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Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent etre film4s i des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque ie document est trop grand pour etre reproduit en un seul clich*, if est film* ^ partir de Tangle sup*rieur gauche, de gauche A droite. et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images n*cessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m*thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 MICROCOPY RESCIUTION TEST CHART ANSI or,d ISO TEST CHART No 2 1.0 "» I.I 1.25 2.8 II 2.5 lIlM 11112.2 2.0 1.8 ■•4 11.6 _J >)PPLIED INA^GE Inc 1 Newfoundland's Fisheries; '. I «* Richer by Far Than all the i Gold Mines of Peru/' As Lord Bacon Declared Three Centuries Ago« ^-^^--^^^ e Paper on which this Pamphlet is Printed was made at the Harmsworth Mills at Grand FaUs. < ! t tl 'I NEWFOUNDLAND^ FISHERIES; .L bV F" Thr^jHe_Gold Mines o. PW ^ » T, XT n THREE CENTURIES AGO. U|LORD BACON DECLAREDTHREE r AUn<\ even a^ the industry is The fishery weaUh of N.-wo-^^^^ ,Uing. con- ^pa.s..>t prosecuted. -^-^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^ aevelopment by the ap- rf^ered. and yet is capable of en^^- ^^^,^,, „{ this Island m- Scation of modern methods The .^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ Me Sdin. that of its appanag , I^b-1 ^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^^ Sown to man. It was ^bu. fi^^^ ,^^,, .^nturies aj;o and tha •*est-conniry.ucn to the I" =^"'' ^ ^^„,, „{ the colony for all I maintained the V^'^^^''''^ ^"^^^.r. that wash its shores |atlon« period. "^^ ^^^ ^:,^ .. they were when John lea^nndimini^^dapp-tlyto. >^^ , ipabot first sighted ye new i Cod Fishery- 1 «ith its arowthand population Within a century and '^J-J^^^.^^^.rrdr show. has grown from ^eannualcatcbof cod sotheoffi.^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^^.^ ,^ half a million to one and a ha ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ ,n the two seasons back. n. '^o^'/^^J^' ^ Soo.ooo qtls.. or nearly 300.- colony-s annals was secured. '<'^J'l ^he value of this fish, 'ct better than the largest pre ufigur^^^^^ ^^^.^^ ^^^^ ^. sported to the markets at present PP ^^^^^.^^ by being salted "g ,t million dollars a year. AU oHt P ^^^^^ ^^^^. ^^^ tnd dried, as " stock fish wa. m .^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^^,,,^ •f ■ni .IS nti cfcnnrn^^cnicit for tlx- fi^l'iii^j in(!ii>*try. The >;''"\vtli of t!ic North Sea fi-h riis ntid tlic other ne.i-food imliist'ies of the Ilriti>h Ihlcs, together with the multiplying of m ans «( distrihtitiun tliroMRh the agency of railroads, his practic illy driven the N'tw- foiindlnnd salt cod out of coiisutuptiou in I*i);;laiid, and its chief markets to-day are in Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, West Indies and Brazil. -\ WHAT COLD STORAGK WOULD DO. If cold storage, for instance, could be employed in the preser- vation of this vast annual harvest of fish or even for a consider- able portion of it, an enormous advantage would be gained, not alore for those who catch, but for those who export the fish from Newfoundland. To the west of the Island lies Canada, with a population estimated to-day at over seven millions and rapidly in- creasing, and a little to the south the United States with its ninety millions, the vast majority of whom are rarely able to secure succulent sea-food at all. The value of the British fish- eries is about $45,000,000 a year, or $1 per head. The value of the United States fisheries, including the oyster fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico, and the river and lake fisheries all over the Union, is only $40,000,000 a year, or less than one half the per capita value of the British fisheries. The result is that, except for the areas within a day's run of tidewater on the Atlantic and the Pacific fronts, the rest of the American people are seriously in- convenienced for fresh fish food. The same is true of the central sections of Canada, and the seriousness of the situation is accentu- ated by the fact th.-it the fisheries', of Maritime | Can.ida and the New England States are declining. fDECLINE ON CONTINENT. The fisheries of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have declined fifty per cent in the past ten years. The fisheries of New England, eliminating the lobster fishery, the product of which, owint; to the scarcity of the crustaceans, has reached famine prices, show a similar decline. The New England smick-own.TS arc no longer able to induce native-born Americans to engi^i in th2 industry on the Grand Banks because of its hazards'atid hnrdshirs. aiul l.ave to crew the m^s 1h with Scimli- navians; Cina.lKins aiul N\wioutul'-.iulcr,. otf rnu thc-c h^h^r wages than th.y cau s.curc m thur own coautncH. winch the protective policy in (orceia America as to the fi,herie.cnabl-, th. m io do But even with these aids the industry lan«iiishes. \ arions form* of State help are ,.rovidejlmon f..larv „i the PacifK- Coast, and in a less (r.kjnc to the nurkttmj; of ,, „i „j htr fish products in a frc>,h or chilled coii.Iitiou ; while the iu.ide quacy of the Am.-ican fish supply i., co,,c ut'i the necd^ of th.it country is iu;torious, especially just at present, when the aKitatK.i. against the i^lcrea^ed cost of livui^' there prove, that a leKitiiiiate auxiliary in cheajH-Miing food prices-an adecju. •-.• supply of fish- is excluded because of the inaucuce of the New Engl ind " lM»h Trust" over Congress. POSSIBILITIES OF PROFITS. The possibilities of the profitable iavcstmcnt of outsi/e capital in the IJtwfoundland fisheries, even under existing cir- cumstances, are attested by the statement of one of the leading members of the fish-exporting community of St. John's in the Le- gislative Council of the Island during tlie recent Parliamentary session, that, owing to the shortage of fish in foreign markets, caused by a reduced catch and export from the countries which chiefly compete with her, the Newfoundland fishermen had got at least 51,500,000 more for their total catch in 1909 th in they did in 1908 : while by applying cold storage to much of this pro impracticable owing to the irregular contour of the bottom. Codfish, as is well known, prefer a broken bottom, whereas halibut are of the very opposite habit, and frequent level, sandy bottoms. It is therefore not improbable that the English method of trawling could be em- ployed advantageously on those halibut banks, which, though situated almost at the doors of the Newfoundlanders, they cannot utilize for lack of markets for these fish. It goes without saying that could a business be enterprised that would make it possible for the Newfoundland banking vessels to sell their catch fresh for the English market the net returns therefrom would be more than double what they are at present, and from the fact that both cod and haliV- '• may be procured on these banks it would not appear at all impossible that sUch a business could be developed. FAR-AWAY QUESTS FOR FISH. The Americans have sent res^els to South African waters, to the West Coasc of Africa, to the Irish Coast, to Iceland, to Green- land an 1 to farthest Labrador in quest of fish, and now the princi- pal fishing enterprises of the Pacific Slope are dominated by the •'Fish ry Combine" of Boston and Gloucester, Mass.achusetts. the product being carried across the continent daily in refrigerator cars for sale in the Eastern States. But the further extension of the Lusiness is automatically restricted by the impossibility of securing enough men ;o crew a larger fishing fleet and by the in- ability of the masses to purchase fish, any more than meat, if the price is too high. HERE IS NEWFOUNDLAND'S CHANCE! Newfoundland's opportunity is seen- in this — in the develop- ment of a trade in fresh or frozen codfish with the United States, where a pract.cally limitlesi market for it exists always- tt i, possible also to still further deveU,,> the -;!-'^;^^ /^^^f.;" cured cod fish in South America. In only one --^-" ? ^^ " ' curea tou consumption of Newfound- r^'rjetr. Mxt^rB^a;. market absorb, nearly 400,000 t^ls o? th sthe c year, or one-quarter of the entire export. ScentaVa^^ south American countries with a combined Utner «.eni nuUions, peopled by the same Latm ^s ra: il bltr^ cr^sumpiio'n of Newfoundland codfisl, Ind i"f tlie same rate of consumption could be uuluced. practically t\e:U?eo the^resent catch could be absorbed by these coun- trL and Brazil! without considering the Portuguese, Span.sh. Italian and Greek nations at all. » NEWFOUNDLAND OUTWITS FRANCE. An example of what it is possible to do in this direction is af- forded by Newfoundland's experience with France. T-enty-fiv^ years ago. when the French, who have manUa.ned a colony at St^ pie re-Miquelon. off the South Coast of Newfoundland, for two cnturies sending an armada of some 300 fish.ng vessels across the AtTantic ;very spring to trawl for cod on the Graml Banks and off fh Newfoundland coast, b.gan to undersell NewfouncUand >n the Spanish and Portuguese markets -being able to do tins because fhe French Government in order to make this fish, ng enterpr.se a nur^r^ for seamen for the French Navy, aided it w.th bount.es equrmng 70 per cent, of the value of the catch-Newfoundland re- taliated ly enacting a law forbidding her own people to sell or sup^ pTy baU to the French, and this no-bait policy has been continued ever since, the result being that valuable markets, which N ewfound- llnd had virtuallv lost in the Iberian Peninsula, have since been regained and St. 'pierre has been dealt a death-blow and is now at the very nadir of its fortunes. PRINCIPAL MARKETS FOR FISH. The principal markets to which Newfoundland's dried codfish was exported last year, with the quantities sent to each and the value of the shipments, are as follows :— s' s lO Countries Qtls. Value. Britain 58,548 $197,972 , Canada 128,344 482.943 B.W.Indies 105,28? 426.541 A.W.Indies 40.798 175.106 United States 24,732 113.489 Portugal 256,080 1,588,798 Spain 280,311 986,631 Italy 380,762 1,444.084 Greece 65,202 216,353 Brazil 382,180 1,719,082 FOR A TWO-MILLIOX CATCH. A leidtng Newfoundland merchant slrongly ur.jes that the object of the fis.i trade in the Colony should be to strive for an annual catch of two millions quintals of cod, and to devise new methods oX cu in.^ and marketing the fish. Tiiat this policy is by no m-ans unfcasiblii is provoi by ihe f .c: th?t with the annual ex- port of dry cod not below i,ooo,ooj quintals in any ye.ir of the past fo..y, and scarcely below 1,250.000 quintals in any year of the pasL fifteen, the price has increased in the same period from *3.8o to $5.18 per quintal. In other words, the annual export of cod fiom Newfoundland has not aloni^ kept paci with the growth of the population, but has also been able to find a market at improved prices, notwithstanding all the competition that it has had to mtct from rivals in the same indu^t.-y and the modern production of foods in the most attr ictive and appetizing form. There would, consequently, seem to be no reason why a further increase in the catch t ) tot.il 2.000,000 quiatiils should not b.- striven (or. and thai the marketing of this should uot b.: successfully accomplished. MEANS TO ATTAIN THIS END. Some of the means by which this end might be attained would be the employment of cold storage in the preserving and distributig of much of the catch, the opening up of new mar- kets for salted fish in countries in which it has not found a footing, the subsidizing of steamers to carry tr.sh or salted fish to present or prospective markets, the UK- of motor boats and < ther modern tt Zo.^io..r..r^^^^^^le multiludfs. The Labrador fishery is carried on every season by some i ,500 vessels and 20,000 people, who migrate to that coast in the spring and engage in fishing, and return in the fall after its close, shipping about half the catch direct from the coast by means of steamers to Europe, and bringing home the remainder to be cured and dried during the winter in the settle- ments where the voyagers live. There is no valid reason why, with the obtaining of capital from outside, these fisheries siiould not be developed in the form of a fresh-fish enterprise, and if this can be accomplished it means the working of an economic revolution in this Island. The Herring Fishery. The herring fishery is now mainly prosecuted on the West Coast of Newfoundlnnd in the autumn and winter, the chief rerorts of the fish being Bay of Islands, Bonne Bay and Bay St. George. American fishing vessels engage largely in this enterprise, and so do Canadian, because at this season, and with Lent near at hand, imp'ying a greatly increased demand for fish at all points, herring are not procurable anywliere else in North Atlantic Waters. The annual catch in this region is about 100.000 barrels, valued at 5250,000. perhaps one-half of the fish being taken away salted, and the ether hilf frozen. It is believed now to be perfectly possible to ship not alone the whale oi the existing output by means of cold storage or some similar process, but also to much increase the an- nual output through the same 'agency, besides doubling, if not trebling, the value of this particular industry. QUEST FOR NEW HERRING SHOALS. Investigations by means of specially equipped "drifters " have been undertaken for some years past by the Nviwfoundland and Ca- nadian Governments with a view to determining the existence and locality of vast shoa's of herring which are bilieved to be found in the outer vaters, and it is hoped in time to establish by this means a fishery approaching in its magnitude that on the East Coasts of •■■. is t. be ceve cptd by ti.e aatp>i-u u this beiring fisl ery. THE SMOKED HERRING INDUSTRY. In connection with the present status of the ^^^^^ ^^^^^ '^ isimro.tant to rctc that an in^.nun.c t.rdc 'YZLw 'o Dig y rosMHe of dcvelcTH^ent. For ma.y ^"^^ ^"^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Nova Scotia, has been conducting a smoked hemng fishery ine American waters is there so large a herring fishery as in New ftrndland and nowhere should it be possible to ^eve op J srnoLed herring industry more easily or more cheaply than in this IslanO^ the American and Canadian \essci3 « ^^ .,„oke- rfi^htb^rls^oueated before being sent outofthe country. The Lobster Fishery. In no direction is there a greater possibility of /^vohitioniz ng an industry through modem agencies, than in tbat °f the Jo^^^^^^ fishery. The alarming decline in the annual catch of lobste s i. d stuTbing fishermen and traders all the way from Newfouudland fo Cape Hatteras. which is the range of the crustacean on this s.de of the Adantic. Along the American and Canadian seaboards owing to the great number of large cit.es withm easy reach, the II I. imiiiwpwfwiyiii I. IP. «U-i ■ n |6 demand for fresh lobsters cannot be supplied, for the decline has been very marked, and the outcry for sjm tiling to b^ done, is one not easily to be met. Throughout Newfoundland, whence there is no export of fresh lobsters whatever— the entire output being marketed by being preserved in cans — the situation is less serious, though it is still acute enough to prove a disturbing factor. What is desired is a means, on the one hand, of providing that lobsters can be shipped to European or American markets fresh or frozen, and on the other hand that artificial agencies can be utilized to propagate lobsters to at least an extent that will maintain the 'existing supply. These conditions successfully met, there is an cuormous profit to be made out of the lobster industry rightly handled and aggressive- ly enteiprised. 7,500,000 LOBSTERS A YEAR. The annual Newfoundland pack of lobsters now amounts to 26,000 cases, each containing 48 tins, and, calculating six lobsters to a tin, this means that the total kill of these crustaceans each year is about 7,500,000. The value of these lobsters is $400,000, or 5 centseach. Lobsters fresh or preserved in ci Id storage, can now be purchased at from 40 to 60 cents in the great cities of the United States and Canada, and even if but half that amount was obtainable in the sale of Newfoundland lobsters fresh or frozen it would increase their value fivefold to the fishermen. I tis not dif- ficult, therefore, to ste the vast possibilities of a highly profitable industry through the modernising of the methods of catching and exporting Newfoundland's annual catch of lobsters. i Appended will be found a table showing the export of can- ned lobsers l^ota this colony the past twenty years, a studv of which will prove that as the quantity has declined the price |has increased : — »7 EXPORTS OF LOT^STF.RS. ! II Year. 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1894-5 X 895-6 1896-7 1897-8 1898-9 1899-0 1900-1 1961-2 1902-3 19" 3-4 1904-5 1905-6 19c 6-7 1907-8 Cases. 76.226 69.552 57.249 32.589 35.403 48,056 51.016 56.372 58.883 6t,95i 56.166 37.523 36.271 38.368 31.881 31 575 43.522 3«.328 26,999 26,060 V.iUio. $4:- 5n 520.078 429,681 360,048 265.522 312.364 430,881 465,069 529.947 619. IJO 565.362 441, 2 ->2 448.501 412,256 387,466 4io.4<^5 512,662 376.490 379 237 418605 Per Caso. 16.70 7.50 7.50 8.00 7-50 6.50 8.20 8.25 9.00 10.00 10.70 11.75 12.40 10.80 12.00 13.00 11.80 12.00 14.40 16.00 The Minor Fisheries. new conditions. At present me .^^ ^^^ possesses assured markets in ^^.,.. ^oDlied, all these minor ^ndition that-cold storage is -"^ f ^f/i^ and value, fishes could be enormously . ""e^^^*^ consumption of these The American market is --^^,^;,/;;:,Cre fresh.' the modern fishes, provided they could be ^-/^^^^^^"''.^.i.ely in the direction similar result may be expected. i8 At present, of cmir«e, without the Colny possessing nny aikquate cold storage facilities it is iii.possiMe to ship those fishes to the United States, except salted, nml in such form there is not a very large demand for them. In coniieclion wi'h the proposed installation of fish hatcheries and the increase in the sea producti of the Colony therchy, which may he reasonably expected, follow- ing the experience of the United States and Canad\ in this direc- tion, the introduction of new fishes into Newfoundland waters, not at present fourd there, could be atttmpted. THE I-:SHLRIES APE THE MAINSTAY. But even with the various kinds of succulent fcod, fishes, which aic rcw sufficiently numerous to /cpay their chase and capture, tliete r^rc opportunities for the profitable investment of capital whic'i fc v countries can exceed for promise and security. Her fishciics have been the main-stay of Newfoundland for centuries ; to-daj- fi-,h exports form 82 per cent of the total ex- ports; and the whole economic and commercial fabric is built upon the sure font d.i I inn of the fisheries. How sure and stable this foundation is. has been proved by the fact that these fisheries have withstood the vie ssitiidcs of nature and man's relentless pur- suit for more t!ian four centuries. TI'E CANNING OF CAPLIN. An example of how new fishery projects mav be enterpised is afforded by the case of the caplin. This is a fish which is most appetising as a food a..d with which the waters of Newfoundland literally teem every summer. It is in size somewhat larger than as rdme and either fresh or sundried it is always an appetising delicacy. Because. h< wever. no methrd Las been disclrsed for curing or marketing it, all this ahui^dance of sea food now goes to waste. It is literally true that thousands of tors of caplin are every y.-ar used for ma- ure in Newfoundland, being thrown over the potato patches and kitchen gardens of the fishermen. The caphncometotheshoreinthes'imineranl are cast up bv the waves in vast quantitxs on all the loaches, whence thev are wi hlt'eT. "i """P°''- V " '"<^'''"'' ^'^" ''c devised forc^Jaling Mill- 7 ""'""« tl'em. as sardines or otherwise, theri L .nlLw.;"" nulustr .osit.l. theref.om which in years ought to equal the sardine fishery of Brittany, ! t9 THH SALMON FISHTRY. The possibilities for the disposil of fresh silmon arc very Rroat, as the NcufKiiiuIlaiKl s iltmni stan-l first in tho worlil. in qii '.ity. Most of the Colony's expnrt of salmon now is saltcl or pickle 1, a comparativt-ly small portion only being exporteil fresh. If the pickled salmon were sent away in a fr )7.on stat.- the value would he multiplied at least fourfold, and by serving the mark-ts on both sides of the Atlantic an industry of one-half a million dollar'^ a year coula very soon be assured. FuMic opinion in the Colony is now being awakened to a realization of this, and plans are to be adopt- ed whereby salmon hatcheries will be cscablished and the art.fi ial propagation of this splendid game and commercial fis'a uud-rtak n ; and means will be devised where' ly tlic salmon fishery miy be- come a prime factor in the Island's icononiic advaneeuiont. The salmon as a sporting fish, and the opportunities of the Is- land from a sportsman's piint of view, are dealt witli in another pamphlet of this series. Suffice it to say. however, that the fame of the Island as a sporting r. sort is every ye ir be om n< m re wiitsprcid atid that the inrush "f s dimii-fish,- s i- c m stmlly in- cre. siii^;. The e!ifor>.emeiit of the law- .\li cli pr^veat th> lu t ti,' of rivers will assist greatly in d.v.lopin^ t.ic s, ortiiig fi-h ry for salmon, as well as the commercial s.dmoii fishery, and as every sportsman is a foe to the illicit uitting of rlvj.s a vjlunteer police force with this object in view will thus be i>i .vided, while the mea- sures which the Government has in view for increasing the avail- able supply of salmon should find their effect i a Iar>j:ely supplement- ing the quantity available every year for export^ The Soiling Wrapper Another instance of that which it is posi'ilj to do in the way of .developing the Newfoundland fisheries is seen in the re- cent introduction into the Island of what is known as tne Sol ing Process of preserving fish. This consists of wrapping them in specially-prepared paper wlieh is the invention of Captain Soiling, Danish Fishery Conuni-sioner in London, and then packing ihem in ice for transport. Experiments made iu the shipping of fish ■ t , ■I' 90 Irom Newfoundland to Canada. United States, and Great Britain have shown that it is possible to keep fish per/ectlv fresh sweet and appetizing for two to three weeks, if enclosed "in thes^ wrappers and handled with ordinary care. Already this scheme has met with much acceptance in the island, the paper is being utilized extensively for the wrapping of salmon, trout, halibut, and other fishes, and while of course the magnitude of the cod catch precludes the po-sibility of its being traded in this way. yet it is quite evident that under certain conditions and for certain markets * portion of the annual catch of cod can be handled by this means. This paper is also extensively used for fish-preserving purposM in England and Scotland. GROWTH OF OTHER INDUSTRIES. Among the problems which the new Government of this Colony has vigorously taken up. is that of securing nrw markets for our fish and especially in Western Ca and the Western States where there should be enormous "po •ibihties for such development. One of the prospects in this direction is that of establishing a fleet of fast steamers, fitted with cold storage for carrying on a daily trade in fresh fish bet. en the Newfoundland coast and the chief American centres of popula- SuM r. American coast, such as Boston. New York and Philadelphia. What may be done by well directed energy in these projects 18 seen in the tremendous grovvth of the banana industry in the Unittd States, fleets of spKndid steamers plying daily be- tween these pons and the various West India Islands and bring- ing back cargoes of bananas, commodities much more perishable in their nature than fish, to these northern waters. Such an enterprise means no more on this side of the Atlantic than the North Sea Fishery means for England and the continental coun- tries which border on that area, and some system of having speedy fish earners operate with the fleets could be adopted on the Grand Banks with an equal measure of success, 'x he Australian and New Zealand frozen mutton trade also i,hows the possibilities of new lines .{ commercial activity. /I I at CODFISH FOR BRITISH NAVY. While in England last sutmiier. attending the Imperial De- fence Conference, Sir E 'word Morris, the Premier of the Colony, submitted to the War Office and the Admiralty samples of Xe\v- '•jundland codfish put up fresh in hermetically sealed cans, by a boiling process absolutely free from any chemif^al preparation, with a view to its being served to the soldiers and bluejackets, so that if it should prove acceptable it could be put on the ration lists of both the Army ard the Navy. Several cases of this fish were supplied to H. M. S. Dreadnought, and the official report thereon was to the effect that "chief petty officers' messes and the petty officers- messes speak well of it, and as these messes have better facilities for preparing it in an appetizing form, it is possible that it might be utilized to some extent by them, if procurable in the canteen." It was therefore suggested that the packers of fish in Newfound- land might communicate with the various concerns purveying sea food to the navy so that th; y may keep it in stock and supply it to the naval canteens as required, and it is thought that gradually a substantial trade will be thus built up for a very tempting eatable. Cod-Livcr Oil. Th' prssibilities in the dirctioii of creating a highly valu- able industry in the refining cf cod-liver oil are illustrated by the figures supplied below, which give the export of this commcdity annually for thepast ten years. It will b? seen that in 1903-4, espe- ci Ily, there was an enormous increas" in t'e quantity and in the v; luf of the cod-liver oil expo-te \ nd th it tliis condition prevail- ed tc a lasser exent in the following year The re:. son for this very abnormal increase was that a com lete failure of the codfish- ery in Norway had rendered the Norwegian supply of refined oil utterly inadequate to the needs of the marke'.s which absorb it. Cod-liver oil, as is well known, has a recognized value in pul- monary cases; and Norway, because of her larger popu'ation and conrequent increased ability to develop an export trade in this article, has succeeded in gaining the primacy in the world's mar- kets therefor. Newfoundland cod-liver oil, however, has secured in recent years the highest awar !s iu International exhibitions,, i < 1: Mi. - 33 and under these circumstances it only requires e.iergy and effort for the colony to secure any lar^jer proportion of this trade than she has hitherto been able to a norm.tlly obtain. The immense vi.Iue, from a colonial standpoint, of this tr ide. is seen from the figures of 1903-4, and the production of that much cod-liver oil entailed no strain whatever upni the other industries o' the colony. Ordinarily the vast bulk of the oil obtained from the livers of the cod in Newfoundland i^^ exported as " cod oil," which differs from " cod liver oil' '"in the industrial world, in that the latter ;s the refined product used for medicinal purposes ; and the former is the one which becomes rancid, and is used for tanning. " Cod oil " is an inevitable accompaniment to the carrying on of thecodfi^h■^g-indu>try as at present coiiduct.d, when fishermen abroad on the Grand Banks, afar at Labrador, or established in isolated settlements around our own seaboard, have no means of keeping the livers fresh, and no inducement for any special efforts so to do. Newfoundland could, without ditSculty, easily supply the world's whole demand for refined ccd liver oil, but even if that prove! unfeasible in the n;ar future, there ii still the opportunity ex.stiiig for a ve y much larg.r incre se in the annua, output. The figuies are as follows : Year. 1899-1900 igco-igoi 1901-1902 1902-1903 1903-1904 1904-1905 1906-1907 1907-1108 190J5-1909 Gallons. 17.695 22,970 20,164 44.407 191.403 114.506 59.781 51.547 48,015 93780 Value. • 8,598 12,710 11,142 37.240 482,792 137.265 34.995 31.755 26,289 31,604 The Seal Fishery. The Newfoundland seal fishery is a striking p oof of how judicious legislation has contributed to maintain this industry al- most unimpaired in its magnitude for generation.--, whereas the in- /, 93 discriminate shtiphter and absence of such enactments have brought about the virtual extermination of a similar industry elsewhere in the world. To-day the Alaskan seal fishery is but the shadow of what it once was, while the Newfoundland seal herds are little diminished and the industry is as profitable as ever. Little is known, historically, of the early days of Newfound- land's seal fishery, which, strictly speaking, is not a fishery at all, the seal being an aquatic mammal, .warm blooded, and suckling its young as land animals .1 . Scientifically the Newfoundland seal is an ice riding pinniped, that is to say, its habitat is the ice-field that drifts southwards in the grip of the Arctic current, from the Polar wastes to the Grand Banks. On this ice the female brings forth its young in February off Labrador, and in March the seal fleet puts out from St. John's o;i its annual quest for these creatures. The young seals are chiefly sought, as their hide yields the softest leather and their fat the finest oil. If suffi- cient young ones cannot be had, the parents are killed instead. HISTORY OF ENTERPRISE. In the first half of the last century the fishery was prosecuted by sailing vessels, small at first but gradually increasing in size, to schooners and "square ri-ucrs." In 1863 the first steanur was employed in the fishery, and gradually steamers displaced sailing vessels altogether. Special steamships were built in the earlier days to carry on the industry, stout wooden vessels like the Scotch whalers. Indeed, for a long period the ships prosecuted both in- dustries, sealing in the Spring off Newfoundland, and whaling in the Summer off Greenland. For thirty years or so the steam scaling fleet has numbered from 15 to 25 vessels, and the catch has varied from 200,000 to 350,000 seals. Four years ago a new departure was made, when a large steam freighter, appropriately enough named the "Adventure, " was constructed in I':ngland,'of special design aiul superior strength, to engage in this busine-s during March, and to serve as a cargo carrier for the remainder of tlic yoir. She proved such a great succ ss that three others have since been built on the same design, and a fo.irth, s ill larger, w.s ad Jed l.st s.\sjn, plying the r..-t .,■ f V, • I I r of 'h? yea as ■ pnss -necr 'Vcr l.'vtfr Krv YrrV ?rd Sv Jo'r's and it i-^ tliouglit that as tlie wooden crafts gradually vanish, they will be replaced by steel boats, uatil the industrj- is prosecut- ed entirely by these. The pelt, comprising the skin and adhering fat, is alone sought, and is stripped from the carcase of the seal. On arriving at St. John's the fat is removed from the hide and rendered into oil by steam heat, the oil being then extensively utilized as an illuminant for light houses, as tie basis for high-class soaps, and as a sub-titute for olive oil ; while the skins are made into patent leather and in'o bic; cle saddles, kit bags, and o:her similar arti- cles. A prime pelt, as 'ardfcl at St. John s, i- worth 82, so that a season's catch of jco, 00 seils means a disbursement of $6o:),oco in the colony. LATEST SEALING LEGISLATION. The tanning of the hides is all done abroad, and in the various processes through which the article passes its value enhances ac- cordingly ; so that steps are now being taken to carry on this work in Newfoundlar.d, end keep within the "^•'-' Secretary of State lor the Colonies, in January, 19-5, s j s : c.J'J!'u ?"' T""'^ ''"'^'" •" ^^ '^"^'"'y satisfying in the case of he dry cod export. It wonl.' se m to indicate that there .s no a hng c ff .n the number, of ., . f sh that freque, t the sea fisheries by art fic.cl means, or t . st.„:,i ,rdize exports. There can be ro dot bt that very much ccn'd , e .one here 'by improv „7the methods of curing f]sh. and by i, ,r.„.,K„ g newmethod" of preplr! M M '''f °" ' "■'''' ^' ''' ^ ' ^- "•"« tie qu ntity ob En- able could ,n 5e^eral branches Ic , , C. increased It is freZ to be regretted that, both as uy.u. n.sh and minera s Brltth capital IS not further employe.' i„ „ i col.ny, wh" e aTfar .s one can judge, it cruld be ptofltal.'v -.v.-tcd TH ^^/"^"^ °"^ „r ,.„ „ ... . t^ ^"i.ii > i\i-tcci. Ihisqucstion is one of the most interesting and im, or, , , f all that are raided in t h ! report. It vNould .urely be ucnl, ul.le consider nVw H Untion of Eritish cat.it lists rr„i consider ng how the at- rescuicesofthiscoX t ;./.;,;::?;°''""'^'"'^'"^'^' clearly, in graphic fomi how e, . f he o . '''r' "f '^''^ »t,„r- •. JT-- "" u't ii.f., «' ine colony is beine lost tn Bnt^h ^ itaiii .houid ^^"v .^ .i;;:^ ^^^ ^ ^--! ^^t^^:/:^\- :^:^^- ^-e can be L thetiseofco:dstLge; by in^l .V^^lIl^I^^ftrlng S'^ ^ ud hfe the-r' '"' "^'"""*^ .-.:t markets. and'caref^U^ gJier 2 and the '"r"':^ ■'' '• '''PP'^'"^ '° ^^^ fisheries fcTence "^'l tH^t -n^ °' "'"""'' " '^e Powerful aid of modern r.Zr .^"'"^yo"^'" ^gr.e v:tl me that on the whole this report poinrs to a prosperous futui. ,. r Xewfoundland." r J'-