BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 49 



Vol. IV, j¥o. 4. Vl^ishiiigtoBi, D. C. April 15, 1884. 



16— A 8E AR€II FOR ITJACKEREi:. OFF BI.OCK ISIi AND, iTIONTAVK, AND 

 SAIVI>Y HOOK, IIV NOVEMBER, 1§S3. 



By J. W. COLIilNS. 



[From a letter to Prof. S. F. Baird.] 



The following facts which I have obtained from Capt. Adoniram J. 

 Burnham relative to a cruise he made last month in search of mackerel 

 in the waters off Block Island, Montauk, and Sandy Hook, may prove 

 of some interest to you; therefore I take the liberty of submitting them 

 to your consideration. 



Captain Burnham left Provincetown on November 1 in the schooner 

 Hereward, of Gloucester. The vessel was fitted for purse-seiniug, hav- 

 ing one seine boat and two seines. Besides this, she carried a good sup- 

 ply of the best menhaden bait for tolling up mackerel, and plenty of 

 jigs and lines. 



The wind blew strong from the westward on the day that the Here- 

 ward left ProAiucetown ; therefore she anchored that night at Hyannis. 

 On the following morning she got underway and beat over to Tarpaulin 

 Cove, where she lay until the next day. Leaving Tarpaulin Cove early 

 on the morning of November 3, with a moderate northwest wind Cap- 

 tain Burnham stood out of Vineyard Sound, from whence he steered off 

 to the southward of Block Island. When about 8 miles southwest of 

 Block Island he hove to and "tried" for mackerel, throwing out ground 

 menhaden toll-bait. He "raised" a school of tinkers and caught 50 

 or 60 fish, which averaged about 10 inches in length. These mack- 

 erel seemed disinclined to take the hook, though they were quite plenty 

 alongside the vessel; not, however, sufficiently abundant to warrant set- 

 ting a seine around them. Another trial was made about 7 to 8 miles 

 farther south, with the same result as before, small mackerel being 

 tolled up and about CO of them caught. 



" It was a beautiful evening," says Captain Burnham, " and probably 

 we should have seen some schools if mackerel had been plenty." 



That night the wind blew up fresh from the southwest, and the Here- 

 ward ran into New London, where she lay over Sunday, November 4. 

 Monday morning, November 5, the wind having moderated, the schooner 

 got under way, and passing Block Island and Montauk — the latter in 

 the afternoon — stood off on a south-southeast course, the wind being 

 southwest by south. The morning of November 6, the Hereward hove 

 to and " tried " for mackerel 70 miles south-southeast from Montauk, 

 her position being latitude 39° 56' north, longtitude 71° 03' west. No 

 mackerel were tolled up. Two other attempts were made during the 

 Bull. U. S. F. C, 84-^ 4 



