ABOUT LOBSTERS 



143 



product. But they were impractical because lobstermen 

 found them too hard to apply ( there were then no tongs to 

 expand them), and would not use them. Anyone who has 

 seen a freshly caught lobster, fighting mad, rearing back with 

 his claws wide open, can see how difficult it is to expand the 

 elastic and slip it over the claw. 



Fig. 19 



Fig. 20 



Another method of branding is shown in Figures 19 

 and 20. These are two samples of printed metal disks to be 

 snapped over the tail of a lobster. Each has a locking tongue 

 which pierces the tail and holds it in place. They were 

 much easier to apply than the bands but were expensive. 

 Notice that these are private name brands. 



Several years ago, wooden 

 plugs were sold, each having the 

 word " Maine " burned into 

 them. They seemed to be a solu- 

 Fig. 21 tion of branding since they re- 



quired no extra labor. A lobster is going to be plugged any- 

 way, so why not use a branded plug? They were not widely 

 enough accepted to make their manufacture profitable (the 

 plug shown in Figure 21 is a private brand ) . 



A fourth branding method, tried only in a limited way, 

 was the use of decalcomania, or transfers, whereby printing 

 is transferred from a carrying sheet to any object desired. 

 They were excellent; they were intended to be applied to the 

 carapace or solid shell of the lobster. But their application 

 was far too slow to be practical. 



A fifth way of marking a lobster is the device used by 



