SUPPLEMENTARY TESTIMONY, ETC. 187 



EEPOET OF VrtfAL K". EDWAEDS. 



NANTUCKET. 



Professor S. F. Baird : 



Dear Sir : I went to Nantucket Tuesday. When I arrived there the 

 net-men got together and agreed to tell the same story, that the fish 

 were more plenty than last year. I heard this from net-men who did 

 not agree with them. The report of the net-men was the same as that 

 of Gershom Phinney and C. E. Snow. But all the others, hook and 

 line fishermen and seine-net men say that fish are growing less every 

 year, and think that nets are using the fish up. A large number of 

 fishermen say that the blue-fish came into harbor to spawn every year, 

 until this year, when there were so many nets that no fish got into the 

 harbor. They begin to catch blue-fish by the middle of May. 



I have seen a large number of the younger fishermen of Nantucket, 

 all of whom tell the same story that fish are growing less every year. 



Two of the net-men whom you examined last year were abseut, and 

 have been gone fishing all summer. Gershom Phinney and C. E. Snow 

 say they had the same number of nets as last year, but other fishermen 

 say they had double the number this year that they had last. The testi- 

 mony given, is as follows : 



Gershom Phinney, C. E. Snow. — Think blue-fish have been plenty. 

 They, together, caught in their nets in 1871, 5,500 blue-fish. In 1872, 

 7,518 blue-fish. They ran two weeks longer this year than in 1871.* 



Captain 0. B. Gardner and Captain Bates fished together through- 

 out the season. They report : 



In 1870, caught 4,000 blue-fish. 



In 1871, caught 3,350 blue-fish. 



In 1872, caught 3,495 blue-fish. 



They fished more than two weeks longer this year than for a number 

 of years before. They fished on the south side 5 could get none on the 

 north side. 



Watson Burgess, a line-fisherman, says there were not half as many 

 blue-fish on the north side this year as the last ; that there were twice as 

 many nets on the north side, but did not get as many fish as last year. 

 A line-fisherman could not get one-fourth as many blue-fish this year 

 as the last, in the same time. He went off a number of times and did 

 not get a bite ; did not get a large scup ; little ones were plenty. Cod 

 and alewives were more plenty. 



* Professor N. S. Staler, during a recent visit to Nantucket, was informed by C. E. Suow 

 that with the same meaus and labor as many blue-fish could be caught in 18/2 as last 

 year ; thinks if there had been uo more fishermen than last year, should have caught 

 three times as many. The fish are larger on the whole than last year. There are 

 three different sizes observable. The largest size includes about one-fourth the whole 

 nuoiber of fish, and averages in weight about nine pounds. The next size weigh about 

 five pounds, and includes about half the fish. The smallest size weighs about three 

 pounds, and takes the remaining fourth. Some have been caught weighing from twelve 

 to twenty pounds. Since the 7th of September blue-fish have "been more abundant than 

 ever before. Scup were plentier than at any time during the last ten years ; they were 

 smaller but in good condition. There had been a decided gain in the number of cod- 

 fish ; they are larger than last year. Weak-fish were about twice as numerous as last 

 year. Spanish mackerel has not gained in numbers. Alewives were more abundant. 



