232 HISTORY AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES. 



that a large percentage of the cod which have been caught in that region have been netted on a 

 small area of bottom, not exceeding three- fourths of a mile iu diameter. This "spot of ground" 

 appears to be swarming with cod for a considerable portion of the winter, while the adjacent bot- 

 tom seems to be almost entirely barren of fish. It is rather irregular in outline, the fishermen say, 

 judging from where the fish are taken, but so far as anything can be told of its physical conforma- 

 tion, it does not differ from the rest of the sandy slope immediately surrounding. It is said that 

 there is no "feed" on the bottom. The fishermen have a theory that there are fresh-water springs 

 in this particular locality, around which the cod love to gather; nor, indeed, can they assign any 

 other reason, since there appears to be no special feature in the character of the bottom. So per- 

 sistent are the cod in clinging to this locality that, almost invariably, nets placed within its limits 

 come up well filled with fish, while gear set a dozen or twenty fathoms distant get very few, if any, 

 cod. The fishermen have been very much puzzled to understand how the fish get to this spot 

 and escape the walls of netting which surround it on all sides. They do not believe that enough 

 cod could be there at one time to fill the nets night after night for mouths, and they arrive at the 

 conclusion that the fish must reach the place during the day, at which time they are supposed to 

 rise above and swim over the nets that bar their progress at the bottom, and which, of course, can 

 be seen by daylight. 



The common dory has been used for fishing the nets, each vessel having from seven to nine of 

 them, according to the number of the crew. The men go singly, one in each dory, and, while out, 

 either setting or underruuniug, the vessel is generally kept under \vay, the captain and cook man- 

 aging her and picking up the crew when the work is completed. As a rule, each one of a netter's 

 crew, except the captain and cook, is provided with a gang of three or more nets, which are fas- 

 tened together at top and bottom when set, these forming a wall at the bottom of the sea 150 to 

 300 fathoms long and 2 or 3 fathoms deep, being held in position by an anchor at cither end. The 

 anchor-lines are 50 fathoms long, and one end of each is bent to the upper corner of the nets. 



Under favorable circumstances, one man can set a gang of nets by letting the boat drift with 

 the wind or tide and throwing them over as it moves along, but, as a general rule, two men can 

 accomplish this much better. When setting for underruuuiug, the anchor is first thrown over, and 

 25 fathoms of the line paid out, when the buoy-line is bent to it.* The buoy and line are then 

 thrown over, and the remainder of the anchor-line, the end of the latter being made fast to the 

 nets, which are the next to follow. A middle buoy is attached to the center of the gang. When 

 the nets are all out, the other anchor-line, with the buoy-line attached, is veered out, and last of 

 all the anchor is thrown over, which finishes the work. The nets are usually set in the afternoon, 

 and allowed to remain setting for several days, unless for some reason the vessel leaves the fishing 

 ground. Even then, when forced to seek tlie shelter of a harbor during a storm, they have some- 

 times been left out. The distance at which the gangs of nets are set apart is said to be about 40 

 fathoms, but this is a matter to which no rule can be applied, as surrounding circumstances will- 

 cause many variations. Fish are caught only at night, and consequently the nets are uuderruu 

 ouly in the morning, unless the men are detained by unfavorable weather until later in the day. 

 In underrunniug, the fisherman goes to one of the buoys on the end of his gang of nets, takes it in 

 the dory, and hauls away on the buoy-line, the buoy being thrown out on the other side, and the 

 line allowed to run out on one side as fast as it is hauled in on tlie other. "When the anchor-line 

 (underruuuing line, as it is sometimes called) is up, it is taken across the dory and the fisherman 

 hauls along towards the nets. These are underruu by pulling them in on one side of the dory, 



* It is probable that a butter \\ay would bo to fasten the buoy-line to tlie upper turner of tlie net, where the 

 end of the auchor-liiie is attaehed. 



