84 



made during a night at sea with one of these boats fishing from 

 Mangalore. 



42. As is the usual practice, the boat in question left port 

 early in the afternoon. After clearing the river mouth a west 

 course was steered at a speed of about 5 knots with a favourable 

 light breeze. At the end of 1^ hours run the course was 

 altered to south and continued without change till 5-30 p.m. 

 when soundings showed the depth to be 13 fathoms, sand 

 bottom, the distance from land being about 7 miles. The 

 tindal intimated that the nets would now be shot. One hand 

 took charge of the head line with its row of wooden floats, while 

 another took up the foot of the net which lay neatly piled in 

 the waist of this shallow low-freeboard boat, which, having no 

 deck, is without separate net-room accommodation. The nets 

 were rapidly paid out over the side, the boat running south by 

 east the while. When the last of the "fleet" was shot, the 

 boat was brought up into the wind, 10 to 15 fathoms of warp 

 paid out, sail furled and then first the yard and then the mast 

 itself were lowered aft till they rested on a rectangular crutch 

 at the stern above the tiller. 



The last of 

 these operations 

 was completed as 

 the sun sank 

 below the horizon 

 when the men 

 prepared to make 

 themselves com- 

 fortable and take 

 a rest till 8 p.m. 

 when the first 

 examination of 

 the net usually 

 takes place. 



Ficr. 1. 



5 



^^=^Z^ 



Cintch over stern to take mast and yard, Patnagiri 



fishing 1 boat. 



43. The net used during this season, October to January, is 

 the vowri, a light hemp net having a mesh of 4j inches. It is 

 ■usually made up of 40 pieces, each piece when mounted being 

 from 20 to 27 fathoms in length, by about 2 J fathoms deep. 



