THE SOUTHERN SPRING MACKEREL FISHERY. 
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when 3 schooners arrived at ]^ew York and 2 at Philadelphia with from 20 to 50 
barrels each. The next day 4 vessels landed 15 to 30 barrels each in New York, and 
another vessel reported a similar fare at the Delaware breakwater. All the foregoing- 
fares consisted of very small fish, estimated at 80,000 in number; some of them sold 
for only one-fonrth of a cent each, and the average was 2^- cents each. Throughout 
April most of the mackerel observed were these immature fish, known as “spikes,” 
which had so little market value that the vessels were not warranted in catching 
them. The first large fish were landed at New York April 30; this trip comprised 
20 barrels, and the mackerel sold for 30 cents each. 
About May 1 the fleet fell in with schools of fish off Cape Hatteras and lauded 
five cargoes in New York during the first week in May. There was one fare of 150 
barrels of 1-pound fish, another of 100 barrels of medium fish, and a third of 90 
barrels of medium fish, the others containing about 30 barrels each of juediiim fish. 
During the second week in May a large body of mackerel was reported off Winter 
Quarter Shoal light ship, but the fish were extremely wild and difficult to catch, most 
of the seine sets being futile. Fishing was done chiefly at night, as a result of the 
shyness of the mackerel. About 100 barrels in five trips were caught during this time 
and landed in New York. The catch in 1894 had the distinction of being, perhaps, the 
smallest since the fishery with purse seines was established. The 24 fares landed 
comprised 822 barrels, or 160,550 fish, for which the fishermen received $10,919. The 
average catch per vessel was only 16 barrels, valued at $218. 
The poor outcome of the fishery in 1894 deterred many vessel-owners from sending 
their vessels out in the following year, the fleet numbering only 38 sail. The first 
vessel sailed March 31, and the first fare was brought in on April 16. This was 
caught by the schooner Ethel B. Jacobs on April 15, in latitude 36° 20', longitude 
74° 50', and lauded at New York. It consisted of 5,000 large mackerel, which were 
disposed of at 18 to 25 cents each. During April there were 6 other arrivals at New 
York and 1 at Philadelphia, the largest fare being 120 barrels of very fine fish taken 
to New York on the 29th by tlie Georije F. Edmunds^ and selling for $2,600. A dense 
fog prevailed during the first two weeks of May and interfered with the fishing. The 
arrivals in May were 10 at New York, 1 at Philadelphia, and 1 at Gloucester, aggre- 
gating 448 barrels of fish, mostly large, selling for 15 to 22 cents each; about 16 
barrels of salt mackerel were also lauded. The season’s catch was 973 barrels, or 
121,050 fish, valued at $14,261. Twenty-six vessels failed to get any fish, and the 
average catch for the fleet was only 26 barrels, worth $381. 
The southern mackerel fleet of 1896 numbered 39 sail, 7 of the vessels being from 
Portland, 4 from Provincetown, 1 from Dennis, 1 from Boston, and the others from 
Gloucester. The fishery was comparatively successful, the catch being larger than in 
any other year, except 1897, since the expiration of the close-time law. The first 
arrival was the Kearsarcie, which reached New York April 10 with 1,665 large fish, 
weighing 1|^ to 2 pounds, which sold at 40 cents each. The same vessel lauded 2 
other fares at New York during the month, aggregating about 26,600 tinkers and 
large fish, the former running 5 to a pound. Six other arrivals at New York and one 
at Hampton Eoads in April comprised about 50,000 large and small flsh. During the 
first half of May large mackerel were found in considerable abundance on the New 
Jersey coast, and later off New York. Fifty-five fares were landed during the month, 
9 vessels arriving at New York on May 11 and 7 on May 12. The mackerel brought 
