THE COAST FISHERIES OF TEXAS. . A07 
The following table shows the catch of oysters during the past four 
years by the fishermen of this bay: 
Year. | Bushels.| Value. 
hyena a ee 48, 000 $13, 000 
PRU Ree melee ne ea hess. ety 53, 700 15, 450 
TeRQue son ty  ta | 65,850] 19,800 
TRO) ee eee RS ee 5. | 109, 350 29, 200 
Many oysters have also been obtained from this bay during each of 
the past four years by men hailing from Galveston, Aransas Pass, and 
Corpus Christi; but their catch has been included in the figures for the 
localities in which the oystermen lived. 
Marketing houses.—The only wholesale fish and oyster markets on 
the shores of Matagorda Bay are the two located at Port Lavaca. 
Here 8 men are employed and the value of property occupied is * 
about $1,000. The quantity of fishery products handled is quite small, 
and the marketing methods employed do not materially differ from 
those practiced at other points on the coast. As a site for an oyster 
cannery this bay is probably not surpassed by any on the coast of the 
Gulf of Mexico. The best oysters gathered there in 1890 were sold on 
the reefs at 60 cents per barrel to vessels making occasional trips, and 
if the oystermen could have disposed of their catch every night they 
would doubtiess have been willing to accept 50 cents per barrel at the 
reefs. These oysters cost delivered at Corpus Christi and Galveston 
about $1 per barrel. : 
ESPIRITU SANTO BAY. 
Espiritu Santo Bay, which lies southwest of Matagorda Bay, is 15 
miles long and averages about 4 miles in width. Including its tribu- 
taries, Shoalwater Bay, Pringes Lake, etc., its limits extend over an 
area of about 61 square miles. It probably contains more islands than 
any other bay on the Texas coast. By means of two bayous it hag out- 
let into Pass Cavallo, the outlet of Matagorda Bay. No rivers empty 
into Espiritu Santo Bay, but at its western end it receives the greater 
portion of the fresh water of San Antonio Bay, consequently the water 
lrere is quite fresh, and oysters occur only in very limited quantities, 
if atall. Inthe eastern half of the bay, where the water is not so fresh, 
the conditions are very favorable to oysters. The depth of water in 
this section is from 1 to 8 feet, and averages about 5 feet. In this shoal 
water ordinarily the ground is not muddy and appears to be quite free 
from shifting sand. The area of the oyster reefs is approximated at 6 
Square miles. 
No settlements exist on the shoreof Espiritu Santo Bay. The seine 
fishermen from Port Lavaca, and occasionally those from Aransas Bay, 
fish here. Port Lavaca is about 25 miles distant and Aransas Pass 
