80 ABOUT LOBSTERS 



lobster pot. Three variables appeared which were not con- 

 trollable: 



1. The speed with which a bait dissolves is gov- 

 erned by where the pot lands on the ocean floor. If it 

 lands in a valley through which tides and ocean cur- 

 rents sweep, the bait does not last long. If it lands in a 

 placid spot, the bait does not dissolve quickly enough. 



2. The temperature of the water also governs the 

 speed. Warm summer water naturally dissolves a bait 

 quicker than cold water. ( Eventually, LobLure put out 

 a different bait for winter fishing, when the water 

 would be colder and the pots not hauled every day. ) 



3. The feeding cycle of lobsters, particularly be- 

 fore and after shedding, varies. 



The most attractive method of dispensing a bait was to 

 make it into a cake of salt-water soap, using fish oil as the 

 necessary fat. It looked thoroughly commercial, easy to 

 make and ship. But it had many disadvantages: either the 

 soap was too soft and washed away quickly, or if it was 

 harder, it did not fish well the first few days and finally did 

 not fish at all, becoming a hard mass with a water-impervi- 

 ous shell. Notice how these experiments led toward a bait 

 intended to fish for several days, instead of a one-day set. It 

 was not a bad trend, as a bait which was good for several 

 days could be sold for a higher price and be more profitable. 



At this time, LobLure made its only experiments using 

 ammonium compounds in the soap. They showed no indi- 

 cation of being attractants and were discontinued. 



Many other materials were tried, such as coco butter. 

 LobLure was encouraged to use this material because of a 

 wreck (The City of Salisbury) near Graves Light in Boston 

 Harbor. A steamer had piled up on an uncharted rock, and 

 in its cargo were many cases of coco butter. A year later, 

 a lobsterman had found that lobsters were thick around the 

 submerged hull. It looked as though the coco butter might 

 have attracted them, but the big supply of lobsters was 

 probably due to the fact that this area had not been fished, 

 rather than to the coco butter. Or it may be that the wreck 



