THE COAST FISHERIES OF TEXAS. | 397 
GEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF THE FISHERIES. 
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE COAST. 
The length of the Texas coast line, following its sinuosities, is about 
2,000 miles, but in a direct line itis a trifle less than 400 miles. The 
mainland is for the most part bordered by a chain of low sandy islands 
and peninsulas, each having the same general trend as the coast, the 
most important of which are: Bolivar Peninsula, Galveston Island, 
Matagorda Peninsula, Matagorda Islands, St. Joseph Island, Mustang 
Island, and Padre Island. On nearly all of these there are a few 
scattering houses, the homes of men employed in fishing, cattle-raising 
the Life-Saving Service, ete. There are no important settlements, how- 
ever, on any of them except Galveston Island, on which the city of 
Galveston is located. 
Between the mainland and the outlying chain of islands and penin- 
sulas are situated a number of bays, viz, Galveston, Matagorda, Es- 
piritu Santo, San Antonio, Mesquit, Aransas, Corpus Christi, and 
Laguna Madre; also Sabine Lake, in the extreme eastern part of the 
State; this, however, is an extension of the Sabine River, rather than 
a bay. The combined area of these bays with their estuaries is 2,471 
square miles. In nearly every instance the outlets of the bays are sit- 
uated at the extreme southwest end. 
From Matagorda Bay through Espiritu Santo,San Antonio, Mesquit, 
and Aransas Bays to Corpus Christi Bay, a distance of 130 miles, there 
is an inside route permitting tle passage of vessels drawing 3 feet of 
water and connecting advantageously the industries of these six bays. 
The remaining bays, Galveston Bay, Laguna Madre, and Sabine Lake 
are isolated and without inland water routes. 
SABINE LAKE. - 
The easternmost fishing locality in Texas is Sabine Lake, which 
forms a part of the boundary line between this State and Louisiana. 
This lake is merely an expansion of the Sabine River just before its 
entrance into the Gulf of Mexico. Its southernmost end is about 4 
miles from the Gulf, with which it is connected by a channel known as 
Sabine Pass. The length of the lake is 19 miles, its greatest width 
about 9 miles, and the area is 94 square miles. 
Sabine River is about 400 miles long and forms about 200 miles of 
the boundary line between Louisiana and Texas. Three miles below 
the mouth of the Sabine River the Neches empties into Sabine Lake. 
The length of this river is about 270 miles. Both of these rivers drain 
a large area of territory. Hence the water of Sabine Lakeis compara- 
tively sweet, especially during the spring freshets. 
