20 



FISHERIES OF THE UNITED STATES, 1908. 



United States. All craft of less than 5 tons are classi- 

 fied as boats. 



Outfit includes provisions for the crew, and salt, 

 bait, ice, and other articles used in the taking and pre- 

 serving of the product, but does not include boats car- 

 ried by the vessels and such articles as repair tools, 

 nautical instruments, hawsers, anchors, or charts. 

 As these are considered a part of the vessel, their 

 value is included in the value of the vessels. 



The subclass bearing the designation "Other," 

 which is shown in the tables under the heads of both 

 vessels and boats, includes scows and barges and all 

 unrigged or towed craft of 5 tons or more register in 

 the class of vessels and of less than 5 tons in the class 

 of boats. It does not include house boats, floating 

 wharves, or any sort of moored craft used only as 

 living quarters, as warehouses, or as docks. Such items 

 are included under "Shore and accessory property." 



The investment in vessels was $13,806,000, or 55 

 per cent of the total investment in craft, including out- 

 fits, and the investment in their outfits, $4,026,000, or 

 16 per cent, together making a total of $17,832,000 

 pertaining to vessel fisheries, or 71 per cent of the value 

 of all floating equipment. The investment in boats, 

 which was $7,269,000, or 29 per cent of the total, rep- 

 resents the share of the shore and boat fisheries in this 

 kind of equipment. Boats carried on vessels must not 

 be confused with boats used in the shore and boat 

 fisheries. The value of the former is included in the 

 value of the vessels. 



Vessels are of two classes, those engaged in fishing 

 and those engaged in transporting the product to port 

 or to market. Fishing vessels had a value of 

 $11,276,000, or 82 per cent of the total for vessels and 

 54 per cent of the total for all craft. The value of 

 outfits was much larger for the fishing vessels, as 

 transporting vessels carry no bait and remain away 

 from port a shorter period. Including outfits, the 

 fishing vessels had a total value of $14,849,000, of 

 which the value of outfits constituted 24 per cent ; and 

 the transporting vessels a total value of $2,982,000, of 

 which the value of outfits constituted 15 per cent. 

 Fishing vessels and their outfits formed 59 per cent of 

 the investment in vessels, outfits, and boats, and 

 transporting vessels 12 per cent. 



The classification of vessels and boats according to 

 means of propulsion is of special interest as showing 

 the extent to which power craft are used. The vessels 

 reported under the head "Steam and motor" were 

 mainly steam vessels, and the boats so reported 

 principally gasoline and naphtha launches. 



Of the $21,075,000 invested in vessels and boats, not 

 including outfits, 55 per cent represents the value of 

 craft propelled by engines, 39 per cent the value of 

 sailing boats and vessels, 4 per cent the value of row- 

 boats, and 2 per cent the value of other boats and 

 vessels. 



Vessels and boats, by divisions. — The Atlantic coast 

 division is credited with 66 per cent of the total 

 investment in vessels and boats. Of the $16,553,000 

 so invested there, 58 per cent was in vessels, 17 per 

 cent in outfits, and 25 per cent in boats. The per- 

 centages for vessels and outfits are larger than in any 

 other division, and that for boats is smaller. 



The value of the steam and motor vessels in use in 

 the Atlantic coast division was 50 per cent of the total 

 for all vessels in the division, but their number and ton- 

 nage formed only 34 per cent and 29 per cent, respec- 

 tively, of the corresponding totals. Although 69 per 

 cent of the steam tonnage of all vessels in the United 

 States fisheries was reported from the Atlantic coast 

 division, the proportions of the total number, tonnage, 

 and value were higher for sailing vessels, indicating a 

 greater relative use of the latter in these waters. The 

 value of steam vessels, not including outfits, exceeded 

 that of sailing vessels among fishing vessels in this 

 division, but not among transporting vessels. 



Steam and motor boats of the Atlantic coast divi- 

 sion, although forming only 16 per cent of all boats 

 in number, contributed 60 per cent of the total value 

 of boats for that division. Of the value of all craft 

 in the Atlantic coast division, $7,324,000, or 53 per 

 cent, represents the value of craft equipped with 

 steam or other power; $5,833,000, or 42 per cent, 

 that of sailing craft; $484,000, or 4 per cent, row- 

 boats; and $90,000, or less than one-tenth of 1 per 

 cent, scows or barges. 



The Pacific coast division ranked next to the Atlantic 

 coast division in the amount invested in vessels, outfits, 

 and boats, although it reported only 14 per cent of the 

 total for the United States. Steam vessels were in 

 general use, forming 72 per cent of all vessels and con- 

 tributing 83 per cent of the entire value. 



In the Gulf of Mexico division the investment in ves- 

 sels, outfits, and boats amounted to $2,805,000, which 

 was 11 per cent of that for the United States. The 

 proportion represented by transporting vessels was 16 

 per cent, which was greater than in the country as a 

 whole. 



« 



The capital invested in vessels and boats in the 

 Great Lakes division ($1,651,000, or 7 per cent of the 

 total) was distributed as follows : vessels, 52 per cent ; 

 outfits, 11 per cent; and boats, 37 per cent. With one 

 exception, all vessels were operated by steam or 

 motor power. Of the value of boats on the Great 

 Lakes, 81 per cent is credited to power craft, while 

 steam or motor craft represents 92 per cent of the 

 total investment in craft, not including outfit. 



The investment of the fisheries of the Mississippi 

 River and its tributaries in vessels and boats ($547,000, 

 including outfits), was 2 per cent of the total so in- 

 vested in the United States. This is the only division 

 in which the value of the boats exceeded that of the 

 vessels. Steam and motor craft contributed 61 per 



