Sidewalk Skipper
Although a few menhaden were
caught the latter part of October,
it was too rough for most of the
boats to do anything. Rumor has it
that many of the boats which usual
ly fish here in the winter will stay
in Louisiana or up north.
But judging from past years, all
that has to happen here is for the
boats to come in with the side
boards up about three nights in a
row and other boats will chug here
so fast you can't see 'em for spray.
Price of shrimp has been bet
ter this year, but the catch off
"because of the ignorant law,"
declares David Beveridge of
Beaufort. He is referring to the
fisheries commission regulation
which wouldn't let boats shrimp
until July 1 this year.
In May and June, Cap'n Bever
idge says, there were a lot of
shrimp here, but by July they were
all gone.
Cap'n Berkley Willis of Davis
who put bis boat up on Noe's rail
ways the other day lor a general
overhaul, was asked if he's been
getting any shrimp.
"Well, it's like this," he said,
leaning on the long-handled brash
he was using to swab the hull, "I've
been runnin' my boat? and I'm a
bout $500 to the lu'ward than when
I commenced. And I'll tell you this,
and it's just as true as Genesis, as
long as the fish commission keep
anessin' with things, we're not goin'
to have any fish.
"They've all gone down to the
Gulf and the boys down there are
gettin' 'em." Cap'n Willis turned
to- bis boat, and then changed his
aoind, "And I'll tell you something
else," he declared, "I'm goin' to
have to pay $60 more in taxes just
to run this boat, besides my state
and county taxes."
He said he usually fishes the boat
himself but if anyone does go with
him, it's his boy, Clement.
Bob Slater of Machine and
Supply company, Beaufort, re
cently returned from Detroit
where he attended a school on
the new lie series General Mo
tors Diesel engine. Bob says his
company is making up Marine
auxiliary units for menhaden
boats and large trawlers.
Crip Jones of Beaufort has had
his cruiser Jenikit up on the ways
at Noe's for overhauling.
The Sea King will sail in Car
teret waters this season with a new
. depth recorder. This boat fishes for I
R. W. Taylor co., Morehead City.
Winston Hill of Atlantic has in
stalled a new 110 series GM Diesel
in the Edith.
Lon Willis of Beaufort says the
Evelyn L. Willis will fish this year.
"It's been so bad," be declared,
"don't know whether we can even
afford to send her out."
The Universal Fish and Prawn
company of Southport have had an
engine and clutch overhaul job on
the trawler Paul Francis. Capt. T.
H. Watson of Southport has also
bad a new GM Diesel put in his
trawler
Wallace M. Quinn's new men
haden plant in Louisiana was fea
tured in a full-length article in this
nonth's Atlantic Fisherman.
Mast of the shrimpers at Soatfc
port are reported to have left for
Florida shrimpiac grounds. Clyde
Potter's shrimpers fished out of
?orthern Gulf ports this summer
but they will head for Key West
within the next several weeks.
A 24-volt system has been in
stalled in the Robert E. Coker, In
stitute of Fisheries research boat.
Boats of that size usually operate
an a 12- volt system but higher volt
age was necessary to operate the
Coker's direction finder and fath
ometer. ?
The fathometer, lent to the In
stitute by the Submarine Signal
company, is the latest typt record
ing device and is used to run bot
torn profiles across the sounds in
search of new oyster beds.
Beaufort Fisheries has had a new
set of GM Diesels installed in the
Doswell S. Edwards.
Before she went north to fish in
Delaware this summer the Willis
Brothers' pogy boat. Tender Heart,
had a depth recorder installed.
They're still buying all the clams
they can get down at Williston. The
shucked clams are shipped to Heinz
at Pittsburgh and those in the <
shells go to Cleveland where
they're used at clambakes.
One of the Willis Brothers said
Friday that they were shipping
50.000 clams to Cleveland the next !
day. He said they average about
4.000 to 5.000 bushels a yeaf to that
market.
Capt. Alfred Pittman, skipper
of the Lois Nancy, says this fall ,
is the best sportsfishing season
boatmen have had in many a
year. If Uie sunny, warm weath
er continues, he predicts the sea
son will continue longer than in
any other recent year.
I
Trash fish whiclj come in on the
trawlers are shoveled up and haul-]
ed off to the Canal Fish company, j
located on the inland waterway, I
where they are made into scrap and i
then sold to companies which grind i
it into meal.
Hanging on the west wall of S. !
W. Davis Brothers retail fish mar- ;
ket, Beaufort, is a painting of the
Smith menhaden boat, Calcasieu,
done by Sammy Davis of tUrkcrs'
Island.
Retail fish dealers report that
spot have been right plentiful, a
nice lot of roe mullet have been ?
on the market, and in the past week
grey trout, pig fish and flounder.
Shrimp have been selling, per '
pound, in the 60-cent bracket.
Possession of state patrol boats'
radio crystal by commercial fish- j
ermen helps the state patrol boats
not a bit. And for weeks after
lightning hit the local radio sta
tion, those programs were coming
in on the state's ship to shore ra
dio out at the section base, some
thing which just shouldn't be.
C. D. Kirkpatrick said the broad- !
casting station promised to fix
things as soon as it could get the
equipment.
Cap'n Noe, whcse ways are lo
cated at the Beaufort bridge told
Eraest Davis tae awiul truth the
ctber week: "Your boat is like
lots of people, it's just been a
round too long."
Work Progresses
(Continued from page 1)
In some instances, these micro
scopic plants were fed to oysters
kept m the laboratory and their
iood value ascertained.
"Radioactive phosphorus has
been added to the material in
which the microscopic plants were
grown and observations made as to
the part played by phosphorus as
a fertilizing material, much the
same as studies are made of the
phosphorus of fertilizers for our 1
well-known large garden plants."
the scientist explained. In addition, '
the changes in phosphorus in oys
ters after eating these minute ,
plants were measured. These stud
ies will be continued so that later
a more complete knowledge <riU be
gained of the various links of the
food chains which lead from the
small marine plants of the sea to
our well-known sea food organisms,
such as clams, oysters, shrimps, and j
fishes. Dr. Chipman reported. j
it is planned to study other re
dioactive materials soon in coanec- j
tion with the studies of these food
cycles and, in addition, obtain an j
answer to the problem of the tak
ing up of radioactivity and the
time that the marine animals or i
fish may remain radioactive when
these substances are present in the
water, a situation which ir'-jht a
rise from pollution or the dropping
of an atomic bomb in our coastal
waters.
Bottom Charts
Will Be Available
Late This Year
Shrimp Surrey Completes
Work Valuable to Own
ers of Trawlers
As the result of the shrimp !
survey, engineered by the In- 1
stitute of Fisheries Research, i
six charts showing bottom 1
conditions off the North Car-i
olina coast will be available >
to fishermen the latter part
of this year.
These charts will be the first of <
their type ever made for these wat- 1
ers. The charts are numbered 1 to ;
6 and cover the area from Cape i
Lookout to Little River, and from 1
shore to depths as great as 100
fathoms. Chart No. 1 shows bottom
conditions off Carteret county from
Cape Lookout to New river. This
chart covers depths to 16 fathoms.
Size of the finished charts will be
11 inches by 15 3/4 inches.
A text explaining the charts and
telling of the work in making them
has been written by Carter Broad,
shrimp specialist with the Institute ;
of Fisheries Research, W. A. Elli
son, jr., director of the institute,
with notations also by members of
the shrimp commission, headed by
William Wells of Southport.
Broad, who is chiefly respon
sible for the collection of data and
i making of these charts, has com
mented on the work as follows:
| "The type of bottom on which a
fishery is located is of prime im
! portance to that fishery. Regard
'less of what sort of fish may be
'present in the water, the bottom
must be of such a nature that trawl
nets may be operated on it. Bot
I torn type is doubly important to a
shrimp fishery for, not only must
the bottom be smooth and Tree of
obstructions, but ? if experience
can teach us anything about catch
ing shrimp ? it must also be muddy.
"While the primary purpose of
the shrimp survey was to 'find and
| develop' new shrimping grounds,
| the survey act. cognizant of the de
| pendence of trawl fisheries on the
nature of the bottom, also included i
;i provision for surveying and chart
ing the sea floor off North Caro- 1
lina.
"Three separate but related sets j
of data have been collected in the j
shrimp survey. Hydrographic data
were collected to answer the ques
tion: are conditions offshore favor
able to the habitation of commer
cial shrimp? Bottom data were col
lected to answer the question: are
the offshore banks suitable to use
by a trawl fishery? Data on the
inhabitants of the offshore waters
were collected to answer the ques
tion: are there shrimp or fish pres
See BOTTOM CHARTS, Page 12
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