﻿40 
  REPOKT 
  OF 
  THE 
  COMMISSIONEE 
  OF 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  A 
  number 
  of 
  permits 
  have 
  been 
  issued 
  authorizing 
  the 
  taking 
  and 
  

   shipping 
  of 
  various 
  fur-bearing 
  animals, 
  principally 
  foxes, 
  for 
  breed- 
  

   ing 
  purposes. 
  Applications 
  for 
  permits 
  for 
  such 
  operations 
  became 
  

   so 
  frequent 
  as 
  to 
  cause 
  concern 
  in 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  maintenance 
  of 
  the 
  

   natural 
  supply 
  of 
  wild 
  stock. 
  The 
  Department 
  decided 
  to 
  issue 
  

   further 
  permits 
  for 
  the 
  shipment 
  of 
  foxes 
  from 
  Alaska 
  only 
  to 
  bona 
  

   fide 
  owners 
  or 
  operators 
  of 
  fox 
  ranches 
  and 
  to 
  make 
  such 
  permits 
  

   applicable 
  only 
  to 
  foxes 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  bred 
  and 
  reared 
  on 
  these 
  

   ranches. 
  It 
  was 
  also 
  decided 
  to 
  discontinue 
  the 
  issuance 
  of 
  permits 
  

   authorizing 
  the 
  capture 
  in 
  Alaska 
  of 
  any 
  fur-bearing 
  animal 
  during 
  

   the 
  close 
  season 
  prescribed 
  for 
  the 
  species 
  concerned. 
  

  

  Recently 
  the 
  rearing 
  of 
  foxes 
  for 
  their 
  pelts 
  has 
  attracted 
  a 
  great 
  

   deal 
  of 
  attention, 
  and 
  public 
  interest 
  has 
  been 
  aroused 
  by 
  the 
  reports 
  

   of 
  extraordinary 
  prices 
  paid 
  for 
  certain 
  varieties 
  for 
  breeding 
  pur- 
  

   poses. 
  To 
  develop 
  the 
  possibilities 
  of 
  fox 
  farmmg 
  m 
  Alaska 
  the 
  

   Secretary 
  of 
  Conmierce 
  has 
  decided 
  to 
  lease 
  certain 
  islands 
  for 
  the 
  

   purpose, 
  making 
  announcement 
  to 
  this 
  effect 
  in 
  a 
  widely 
  distributed 
  

   circular. 
  

  

  COMMERCIAL 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  OYSTER 
  INDUSTRY. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  recent 
  canvass 
  of 
  the 
  oyster 
  industry 
  the 
  statistics 
  for 
  the 
  

   New 
  England 
  and 
  South 
  Atlantic 
  States 
  covered 
  the 
  season 
  ending 
  

   in 
  1910; 
  for 
  the 
  Middle 
  Atlantic 
  States, 
  except 
  Maryland 
  and 
  Vir- 
  

   ginia, 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  Gulf 
  States 
  they 
  covered 
  1911; 
  and 
  for 
  Maryland 
  

   and 
  Virginia 
  and 
  the 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  States 
  they 
  covered 
  1912. 
  The 
  

   total 
  number 
  of 
  persons 
  engaged 
  in 
  the 
  oyster 
  industry 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  

   States, 
  as 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  statistics 
  for 
  the 
  various 
  sections 
  of 
  the 
  coun- 
  

   try, 
  was 
  67,257; 
  the 
  yearly 
  wages 
  paid, 
  combining 
  the 
  different- 
  sec- 
  

   tions, 
  amounted 
  to 
  $10,876,801 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  investment 
  in 
  vessels, 
  boats, 
  

   fishing 
  apparatus, 
  shore 
  and 
  accessory 
  property 
  and 
  cash 
  capital, 
  not 
  

   including 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  oyster 
  grounds 
  or 
  the 
  cash 
  capital 
  for 
  the 
  New 
  

   England 
  States, 
  was 
  $16,880,032. 
  The 
  output 
  of 
  oysters 
  was 
  

   32,988,815 
  bushels, 
  valued 
  at 
  $15,377,983. 
  

  

  About 
  46 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  quantity 
  and 
  65 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  value 
  were 
  

   from 
  planted 
  grounds, 
  the 
  output 
  in 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  States 
  depending 
  

   largely 
  — 
  ^in 
  some 
  of 
  them 
  entirely 
  — 
  upon 
  oyster 
  culture. 
  In 
  the 
  New 
  

   England 
  States 
  93 
  per 
  cent, 
  on 
  the 
  Pacific 
  coast 
  73 
  per 
  cent, 
  and 
  in 
  

   New 
  York 
  86 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  oyster 
  product 
  is 
  derived 
  from 
  private 
  

   beds. 
  Virginia 
  ranks 
  first 
  among 
  the 
  States 
  in 
  quantity 
  and 
  New 
  

   York 
  first 
  in 
  value 
  of 
  oysters 
  produced; 
  while 
  Maryland, 
  ranking 
  

   second 
  in 
  quantity, 
  is 
  third 
  in 
  value 
  of 
  oyster 
  output. 
  A 
  summary 
  

   of 
  the 
  oyster 
  product 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  is 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  

   table. 
  

  

  