266 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
The foregoing outline of the principal events in the history of the southern spring 
mackerel fishery in 1893 is perhaps sufficient to show its general result. It may be 
stated in addition, however, that the season was an unusually iioor one. A few vessels 
made satisfactory fares, but many of the vessels failed to secure any fish whatever, and 
a large part of the fleet did not pay expenses. There have probably been very few 
years in the history of this fishery when so many vessels returned home entirely 
empty. The season closed and the fishery passed into history, to be classed with the 
numerous other general failures which have characterized the southern spring fishery. 
It may be said that the practical failure of this fishery was not wholly due to a 
scarcity of fish. Many of the vessels that took no mackerel reported that plenty of 
fish were seen, but that they Avere unusually shy and difficult to catch. The shyness 
of the fish was thought to be due to a peculiar clear condition of the water, which the 
fishermen designate as “white water.” When the seine Avas set it Avas readily detected 
by the fish, which sank in a body and came up outside the net. Even in the night, 
when seining is usually successful, the fish were often lost. A very large i»roportion — 
probably 90 per cent — of the fish taken, however, were secured at night. 
The season was remarkable for the extremes of sizes represented by the fish 
landed. Some of the fares taken to New York consisted of fish that averaged larger 
than had been obtained South during any recent years, while one cargo was made up 
of much smaller mackerel than were ever before sold in that market, 2,500 fish being 
required to fill a barrel. The general catch, however, was large fish, of which 100 to 
150 would fill a barrel. 
The prices commanded by fresh mackerel in the New York and Philadelphia mar- 
kets were very satisfactory to the fishermen and remained good throughout the season, 
there being no gluts, which in previous years had resulted in such loss to the vessels 
and such great waste of fish. Some of the first large fish received at New York sold 
from the vessel at 75 cents to $1 each. As other vessels ariaved the price naturally 
fell, but always remained firm, ranging from 8 to 35 cents per fish, according to the 
condition of the market and the size of the mackerel. 
KEVIEW OF THE FISHERY FROM 1894 TO 1898 INCLUSIVE. 
The southern spring mackerel fishery since 1893 has presented no especially note- 
worthy features, although it is desirable to briefly review it in order to make this 
history more complete. During no season from 1894 to 1898, inclusive, was the fishery 
successful, or did the catch approach anywhere near the figures reached prior to 1888. 
The outcome of the spring fishery in the South has been simply a forerunner of the 
results of the fishery on the New England coast, off the Nova Scotia shore, and in the 
Gulf of St. Lawrence, where the record of few fish and small catches that had char- 
acterized the fishery since 1880 was continued uninterruptedly. In only one season 
(1897) did the abundance of fish at times suggest the earlier days of the fishery and 
warrant the belief that the mackerel might be coming again in large numbers, and 
even in that year the final summation shoAved a catch that was large only by compar- 
ison with the four jirevious years of unprecedentedly poor fishing. An outline of the 
salient features of this fishery during each of these years may be of interest. 
The spring mackerel fieet in 1894 numbered 50 sail. The first mackerel news 
was brought in by a coasting vessel which arrived at Philadelphia about April 1 and 
reported sighting schools of mackerel south of Cape Hatteras. Stormy Aveather pre- 
vailed in the early part of the season, and no mackerel were landed until April 19, 
