18 SBAD FISBERY COMillSSIOX 



EVIDENCE GIVEN BEFORE THE COMMISSION. 



Professor Prince then said that as the objects of the commission had beea briefly 

 explained and Mr. Morrison had stated in what way the Dominion government had 

 been iirged to authorize the commission, evidence would now be taken: — 



James Warner, the first witness examined, stated that he was a farmer and fisher- 

 man. He held the office of a fishery guardian under the Dominion fishery overseer 

 for the district. His experience of the shad fisliery extended for over 50 years. As 

 compared with 50 years ago the fishery had greatly declined, as a trap took 50 barrels 

 in the Deep Hole at a tide in St. Mary's bay. Those were large shad 5 pounds in 

 weight, 14 or 15 inches long and 80 or 90 to a barrel. Earlier in the season, in May, 

 there were plenty of spawning shad, many very large fish being taken in brush weirs. 

 The size of shad varied, and big fish were taken in weirs, but 9-ineh shad occurred in 

 weirs and traps and even in gill nets. These small fish were tlirown away, being no 

 good for market. Three kinds of gear adopted : gill nets, which drift at night, and took 

 great numbers of fish, brush weirs in which many early or spring shad have been 

 taken, and seines or deep water trai>s, really a seine set on stakes fixed in the mud, and 

 often 25 feet long (stakes). The pot or bunt may be 40 feet long and the wings each 

 120 feet long, while the mesh is small. The food of shad is small insects and eel-grass. 

 Tliey feed in deep water when on the mud. They enter St. Mary's bay from the open 

 soa and migrate to the very head of the bay. Six years ago they fell off in quantity 

 and the cause of the decline is gill-netting, breaking up the schools just as the mack- 

 erel were ruined by purse seines. Gaspereau come in at the same season as the shad, 

 in May or June, but the weirs on shore take them all the season. They are pretty 

 scarce now. Salmon are scarce and very rarely got in the upper portions of St. Mary's 

 bay, that is along the 14 miles of shore of which I speak. I might say that weirs in 

 Smith's Cove destroy quantities of smalf herring which are dipped out alive for pur- 

 poses of compost. In one season 50 loads at least are taken at Smith's Cove. As all 

 our local people are interested in the fisheries, we would like to see the shad back 

 again. Everybody would. 



Edward J. Warner, Digbv, said he could confirm the last witness's statement, 

 that small fish are destroyed in the Smith's Cove weirs. The fish are dipped out alive 

 into the dories. Ten to sixteen dories may be seen loading at one time. Very few 

 herring are seen with the gaspereau, and they could be let out by the gates, and the 

 law provides a fine if a gate is not placed in a weir. Twenty-three years ago I fixed 

 up a weir and attended it night and day. But they don't pay. Weirs are not placed 

 on the places where shad resort. I took very few shad — a few now and tlien — but the 

 fish were in deeper water and moved to the head of the bay. The schools kept out and 

 were not taken in such weirs, as they were built on a point projecting in shallow 

 v,-ater. I think sawdust is very injurious to shad. I farm as well as fish. 



E. p. Specht, Bartox, Digbt, was the ne.xt witness and said he was a farmer as 

 well as fisherman and did not make a business of fishing, except that he owned a small 

 weir. He had 55 years' experience, and until eight years ago knew that shad were 

 very abundant. Season of 1900 large catches were made, 3,000 to 5,000 on a 

 tide. Some tides he got 2,000 to 5,000 shad some tides eight or nine years ago. By 

 gill net the catch would be 500, 700 or 1,000, according to the net, some using a longer 

 net. Two hundred to 300 fathoms of net were used but one net was 500 fathoms. The 

 width or vertical depth was 2i fathoms. Along the top of the net were floats and along 

 the bottom were sinkers or leads. The first gill nets were brought thirty years ago by 

 a Lubeck (Maine) man. He drifted and got so many sturgeon that he had to give np 

 after two weeks. A Hants man came down to the bay eleven years ago with a row 



