Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 42.djvu/849

Rh From this simple statement of the history of the New England and northern Atlantic mackerel fisheries, I believe that the most obtuse reader will deduct the fact that the apparent disappearance of that fish from our coast is solely due to the same causes which were observed and which I have explained concerning the Irish mackerel fisheries; and I believe, and I think it is apparent from what I have written, that, in order to conserve a bountiful supply of mackerel in these waters, they should not be intercepted on their way toward their spawning grounds, certainly not until they begin to appear off the Shoals of Nantucket.

The analogy between the errors of the fishermen and the habits and instincts of the mackerel, upon both sides of the Atlantic, will be seen to be curiously coincidental; and to my mind it seems clear that similar precautions would surely bring about similar results.

It is a clear case of judgment and patience. I should probably have said want of judgment; for want of judgment, seasoned by avarice, is the sole cause of the apparent disappearance of mackerel from this coast. The habits and instincts of the mackerel are practically unchangeable; and if our fishermen only study a little more the habits of the fishes, and accustom their expeditions to the necessities compelled by these natural sequences, our food supply—in the matter of mackerel or other fish—will not measurably diminish.



LINE drawn across New Jersey from Long Branch to Salem separates a peculiar peninsula known as "South Jersey." This rudely triangular region is bounded by the ocean, Delaware Bay and River, and the rich farm lands on the outcrops of the marl-beds.

This territory is slightly undulating, little cultivated, and sparsely inhabited. There are sandy parts covered with pitch pines. Being unfit for cultivation, this should be left in forest, to regulate the climate and hold the sand in place. The pines are pioneers. They prepare the soil for other plants, and when cut are quickly replaced by oaks and other trees. There are loamy and gravelly parts worthy of careful cultivation, yielding excellent fruits and vegetables.

There are low, boggy sections, in which flourish cedars, magnolias, maples, mistletoe-stunted gums, and the like. Many of these lowlands are fit for meadows and berry bogs. A striking feature of this region are the dark and dense swamps of white cedar. The