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128<br />
Canada possesses oyster waters quite as exten4ve as the State of New York.<br />
Those New York waters give 7,000 oystermen a permanent living, and a capital of<br />
$6,000,000 is invested in culture therein. In the whole of Canada no one man makes<br />
his whole living from oysters, but less than 1000 men give themselves occasional<br />
employment in oyster catching, in a pci functory kind of way, and the total annual<br />
product, at $3 per barrel, is no more than $187,580, of which Prince Edward Island<br />
provides $109,324.<br />
The point desigtated as the duty of Mr. Blackford, the New York superintendent<br />
of oyster culture, were, first, to survey the oyster territory of the State; second,<br />
to designate and set apart the natural beds of oysters; third, to ascertain the owners<br />
and condition of all artifically planted beds; and fourth, to survey and definitely<br />
locate artificial beds. These are the identical points that Oanada, sooner or later,<br />
will have to attend to. I venture to offer these suggestions for the reason that<br />
Prince Edward island contributes considerably more than one-half of the entire<br />
Canadian catch, and hence has an interest in the development of' our oyster resources<br />
larger than any other Province.<br />
That the oyster fishing in Prince Edward Island is in a deplorable state,..—.<br />
overfishid in places and in other places not producing enougb,—there is no doubt.<br />
There are no regulations whatsoever, excepti ug a close season from 1st June to 15th<br />
September, to prevent the ultimate ruin of the beds, as they are open to be fished by<br />
everybody, and private culture has not been encouraged. Reckless fishing and<br />
continued shell—digging threaten a ruin to the oyster fishery similar to that which,<br />
from overfishing, has befallen the lobster industry. With the present demand new<br />
adventurers from distant parts of the Province and even from the mainland, are<br />
crowding to the beds and carrying off large quantities, not included in official<br />
returns. For instance, fifteen schooners from nova Scotia, bringing their own me;<br />
made descents on Orwell Bay this year and last, leaving the beds nearly exhausted.<br />
Finding it pay, others will flock in, regardless of the future of the fishery. It is time<br />
such piofligate misuse of public resources should be checked.<br />
Scientists believe that, quite apart from over.fisbing the oyster beds in the Gulf<br />
of St. Lawrence are perishing from natural causes, chiefly geological, and that, as<br />
these causes continue, the mollusca in the Gulf will become extinct. In this view I<br />
agree. It accounts for the vast deposit of oyster shells, soffietimes many feet in depth,<br />
found today where no live oysters are. The process ofdying out is very slow but<br />
none the less sure. No more forcible argument could be found in favor of artificial<br />
planting and culture. Every natural oyster bed perishes, after a lapse of time, from<br />
the necessities of its own growth, its increases in height and diameter, the oysters in<br />
the interior of the mass are deprived of air, and are smothered. When the bed<br />
reaches the ice level) the top perishes from cold, so that, practically, a natural bed<br />
of even moderate size, is merely a core of dead shells with a thin layer of live oysters<br />
outside. The reproduction of an oyster bed is by throwing off glutinous spat in an<br />
ever increasing radius, but it is apparent that unless the ground around such bed is<br />
clean and of sufficient consistency, the spat perishes and the bed becomes extinct<br />
Such conditions of oyster life cannot exist where the ground is cut up by trenches<br />
and filled with the slime of mud digging.<br />
Nevertheless, the machinery for a complete organization of this most important<br />
fishery is ready to the hand of the Department. All that is wanted is: 1. To reserve<br />
certain natural beds for fishing by the public; 2. To offer liberal encouragement<br />
for full development of the fishery under private culture; 3. It might not be<br />
necessary, but power is provided for Uovernmenr to plant new beds and replant old<br />
ones; all which machinery to be operated, of course, under competent supervision.<br />
Sections 4 and 2 i—4 of the Revised Fisheries Act, gives the Minister power to grant<br />
leases for culture and license for fishing; sections 14, 15, 21, 6-to protect the same;<br />
and section 21.4, to plant, transplant or re-stock exhausted fisheries. Hitherto these<br />
provisions have been a dead letter. Several applications have already been made<br />
for leases for culture, which applications are on file in the Dpartment.