41 



REPORT OF CHIEF WARRDEN— ILLINOIS RIVER- 

 GEORGE T. WILLIAMS. 



Hon. Nat. H. Cohen, President Illinois State Fish Commission, Urbana, III: 



I beff leave to submit my report covering the two years ending September 

 30, 1900. As ordered by the board, in connection with my duties as Master 

 of Steamer Reindeer, l have given the enforcement of the law careful at- 

 tention. On the Illinois river the law is constantly being violated, but such 

 violations are, generally speaking, confined to the irresponsible iishermen 

 ■who live along the river, and while it is true that a number of men engaged 

 in fishing as a business, and who control a large number of fishing rigs, have 

 been caught with illegal mesh seines in their possession, yet, for the most 

 part, they have ceased to use them on notice to do so. The incentive to use 

 any means to take fish when they are plentiful, is great, and the temptation 

 is often too great to resist, but, on the whole, I am glad to report a better 

 condition of affairs than for any previous season. 



I have personally notified every fisherman on both rivers within my juris- 

 diction, to give careful heed to the provisions of the law, and have furnished 

 copies of the law to all. I have made a practice of warning all at first offense, 

 and prosecute for any subsequent one. 



I have removed all fyke nets found too thickly placed, and kept the river 

 free as possible from long leads and outrageous obstructions. I have always 

 removed wing nets and all obstructions to the streams running into the rivers. 

 1 have taken a number of large seines of one and one-half inch mesh, and 

 have them now in warehouse. I have always notified owner, when he could 

 be found, of such seizure and offered the return of the seine if property was 

 proven. The fact that there are on the Illinois and Mississippi rivers within 

 my jurisdiction, a large number of small meshed seines. can not be disputed, 

 but I have no authority to take them unless while in use, so that I have been 

 powerless to interfere with them. I have found them very frequently, lying 

 on the banks, drying out, and as instructed, I have not made seizures unless 

 found in use, or with evidence enough to prove that they had been used. The 

 tiddler basket has caused great destruction to the channel cat fish, but the 

 number used has rapidly diminished since the size of fish that can be offered 

 for sale has been regulated by law. 



I have offered assistance to anybody and everybody on the river, when such 

 help was needed, towing fish boats when 1 found them afloat or hard to man- 

 age, other steamboats when in trouble, and have followed j'^our instructions 

 as closely as possible in helping the flood sufferers when banks of river were 

 overflowed. We have removed stock and household goods, and given fami- 

 lies shelter and food while carrying them to places of safetj'. 



I have either removed or caused to be removed during ihe time mentioned, 

 2,730 hoop nets, 134 wing nets or obstructions near the mouth of streams or 

 creeks emptying into the rivers. I have taken 1:1 nets of small mesh, one of 

 them 500 yards long, and but few have been returned to owners, as in a large 

 majority of cases, they have not called for their property, and so we still 

 hold them. With other wardens associated with me, I have made 121 arrests, 

 with 59 convictions. These cases have been disposed of in various ways, in 



