THE HERRING FISHERY. 435 



by them each season. The law is practically of little value, as many of the inspectors fail to 

 report on their work, and a considerable quantity of herring salted at Eastport and elsewhere are 

 never inspected. 



In Massachusetts the inspection of herring intended for pickling is not required by law, 

 though the fish are often properly packed and branded before being placed upon the market. 

 Section 36 of chapter XLIX, of the General Statutes of Massachusetts for 1859, says : 



"Under the supervision of the inspector-general and his deputies, respectively, all kinds of 

 split pickled fish and fish for barreling, except herring, and all codfish tongues and sounds, 

 halibut fins and napes, and swordfish, whenever said articles are intended for exportation, shall 

 be struck with salt or pickle," &c. 



THE MARKETS. The principal markets for salt herring along the New England coast are 

 Portland, Boston, Gloucester, and Eastport. Portland probably takes the lead in this trade, 

 receiving the bulk of the herring taken about Wood Island, as well as those caught in Penobscot 

 Bay, and on the spawning grounds off Boisbubert. This port also secures a considerable portion of 

 the fish caught off Cape Ann. Boston is more of a distributing center for the fish, and many of 

 those bought and packed by the Portland dealers are shipped there for distribution to the trade. 

 Gloucester affords a fair market for the catch taken about Cape Ann by the local fishermen; and 

 when the export trade will warrant it sometimes buys largely from the herring dealers of other 

 cities. 



Eastport, being situated in the center of the principal herring fisheries of the United States, 

 necessarily handles a large quantity of these fish. The fisheries are prosecuted chiefly in winter, 

 when the herring can be frozen, and the merchants have come to make a specialty of this trade, 

 and they now, in connection with several Boston companies, control the frozen-herring trade of 

 New England. During the spring and fall, and at such times during the winter as the weather 

 will not admit of freezing the fish, a limited quantity are pickled and sold to the Eastport 

 dealers for shipment to Boston and New York. 



Prior to the rebellion the bulk of the pickled herring were consumed by the negroes of the 

 Southern States, but the liberation of the slaves had a decided influence on the trade, which has 

 since come to be of little importance. At the present time a majority of the herring are shipped 

 to the mining districts of Pennsylvania, though considerable quantities find their way to the West, 

 where they are consumed largely by the poorer classes, noticeably by the Germans, the Scotch, and 

 other foreigners. 



HEREING- FOR BAIT. Mention has already been made of the extensive herring fisheries in 

 different localities for the purpose of supplying bait for the New England fishing fleet. Those 

 vessels engaged in the various branches of the codfishing, as well as some of those employed in 

 the fresh halibut and winter haddock fisheries, are dependent almost entirely upon herring for 

 their bait. The whole question of the use of frozen herring as bait will be found in the chapter on 

 frozen herring, but the bait used by the vessels in summer will more properly be considered in this 

 connection. 



For the last twenty years few vessels, with the exception of those employed in the shore 

 fisheries, have carried nets for the purpose of securing their own bait, as they have found it more 

 desirable to purchase their supply from the weir, net, or seine fishermen at different points along 

 the shore. A portion of the fleet depended largely on the catch of menhaden in the Gulf of 

 Maine, and these in a measure took the place of herring. Since 1879, however, the menhaden have 

 been almost wholly absent from these waters, and the fishermen have been seriously inconvenienced 



