CHAPTER XIII 



METHODS OF INSHORE FISHERIES 



The methods of catching and curing groundfish cod, 

 hake, haddock, halibut, etc. in the inshore fisheries is es- 

 sentially the same that is employed in taking the fish 

 in the offshore fisheries. Lines, trawls and bait are used 

 inshore as well as offshore, and the fish are prepared for 

 market in a similar manner. Also, the catching of mack- 

 erel by the purse-seine is illustrative of the method used 

 in taking herring, menhaden and alewives in deep water. 

 But the capture of herring in shallow water and the 

 process of curing and packing the fish, and the means em- 

 ployed in taking certain kinds of shellfish call for separate 

 treatment of the methods used in inshore fisheries. One 

 of the most important inshore fisheries of New England is 

 the industry of taking and packing young herring for the 

 sardine trade. 



The principal method of capturing young herring is 

 by brush weirs. Herring may be taken by means of torch- 

 ing, that is, the use of lights and dip-nets at night, but 

 this method is employed to a limited extent. The brush 

 weir was known and used in Nova Scotia previous to 

 the beginning of the nineteenth century. It was intro- 

 duced into the United States about 1820 at North Lubec, 

 Maine. By 1880, American fishermen were engaged in fish- 

 ing with 66 weirs in the Passamaquoddy region. 



The best location for a weir is at a point of land that 

 extends well out into the water, or in a channel between 

 two or more islands or ledges. Weirs are usually placed 



247 



