1S4 



r. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



lines runninir to tlie dredtre line< he lifts the clred«res with oDinpaia- 

 tive ease. Great skill. lu)\vever. is requireil. for the shallowness of 

 the water, which «rives this system its ^rreat advantaire, introduces 

 a special hazard in lo^ of the dredfre or more serious trouble from 

 entan«rlement of line or dred«xe ban with the propeller. Accordingly 

 the 13o«:ue Sound dredirer prefers to place the pole pretty well aft 

 and tlie dredtres well astern and to endure the consequent greater 

 labor and time spent hauling the dredges. 



Tonging for scallops is not allowed in the raking area and is not 

 practiced to any important extent in the other areas. Scoop nets 

 are rejiorted as having been in use for taking ,^callops in 1897. 



Fig. 5.- 



-Scallop rakers at work on a flat left bare at low i bb tide. Pivers Island 

 and the bureau's laboratory in the distance 



PREPARATION FOR MARKET 



Scallops are brought in alive and opened or " shucked *' ashore or 

 in scallop houses over the water. Sometimes the opening is done 

 at home, more frequently in small buildings constructed for the pur- 

 pose (fig. 9). The better of these are equipped with benches and 

 special stall-like '" boxes," in which the shucker stands (fig. 10). 

 If the scallop fisherman and his family do not do the opening, he 

 hires it done at the rate of 50 cents per gallon of meats. 



The scallop seems to be unique among land and water animals in 

 that only one muscle (the adductor muscle of biologists, the 

 *• heart " of scallop fishermen) is eaten. This is practicable because 

 of the relatively huge size of this muscle. Other parts presumably 

 are discarded becau.se their appearance is not considered attractive. 

 Doubtless the tough mantle margin and possibly the gill axis would 

 prove undesirable, but wh}- other parts should not be edible is not 



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