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is sent by rail to inland towns in the Waikato and through the King-country, and at certain seasons as far south as Wellington. Bay of Islands. —lnspector Stephenson reports that the principal market fish taken during the year were schnapper, mullet, flounders, garfish, kahawai, tarakihi, kingfish, and crayfish, all of which were on the whole found to be fairly plentiful; the catches being disposed of at Auckland and inland markets, and the prices obtained by fishermen is reported to have been satisfactory. There are two mullet-canneries in the district, one at Purei.ua and the other at Awanui. There were thirty-eight oases canned at the Purerua factory and 537 at Awanui, valued approximately at £1 per case. There are also sixteen smokehouses in all places smoking schnapper and mullet. These fish prepared in this way command a ready sale. The, number of fishing-boats registered at the Port of Russell for the year ended the 31st December, 1914, was sixty-seven, with crews totalling 161- -viz., 103 Europeans and 58 Natives. The whaling carried out by Messrs. Jagger and Cook on this coast has been considered fairly profitable, having captured fifty-seyen whales for the season, which yielded 270 tons of oil and 60 tons bonedust, the value of the oil being £4,590, and £360 for the bonedust. Oysters. -During last oyster season only a portion of both the middle and southern subdivisions were picked, giving an output of 4,278 sacks. The beds are looking very well indeed, oysters increasing and spreading in all directions. Kaipara. —Captain Savident, Harbourmaster and Inspector of Fisheries, reports that fish are plentiful and the fishermen have had a successful season. Mullet, schnapper, flounders, trevalli, and gurnard are the principal fish taken. The following are approximately the quantities of fish caught for the year"ended the 31st March: Mulled-Canned, 20,000 dozen; sold fresh, 35,000 dozen. Schnapper -Sold fresh, 8,000 dozen ; smoked, 5,000 dozen. Flounders, sold fresh, 20,000 dozen. Trevalli, sold fresh, 1,000 dozen. Gurnard, sold fresh, 200 dozen. Whitebait.- The following reports have been received with regard to the run of these fish in the principal whitebait rivers during the past year: Waikato River—The run has been better than the previous season. Ngaruroro and Tukituki (Hawke's Bay)—A fair run of whitebait, but on the whole rather below the average of other seasons. Buller River—Last whitebait season was good. Grey River—The run last season was rather poor. Hokitika River—A very fair season, rather above the average. Waimakariri, Styx, and Avon-—The last whitebait season was a very good one. Some record catches were made in the Waimakariri and Styx. Quinnat Salmon. —A succession of floods in the Hakataramea River during the month of May, 1914, interfered seriously with, the collection of salmon-eggs. The nets were washed out several times, and most of the salmon escaped up-stream and spawned in reaches of the river in the gorge. The manager at Hakataramea reports a heavier run of fish than the previous season, but owing to the unfavourable river-conditions the number of eggs collected was less. On account of the large number of salmon which escaped up the Hakataramea during the floods the river was heavily stocked with the salmon-fry hatched from the natural spawning. In the late summer and autumn thousands of fine strong healthy fish were to be seen in every pool. The total number of eggs collected for the season was 234,000, which, were disposed of as follows : 25,000 were supplied to the Tasmanian Government; 145,000 were sent to the West-Coast for stocking the Hokitika River; 53,000 were hatched out at Hakataramea. The loss during the incubation and hatching of the eggs was 11,000. During the year 41,000 three-months-old fry, 19,254 yearling salmon, 680 two-years-old and 36 three-years-old fish were liberated from the stations. The number of salmon in the ponds on the 31st March was as follows : 19,929 ten-months-old fish, 598 one year and ten months old, 100 two years old, and 35 three years old. During the angling season it was reported that salmon were caught with rod and line at the mouth of the Waitaki and Rangitata Rivers, and also that they were frequently taken with, hook and line off Timaru and Oamaru by persons fishing for sea-fish. The run of spawning salmon during the present season (1915) in the headwaters of some of the main tributaries of the Waitaki is undoubtedly the heaviest since the fish first commenced to run up from the sea. When recently in the Upper Waitaki district I was told by men who have lived for a number of years near the rivers and lakes in that region, and who are in the habit of observing the spawning every season, that there are more salmon and larger fish than any previous season. Mr. Macdonald, manager of Ben Ohau Station, said that for some years he had watched the salmon spawning in the Ohau River, and this year from its outflow from the' lake to its junction with the Waitaki River (a distance of about eighteen miles) he had never seen so many fish. When I arrived at Benmore Station after leaving the Ben Ohau Camp on the 18th, Mr. Sutherland (manager) told me his head shepherd and musterers had returned a few days before from the head of the lake and reported hundreds of large salmon spawning in the Dobson River, so I went on to the head of the lake the same afternoon to see for myself, and ascertain whether it would be possible to get any eggs. Mr. Fraser, the shepherd in charge there, provided me with a riding-horse and accompanied me to the Dobson the following morning. We examined the river from its junction with the Hopkins to where the camp joins it, a distance of about eight miles. The statement of the Benmore shepherds with regard to the fish I found to be practically correct. We saw a number of large fish in every pool—we counted as many as fifteen in one—and large spawning-beds every chain or so as far as we went. From the appearance of the fish, the number of spawning-beds, and the number of dead fish on the. shingle beaches it was evident that the spawning was about finished for this season. We saw some very large fish : two spent dead fish measured 42 in. and 42$ in., and I estimate, the average size of the fish we saw at from 201b. to 25 Ib. I may say that I inspected the Dobson

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