37 
or privilege of fishing being conceded, we must be _pre- 
pared to admit that the power of the State should be 
exercised with the most careful conservatism and con- 
sideration of the immediate interests to be affected. 
The community is concerned only as to the abundance, 
quality and price of the products drawn from the waters. 
It is indifferent as to the methods, except in so far as 
they affect the quantity or condition of the fish supply. 
When conditions are impaired ; when there is evidently 
a decrease in the fish food supply, then it is incumbent 
upon the State to adopt measures to arrest the decline. 
This policy is in the interest not of the community only 
but also of those who are engaged in the fisheries, or 
who are occupied with enterprises and industries which 
are related to them, since the security and profit of in- 
vestments depend upon the assiduity with which we 
guard the fisheries from the operation of causes which 
may determine permanent deterioration. The necessity 
of intervention to this end being satisfactorily established, 
we may attempt the regeneration by artificial propaga- 
tion on a sufficiently extensive scale to repair the waste 
by natural casualities and man’s operations, or we may 
so regulate the times, methods and apparatus of the 
fisheries as to permit natural reproduction under the 
most favorable conditions, or we may resort to both 
means, artificial propagation being pushed as far as prac- 
ticable in order to ease or release the restraints upon 
the operations of the fishermen. 
Undoubtedly the rational method of dealing with the 
fisheries is to supplement, as far as possible by artificial 
propagation, any deficiency in natural reproduction 
arising through the operations of the fisheries. Where 
this can be shown to be adequate, there should be no 
further interference with the fisheries by legal restrict- 
ions or prohibitions than is necessary to insure equal 
privileges under the law in the exercise of the common 
right of fishing, or to prohibit or restrict the use of 
