielieve that the car]) su|)])ly food for the l)ass and 

 crappie. 



Mr. \\'. E. Meeha.x : Tlie increase of fish in Lake ICrie lias not been 

 confined entirely to whitelish. There have been increases in otlier 

 species, the lake herring for instance. The increase of lake herring 

 has been so great in Lake Erie that at times last summer and fall 

 the dealers could not handle all that were caught. There also has 1)cen a 

 marked increase in the blue pike catch of Lake Erie, especially in Penn- 

 .sylvania waters. According to the fishermen on the Canadian shore 

 opposite Pennsylvania and up to the Xew ^'ork line the same conditions 

 prevail there, viz. : an increased catch of herring, pike and whitefish. 

 There have likewise been marked increases in the catches of game and 

 food fish throughout the state, such as bass, trout and the like. There 

 has been a great increase in the catch of carp in Penn.sylvania. T have 

 always been a pronounced enemy of the carp, believing it to l)e a com- 

 mon, worthless fish, but along with some others must revise my opinion 

 so far as its value for food purposes is concerned. It today ranks, from 

 unofficial figures, about fourth or fifth in value in the state of Pennsyl- 

 vania, i shall be able to speak more definitely another year as to 

 catches of the various fishes, because a new state law requires that 

 returns be made to the Department of Fisheries of all species of fish 

 taken in the waters of the state. 



^JK. Ci.AkK: Regarding fishing in Lake Superior, .Mr. Harry M;irks. 

 who is in inunediate charge of the state hatchery at Sault Ste. Marie, 

 informs me that as the result of our hatching wdiitefish there for a 

 number of years the principal fishermen at Whitefish Point on Lake 

 Superior say that they are taking more whitefish this season than for 

 many years. They report taking more whitefish this year out of seven 

 p(nmd-nets than they did a few years ago from seventy pound-nets : 

 and these fish were all what are called "jumboes" (four-pound fish and 

 upwards). They were nearly all Lake Erie wdiitefish, too. It is very 

 ea.sy to distinguish the whitcfi.sh of Lake Erie from those native to 

 L.ake Sujierior. This condition seems to indicate that whitefish are 

 showing ;i marked increase at the east '.•wX of Lake Superior, whatever 

 the situation may be at the west end. 



Mk. Chaki.ks \V. Bi-KxiiAM : I would li 

 whether he considers the increased catch 

 fish are increasing, or is it due to im]iro 

 men? What is the cause of this increase? 



]\1k. Stevknson : Of course an increase in apparatus would naturally 

 result in an increased catch, but it is supposed that the fishermen of the 

 interior waters usually prosecute the fisheries as vigorously as their 

 resources will per nut. 



Mr. ]\Ieehax : There has been no m.arked increase in the number of 

 fishermen from the i)ort of Erie in the last [\\\: years. Conditions are 

 approximately the same, both as regards the number of fishermen and 

 amount of twine used. I can jiositively say that there has been a large 

 increase in the catcli of fish, 



