FISHERIES AND SEAL-HUNTING. 73 



ing nets, seines, and cast-nets, (" eperviers.") Tbe fishermen and pro- 

 prietors of fisheries buy the material for tbe nets, viz, twine, thread, 

 small cords, cords, &c, from the Astraehan merchants, who get them 

 from Nijui-Novgorod, Kazan, and Saratow. They use for sturgeon-fish- 

 ing in the sea nets which are 12 " sagenes " (84 feet) long and 4 " ar- 

 sheens"(9 feet 4 inches) deep, made of five-ply or six ply thread, with 

 meshes oh to 4 inches square, and furnished with floats and leads. 

 These nets are laid as deep as 4 " sagenes," (28 feet.) Generally, from 

 20 to 40 are joined, and sometimes even as many as 80 or 100, so as to 

 form a straight line extending several " versts." The whole line of nets 

 is held up by bolt-ropes on a row of stakes, which are driven into the 

 bottom of the sea. Fishing with stationary nets coutinues from April 

 till the end of May, and from August till the beginning of October. 

 During the second part of the autumn and in the winter, they are but 

 rarely used. 



For catching the great sturgeon, ("belouga,") especially in the winter, 

 large nets 12 " sagenes " (84 feet) long and G " arsheens " (14 feet) deep, 

 are used, with meshes 8 inches square. 



In the lagoons, and in the narrow channels ("yeryke") connecting 

 them, as well as in the mouths of rivers, stationary nets are also set for 

 catching sturgeon and different kinds of scaly fish. According to the 

 regulations, these nets must be set in such a manner as to leave one- 

 third of the river unobstructed. The nets for catching scaly fish are 

 made of 3 and 4 ply threads; are likewise 12 "sagenes" (84 feet) long, 

 but not more than 2 "arsheens" (4 feet 8 inches) broad. The meshes 

 are of different sizes. For Lucioperca sandra and Lucioperca volgensis 

 and Abramis brama, they measure 2.} inches; for other small scaly fish, 

 1£ inches ; and for Coregonus leucichthys, 4 inches. In places that are not 

 very deep, these nets are attached to poles, while in deep places they 

 rest on stationary stakes. 



Among the stationary nets must also be classed the sweep-nets made 

 of from four to seven osier hoops of different diameter, covered with a 

 net forming a sort of hood over them. The circle which forms the en- 

 trance, and to which the hood and the wings are attached, has a diam- 

 eter of from % to 1£ " sagenes," (5 feet 3 inches to 10 feet G inches.) The 

 other circles, whose diameterdimiuishes gradually, are! to 1.1 "arsheeus" 

 (1 foot 8 inches to 2 feet G inches) apart. The net extends li "arsheens" 

 (1 foot 8 inches) beyond the smallest circle forming the last bag; or, 

 ending in a leap between the first and third circle, there is another net 

 inside, in the shape of a funnel or truncated cone, called " straight en- 

 trance," (" goulet " in French,) whose inner opening, 4 inches broad, 

 allows the fish to pass into the leap or bag. This entrance is kept open 

 by means of cords. Each wing of the sweep-net is from li to 3 " sa- 

 genes*' (10 feet G inches to 21 feet) long, and the meshes are from l£to 

 2 inches square. The nets, which are fixed to poles, are placed in such 

 a manner that the opening, like an enormous mouth, faces the fish, 



