io6 THE FISHERIES OF THE ADRIATIC, 



mounted on a shorter length of line, so as to hang slack in the water, and to 

 give way when the fish strike it. Four Spedoni joined together form what is 

 called 2,giogo. 



The net is attached at one end by a rope to a stone, and at the other end 

 to a float, consisting either of an empty cask or of cork ; it is then allowed 

 to drift at the mercy of winds or currents. 



The net is "cast," or "shot," by first casting anchor, from which spot the 

 boat is then withdrawn to a certain distance, where the stone is sunk to 

 which one end of the net is attached ; the boat is then hauled in by the 

 anchor-rope, whilst the net is being paid out by two men. If bait is used, as 

 on the west coast of Istria, it is scattered about before paying out the net, 

 and subsequently, also, in a circle round the position of the net. 



If mackerel, or horse mackerel, make their appearance, they are looked 

 upon as the forerunners of sardines ; which is, however, not always the case. 



The nets act as barriers for intercepting moving shoals, and the fish 

 become meshed in their efforts to pass through, forcing their heads into the 

 meshes, the size of mesh varying according to whether mackerel, or other 

 fish, are to be caught, and being made so as to allow the head and gill-covers 

 to pass through, but not so the body of the fish. When the fish has passed 

 through beyond the gills, it is effectually caught, and there is little chance of 

 escape, the opening of the gill-covers which enable the fish to breathe, and 

 the act of breathing itself, causing the mesh to slip forward and catch in the 

 gill-opening, by which action the fish is prevented from withdrawing the 

 head. 1 



If the net is moved, and scales appear at the surface, it is 'a sure sign that 

 the net has been " struck," and the net is then drawn in, commencing at one 

 end, and by degrees, as it is drawn in, the fish are extracted and put in 

 casks, or tubs, being at the same time sprinkled with salt. 



The catch is effected most profitably just before sunrise, or just after 

 sunset, when the net escapes the notice of the fish. 



The sardine rises to the surface only in fine and moderately warm weather ; 



1 E. W. H. Holdsworth. 



