AND THE FISH THEREOF. 119 



rowing by degrees to the tail end, and held open by successive hoops 

 (cerckietti). It is composed of different parts : the first, called chiara, is large- 

 meshed ; the second is the bnsto, and is made of smaller meshes ; the third is 

 the mezzana, made of still smaller meshes; last comes the pillela, or picla, 

 the purse, made of very coarse and strong twine, and very small-meshed, into 

 which the fish enter through a kind of very narrow funnel called cnca. 

 Once inside, they become packed, and are unable to turn back. It is also 

 used for catching eels in the fishing-ponds (valli chiuse). 



The Bragagna, worked by a boat called Bragagna, or Bragagnella, is a 

 seine combined with the Cogblo. The boat having previously cast anchor, at a 

 short distance off, hauls in the anchor chain on a roller {inolinello), thus 

 drawing the net in its wake. The net has no floats to keep up the head, but 

 it is held stretched in the water by a series of sticks fixed vertically along the 

 two winofs and around the mouth of the baor At the end of each of the 

 wings there is a small Cogblo with three hoops with the opening in an 

 opposite direction to that of the middle bag. 



It is well weighted at the foot {ima) to keep it down, and the drag-rope 

 ends are attached to the bows and the poop, the boat moving broadside on 

 (in fianco), the net grazing the ground ; worked by day or night, on muddy 

 beds, in shallow water, in creeks and lagoons, chiefly for gobies and small 

 shore-fish. Length, 20 m. ; depth, 4 m. ; mesh, 2J c. ; price, 60 florins. 



The Grippo is similar to the foregoing almost in every respect. It is 

 smaller-meshed (i-J c), and, instead of the two Cogbli at the ends of the 

 wings, it has two small bags without hoops. It is less heavily weighted at 

 the foot ; it is sustained in the water by corks at the head ; and has fewer 

 sticks to keep it extended. 



The Tartana is composed of the Sacco and Cogblo, somewhat similar to 

 the Grippo, and is used by the Chioggiotti for catching ground-fish in 

 15-fathoms water ; it is drawn by a single boat of the same name under sail, 

 the drag-ropes being attached to two spars (spuntieri or spout eri), one fore 

 and the other aft, in order to keep the net better extended in the w r ater, the 

 boat drifting broadside on (in fianco). Total length, 1 2 m. This method is 

 falling gradually into disuse, in favour of the Cocchia. 



