PRESENT CONDITION OF THE FISHERIES. 61 



14. Ill tlie spring- there are several seliools. Take the biggest part of 

 the time the hirge sciip come first and liave three or lour days' riinuiug, 

 then the middle sized ones, and then the smallest ones. Between the 

 periods there is a time when we catch only a few. Tlie large ones are 

 caught only four or five days, and little ones about tlie same length of 

 time. 



2. The scop generally strike about the 25th of May, and we get them 

 up to the 2()th of June. There is no use in tishing" after that. About 

 the loth of June we get the most scup ; this year it was about the 1st 

 of June, the season being two weeks earlier. 



I think not more than one-third of the scup that come into the baj' in 

 the spring would stay there if there were no pounds. I think we do 

 not catch but a few of the scuj) that would kee^) in Buzzard's Bay. I 

 think we catch somebody else's scu]), and but a few of our own. It is 

 only when fish are running' tluit we can catch them in pounds. Where 

 they belong, they will not run into pounds. In Clark's Cove there are 

 two or three pounds, and there is any quantity of menhaden there; but 

 they cannot catch any at all in the pounds. Those menhaden belong- 

 there ; thej" come there to spawn. 



18. The sexes generally come in together. The female dog-fish comes 

 in first. When the scup first come in the spawn is not grown; about 

 the loth of June it is pretty full. 



20. When they first come in they will not bite tlie hook. Neither will 

 any kind of fish ; none of those caught in the pounds will bite the hook. 

 Even if as plenty as they used to be, scup would not bite the hook until 

 about the 20th of June ; and I think they would bite about the same 

 time all along the coast. 



21. The gulls do not follow them at all. I think they swim within 

 from two and a half to four feet of the bottom ; not nearer the bottom 

 than a foot, nor higher than about four feet from it. 



22. I do not think the tide makes much difference about their coming- 

 in. 



19. I do not think you can catch many scup with the hook when 

 spawning. Sea bass and cod-fish sometimes bite when spawning-. 



23. Many fish are caught in the pounds when spawning-, the mackerel 

 most jileutiful ; tautog and scup also. The spawn is often seen on the 

 nets. 



25. They do not rnn into fresh water, only into shoal water. 



29. We find small and large scup coming in together. 



30. On a sandy bottom, not necessarily rocks, excepting in the fall 

 of the year, when the}' will come on the rocks some wluit. It does not 

 make much difference as to the water being still or running. 



31. They are caught in water about fifteen feet and over. 



32. You get them in the sound just as well as in the bay. 



33. I think they school a little in going out, but not so much as when 

 coming in. 



31. i do not think the blue-fish trouble scup any to speak of: nor sharks 

 either, as they are so spiny they will not take them when they can get 

 other fish. 



37. They feed mostly on sea-clams. I have seen them root down into 

 the sand in summer for clams. Sometimes they feed on other shellfish 

 and small muscles. 



38. Along the shore where it is sandy you can see where they have 

 made a little hole digging for clams. 



40. I do not think there is any difference in color when breeding. 

 On a rocky bottom they are darker and more barred than elsewhere. 



