UNUTILIZED FISHERIES RESOURCES 51 



horse-mackerel was being thrown away in that fashion. I might quote 

 from a great authority, M. Pierre Lemy, who is a large merchant in 

 Paris engaged in the prepared food business, and he said that, after the 

 sardine, which is a prime product in France, the tuna is the fish which 

 is most important as a preserved product. I need not go into the way 

 in which these fish are utilized, but it is sufficient to say that there are 

 several kinds of these fish, the large horse-mackerel, a closely allied 

 species called the bonito arid several varieties which have now obtained 

 a market in the United States. Our men are shipping these 

 horse-mackerel, which are really very good eating, and I noticed in a 

 trade paper the other day that there is an upward tendency in the 

 prices for this fish. In 1902, one fish trap at Canso took, in a few 

 weeks, over 40 of these fine fish. 



. There is anothei- fish which, fortunately, is now receiv- 



Sword-fish '"^ attention, namely the sword-fish. A few years ago 



such a thing as sword-fish fishery was unknown on our 

 coast. But men began to realize that these fish were in our waters. 

 There is now a special fleet of sword-fish boats engaged in capturing 

 these fish, and this has proved a most profitable industry. In August 

 last year the sword-fish ^yas so plentiful off the Cape Breton coast, 

 especially early in August, that at Ingonish, in Cape Breton island, 

 eighty of these fish were caught. Some boats took from five to twenty- 

 five and they brought from three to four cents a pound from the fish 

 buyer. These fish ranged from 300 pounds to 400 pounds in weight 

 and one was caught inside the Outer Harbour buoy at Sydney, which 

 weighed 565 pounds. At four cents a pound that is quite a return for 

 a fisherman. In Boston or New York, if you want a bit of sword-fish, 

 you have to pay twenty to twenty-five cents a pound. I had some in 

 Boston and it was most excellent. I have known six hundred or 

 seven hundred of these fish to be landed in one day at the fish wharf 

 in Boston and a great quantity of these were from Canada. It is a 

 very paying industry and shows how fish like that can be neglected for 

 many years but now yield such ample returns. 



I shall not refer to the sturgeon as there is a paper on 

 Sttirgeon inland fisheries, but it is hardly credible that a few 



years ago I saw sturgeon thrown upon the beach on 

 the St. John river for manure, whereas now it is one of our most 

 valued fish and brings very great returns to our fishermen. I know 

 that, in some cases, good lake sturgeon have brought fishermen as much 

 as a good-sized cow would bring to a farmer. As much as 30c per lb. 



