BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 135 



61 SOIflE NOTES OIV TBE mUL.IL.£:T FISHERIES. 



By BARNET PHILLIPS. 



MULLET FISHING ON THE WEST COAST OP FLORIDA, AT CEDAR KEYS. 



The season for mullet fishing- in the neighborhood of Cedar Keys be- 

 gins about the last of November and continues until the first ten days 

 of February, the best months being December and January. 



The fish will weigh from 2 to 3 pounds; occasionally a fish of 7 pounds 

 has been taken. The gillnet, seine-net, and cast-net are all used. The 

 gill-net is 150 yards long, 8 to 10 feet deep, with a mesh of If inches, 

 and is worked by one man in a boat. One thousand fish is considered 

 a good day's work. The seine is from 60 to 90 fathoms long, 22 feet 

 deep, size of mesh 1^ inches, and it is worked with 8 men in a boat ; a 

 good day's take is 10,000 fish, although often as many as 22,000 are 

 taken. The cast-net, a circular net, held in the mouth and thrown out 

 by a movement of the arm, will take 100 fish a day, though 500 fish are 

 not uncommon. 



The fish are all shipped to Cedar Keys. The gangs working seines are 

 established along the coast, as far down as Tampa Bay, and small 

 schooners of from 10 to 16 tons carry the mullet from the fishing camps. 



At Cedar Keys the fresh fish find a ready market, and are shipped 

 through Florida to Georgia, and to South Carolina, in ice. A great many 

 fish are salted, and the roes are cured. The method of preparing the 

 roe is as follows : The roes are taken out carefully, and a peck of salt is 

 used to the half-barrel of roe, and mixed with it. The salt and roe re- 

 main together for 6 hours. They are then taken out, strained, and 

 placed on planks, and put in the sun to dry. The roes are frequently 

 turned. When dried, so as to be still somewhat soft, another plank is 

 put on top of them, and they are pressed a little, so as to be flat. Care 

 has to be taken that they do not become too hard.* They find a ready 

 market all over the country. 



The fish are split, cleansed, and dry Liv^erpool salt is put on them ; 

 they are then piled up or "banked" for 12 hours. A pickle is made, 

 strong enough to float a potato, which is then put on the fish, and they 

 are shipped in barrels of 200 pounds. 



Fresh fish are worth 2J cents each. Eoes alone without the fish 1 

 cent. 



The seines cost $125. When net and boat are furnished, the owner 

 gets one third of the gross sales of fish. 



Clear Water seems to be the limit of the mullet fisheries, from Cedar 

 Keys. The hands are principally white, one-eighth being colored, but 



* la Greece, Tvhere mullet are caught, the roes are preserved by the same process, 

 only that when dried they are dipped in melted beeswax. 



