444 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



eastward, and of a poorer quality than \hose taken in Massachusetts 

 Bay. 



August 31. — Most of the mackerel fleet ire now between Monhegan 

 and Cape Elizabeth, Me., and are having a Moderate catch, the schools 

 being small and mixed with alewives, grea quantities of which are 

 taken with the mackerel. 



The fishermen all report never having seen v r heard before of such 

 quantities of alewives at this season of the year From their descrip- 

 tion the fish are no doubt the Clupea aestivalis, g vit herring, or blue- 

 back. 



None of the mackerel seiners saved any of the alewives. Two small 

 steamers that have been engaged in the shore whale-rshery and a few 

 other small vessels have been engaged in capturing thtse alewives and 

 selling them to the oil and fertilizer factories at BootLoay, receiving 

 40 cents a barrel for them. The fish are of good size, verj fat, and said 

 to produce 3 gallons of oil to the barrel of fish. 



The close of the month finds the mackerel fleet located i ,s follows : 

 50 sail off Mount Desert; 50 sail off Isle au Haut ; 80 sail off M mhegan ; 

 20 sail in Gulf of Saint Lawrence. 



The remainder of the fleet were scattered between Cape Cod ; nd the 

 Maine coast. During the past two weeks the catch showed a hirge 

 falling off in all directions. 



August 31.— The first steamer ever built for the mackerel fishery ar- 

 rived at Gloucester to-day, took on her four seine-boats, and went to sta. 

 This steamer, the Novelty, is 150 feet long, 27 feet beam, 11 T ^ feet hold « 

 gross tonnage of 294, net 197.45, is schooner rig, carries four seine- boats, 

 two being swung on davits on each side of the steamer, four seines, and 

 a crew of 40 men. It is furnished with engines of 450 horse-power. 

 The Novelty enters the field too late to demonstrate this season whether 

 steam is a benefit and liable to lead to another radical change in the 

 mackerel fishery or not. She is a fine seaworthy-looking vessel, built 

 and commanded by Capt. H. C. Joyce, one of the ablest and most sue- 

 eessful fishermen in New England, and her future will be watched with 

 much interest. 



Prices of mackerel per barrel at Gloucester during August, 1885, (sales being made by the 



cargo). 



