MISCELLANEOUS SHELLFISH INDUSTRIES 669 



to October first. Legal restriction of the fishing was introduced in Massachusetts 

 in 1885 in an effort to stop the rapid decUne of the fishery. The closed season 

 allows the yearling scallops time enough to spawn. Inasmuch as only a compara- 

 tively few scallops live to spawn the second season, if the small "seed" scallops 

 are not disturbed, there is no danger of overfishing. Massachusetts now prohibits 

 the taking of the young "seed" scallops. 



Bay scallops are sometimes taken by an instrument called a "pusher." This 

 consists of a wooden pole from 8 to 9 feet long attached to a rectangular 3- by 1.5- 

 foot iron frame upon which is fitted a netting bag about 3 feet in depth. The 

 fisherman, wading on the flats at low tide, shoves the pusher among the eelgrass 

 and thus captures the scallops. When a bag-full is obtained, its contents are 

 emptied into a dory and the fishing is continued. Obviously, this method is 

 applicable only to shallow flats and can only be worked at low tide; it is not very 

 profitable and is being discarded for more rapid dredging methods. 



Scallops are mainly taken in dredges dragged along the bottom by catboats 

 ( sailboats ) or powerboats ( gasoline boats ) . The common form of dredge used 

 in Massachusetts consists of an iron framework about 3 by 1/2 feet, with a netting 

 bag attached which will hold from 1 to 2 bushels of scallops. A single catboat or 

 powerboat is used to pull from 6 to 10 dredges across the scallop grounds. When 

 the dredges are hauled in, their contents are emptied on a culling board projecting 

 slightly on both sides. The scallops are culled or separated from the rubbish 

 while the dredges are pulled back over the grounds. The culled scallops are first 

 put into buckets and later transferred to bags or dumped into the cockpit of the 

 boat. Two men are usually employed on the larger catboats and powerboats 

 although 1 man sometimes does the work. Several styles of dredges are in common 

 use. The scraper is one of the most popular; it consists of a rigid triangular iron 

 frame which has a curve of nearly 90 degrees at the base. A raised crossbar 

 connects the two arms. A strip of iron, about 2 inches wide and set at an angle 

 for digging in the sand, extends across the bottom and acts as a scraping blade. 

 The top of the net is fastened to the crossbar and the lower part to the blade. 

 The usual dimensions of this dredge are: arms, 2.5 feet; upper crossbar, 2 feet; 

 and blade, 2.5 feet. The wooden bar keeps the net from catching on the bottom. 

 Usually the lower part of the net consists of interwoven iron rings. 



The catch is ordinarily taken to the fisherman's shed or shanty where the scallops 

 are opened and the "eyes" removed. The adductor muscle, or "eye," is the only 

 part of the scallop which is eaten. The remainder is edible and has an agreeable 

 flavor; but, since prejudice rules that it is unfit for human consumption, it is used 

 instead for bait or fertilizer. An expert scallop opener can open 15 bushels of 

 scallops in a day; this is the equivalent of 9 to 11 gallons of scallop "eyes," as a 

 bushel of scallops yields from 2.5 to 3 quarts. 



Scallops are nearly always soaked in water before they are marketed; this 

 makes the eyes swell and become plump, thereby causing about a 40 per cent 

 increase in volume. This plumping process makes scallops very difficult to pre- 

 serve; and since plumped scallops spoil very easily, it prevents their shipment to 

 distant markets. Yet, because nearly all consumers demand the large plump "eyes," 

 the practice will probably be continued indefinitely. The scallops are sometimes 

 swelled by placing about 4.5 gaUons of "eyes" in a 7-gallon keg and filling it with 

 fresh water; after standing overnight more water is added and the scallops are 



