DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES,

100
has increased, and large quantities formerly wasted now find purchasers at prices
which pay fishermen for catching them.
Overseer logan, of Newcastle and North-Esk district, reports an average catch
of salmon in that part of the river, but the bass fishery formerly so productive and
profitable in the north-west branch of the river has shrunk to very small proportions.
With more nets fishing the catch is but half that of last year, and but one-third the
catch of 188ti. This scarcity, Mr. Hogan very properly attributes to the two causes
to which he has called attention in all his rpports—overfishing in the past, and the
great destruction f young bass in smelt nets in recent years. The catch of smelts,
Mr. Hogan reports, as less than usual and the average size of the fish smaller.
illegal fishing is not so common now as formerly, the new system of guardianship
being more effective than the old. The great difficulty he and the other officers
on the Miramichi now have to contend with is the detection of illegal fish when
placed in charge of railway officials. If these men were prevented by law from
carrying contraband fish, these could not be got to market, and there would be no
iniucement for dealers to buy them, and cons&juently no inducement for poachers to
catch them.
Overseer Sutherland, of Red Bank district, reports salmon more plentiful than
they have been for the last four or five years. He says that poaching has not been
carried on to a very great extent, owing chiefly to heavy rains and unprecedented
freshets, which cleared out all the salmon poois and made illegal fishing impossible
His returns show no bass nor smelts taken in his district.
Overseer Farher, of South West district, says :—.." This year Providence has done
much for the protection of salmon in the close season. The water was so high that
spearing and drifting was next to impossible. But the great freshet this fall cannot
fail to have disturbed the spawning beds by sweeping away gravel and sand, which
will have a bad efiect on the future supply. On Cain's River, the Renous and Dun—
garvon, more salmon have been seen this fall than all seen in them for the last three
years put together, and all have been fairly well protected from poachers.
Overseer Freeze, of Doaktown, reports that the early part of the season was very
dry and the drought continued until August. The water was very low and warm all
through the nettitg season, and the run of salmon was light, as it always is under
these circumstances. During September the water was too high for spearing or
drifting, and on the 8th October came the great freshet which raised the water a
foot higher than it was ever known to reach in this part of the river. Frequent and
heavy rains kept up the freshet all through the spawning season, and Mr. Freeze fears
that much of the deposited ova has been swept away and destroyed. If this should
be so, the supply of fish in 1892 will be much reduced.
Overseer Orr, of Boiestown and the upper district, reports that, in addition to his
men, the Angling Club had two guardians and the Local Government one, so that
there were nine guardians on the forty-five miles of river under his charge. The
high state of the water assisted the guardians, and never was less illegal fishing done in
this part of the Miramichi, where formerly the law was practically unknown. Anglers
reported plenty of salmon and grilse and parr were seen in every part of the river;.
so that there is every reason to anticipate the best results from the new system of
protecting the spawning beds.
KENT COUNTY.
Overseer Hannah, of Richibucto district, reports an average catch of salmons cod
and hake. The catch of smelts was not so large as last year, owing to the loss of many
nets which were carried away by drift ice early in the season. Warden Harnett
died very suddenly in the early part of December, and the Department has lost the
services of an intelligent and faithful officer, who took an interest in his work and
did it well. I have no report from him, but Overseer Hannah states that bass fishing
has almost been abandoned on the river. The few that are caught are of small size
and little value. The catch of gaspereaux, smelts and frost-fish, as shown in the.
returns, was about the same as last year.