FISHERIES OF THE GULF STATES. 
97 
has 86 vessels of this class in a total of 88 for the entire section. The typical lugger 
is a sharp, shallow, center-board craft, carrying a single large lugsail. Vessels of 
this rig are celebrated for speed and general fitness for the work they have to perform. 
They are manned chiefly by fishermen of foreign birth. 
2. — Table showing by States the rigs of vessels employed in the fisheries of the Gulf region in 1890. 
States. 
Steamers. 
Schooners. 
Sloops. 
Luggers. 
Sharpies. 
Total. 
No. 
Tons. 
No. 
Tons. 
No. 
Tons. 
No. 
Tons. 
No. 
Tons. 
No. 
Tons. 
Florida 
2 
34.40 
149 
31 
55 
24 
9 
2, 499. 36 
334. 79 
519. 71 
232. 01 
92. 44 
12 
5 
7 
9 
80. 62 
53. 08 
33. 89 
42. 29 
60. 15 
3 
22. 50 
166 
38 
62 
119 
19 
2, 636. 88 
387. 87 
570. 02 
896. 84 
240. 76 
2 
86 
16. 42 
568. 05 
Louisiana 
2 
1 
54. 49 
88. 17 
Total 
5 
177. 06 
268 
3, 678. 31 
40 
270. 03 
88 
584. 47 
3 
22. 50 
404 
4, 732. 37 
The products of the fisheries . — Few sections of the United States are better sup- 
plied with desirable and important marine fishery products, including fish, reptiles, 
and invertebrates, than the Gulf States. Among the invertebrates, the oyster ranks 
first in commercial importance. It is extremely abundant throughout the entire sec- 
tion and constitutes the most prominent fishery product. No other mollusks have as 
yet attained economic prominence, though in Florida the round clam or quahog is 
taken in small quantities, and the meat of the conch is used for bait and eaten locally. 
A number of species and varieties of sponges occur off the Florida coast and are 
objects of an important fishery, the only one of the kind prosecuted from the United 
States. The principal species taken are known as the grass, yellow, velvet, glove, 
and sheepsweol sponges, the poorest and least valuable of which are the glove and 
grass sponges, while the slieepswool occupies the first rank among American sponges 
and is the species most eagerly sought. 
Among crustaceans the shrimp is the most prominent. It is taken on the coasts 
of Mississippi, Texas, and Louisiana, the last-named State maintaining the most 
extensive fishery. The shrimps are eaten fresh, and are also preserved by drying 
and canning. Grabs are abundant in this region ; in addition to the common blue or 
edible crab of the Atlantic coast, there occur the shore crab, the lady or sand crab, 
and other species of less importance. The fishermen of Louisiana secure larger quan- 
tities of crabs than those of Mississippi and Texas, the only other Gulf States in which 
the fishery is carried on. The stone crab, which reaches a large size and is very palata- 
ble, is probably most abundant on the coast of Florida, where it is a highly esteemed 
food among the coast inhabitants, but is not sought for commercial purposes. The 
lady crab is very common in Louisiana waters, and is a favorite product in New 
Orleans. Several species of crayfish exist in the brackish and fresh waters of the 
Gulf region, but it is only in Louisiana that they are caught for market. In April, 
1890, an experimental attempt was made by the U. S. Fish Commission to acclimatize 
the lobster in the Gulf of Mexico; 745 adult male and female lobsters and 250,000 
eggs were planted in Galveston Bay, but the fresh water of the bay proved fatal to 
the adults and it is not probable that the eggs hatched. In southern Florida the 
fishermen take considerable quantities of the spiny lobster, locally called u crawfish,” 
which are mostly used for bait and are only sparingly eaten. 
F. C. B. 1891—7 
