BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 403 



butts the fish are spread upon flakes or wooden frames (flesh up) to dry. 

 If the weather is clear, with dry winds, they will dry in two days (some- 

 times in one day) ; at ni jiht they are made into piles (about 100 i)ounds to a 

 pile) on the flakes (flesh down) and protected by wooden covers. If 

 very dry fish are needed, they must be " water hawsed" before going on 

 the flakes ; that is, taken from the butts and piled on a board floor 

 (flesh down) to the height of 4 feet and width of 5 feet (nr lengths of two 

 fish). They are left in this condition for one or two days in order to 

 allow the brine to drain ofi*. These will cure more quickly and be firmer 

 than fish not " water hawsed." When fish are split aboard the vessels 

 they are piled in the hold flesh up. On a short trip (two or three weeks) 

 one bushel of salt is used to 300 pounds of fish ; on a long trip (from 

 one to three or four months) more salt is used, sometimes a bushel to 

 100 pounds of fish. When landed from the vessels the fish are washed 

 in salt water and resalted in butts. If from a long trip they may be 

 washed and "water hawsed" without resalting. — March 20, 1880. 



Specimen of squid. — I have just received a letter from Professor 

 Verrill concerning the specimen of squid sent him^ten days ago. He 

 says : " The head of the squid belongs to a young specimen of Architeuthis 

 liarveyi. It is the youngest yet discovered and of interest on that account; 

 moreover, it is in a better state of preservation than any of the other 

 specimens yet preserved, so that it shows some additional points of 

 structure. It is therefore a very interesting and useful specimen." — 

 April 9, 1880. 



Cod and herring, — Since January 12, cod have been very scarce 

 in Boston Bay. Westward of Thatcher's Island at that date they sud- 

 denly disappeared from the grounds where they had usually been 

 abundant at that season. Day before yesterday, April 22, fish reap- 

 peared 7 miles to the southeast of Eastern Point, when a vessel with 

 seven men took 5,000 pounds of large cod in one day, in trawls with 

 small herring for bait. Boats are hurrying to get ready for this the 

 opening of the spring fishing. Herring are also making their appear- 

 ance. On Tuesday night the first net of the season was set near East-* 

 ern Point, and two herring were caught; W^ednesday night a few more 

 were taken; Thursday night, thirty or forty to a net. Several nets 

 are now being set in the same vicinity. W^ith plenty of herring the 

 boats and dories may do a good work this spring. — April 24, 1880. 



Cod and specimen of rare devil-fish. — A school of cod seems 

 to have " struck in " near Newburyport. Schooner Lucy Devliu, of 

 Swampscott, arrived here yesterday with 30,000 pounds of large cod, 

 which were taken on Friday and Saturday with trawls 7 miles east from 

 Newburyport bar in 32 1 athomsof water. They used small herring from 

 Provincetown for bait. The fleet in Ipswich Bay numbers only four or 

 five sail. The small devil-fish in lot 078 is reported by Professor Ver- 

 rill to be the second specimen received of the new species Octopus ohe- 

 Siis.—A^ril 26, 188Q. 



