152 FISH HARVESTING. 
bait hardly touches the water ere it is gorged, 
and an ugly dogfish dangles at the end of the line. 
To unhook the thiefis a service of danger, unless 
knocked senseless, and his fearfully-armed jaws 
are propped open witha piece of stick. But, with 
all his faults, the dogfish is most useful and valu- 
able to the Indians, who spear incredible num- 
bers, split them, and take out their livers. From 
these fatty livers a quantity of clear oil is ex- 
tracted, by heat and pressure, applied in such a 
clumsy manner, that at least one-third is wasted. 
I was credibly informed that one small tribe of 
Indians, living on the west coast of Vancouver 
Island, by their bungling process of oil-making, 
managed to obtain seven ewt. of oil in one sea- 
son: surely oil making alone would pay a com- 
pany a handsome return for a judicious outlay 
of skill and capital. Several naval surgeons have 
assured me they had fairly tested its curative 
powers—in diseases where oil is said to be efli- 
cacious—and found it in every respect quite 
equal to the finest cod-liver oil. 
Whilst occupied in collecting the fishes pre- 
viously described, the Honourable Hudson’s Bay 
Company’s steamer ‘ Otter’ was about to make 
her usnal trip to Fort Rupert, in order to 
