SUPPLEMENTARY TESTIMONY, ETC. 183 



Aiiotlior day 108 pounds tautog. 



Another day 175 pounds tautog. 



Another day V2S pounds tautog. 



Another day 102 pounds tautog 



From the account of fishing by William Eecord, it appears that 

 he took in a pound, on different days, 80, ILM), 211, 272, and 310 pounds. 

 August 1, 121 pounds; 5, 35 pounds blue-fish; 7tli, 51; 8th, 33; 

 9th', 133; 13th, 9; 14th, 48; 15th, 138; 10th, 19; 19th, 185; 2Gth, 

 21 ; 27th, 31 ; 28th, 519 , 29th, 48. September 2, 28 ; 3d, 54; Gth, 27 ; 

 9th, 110; 11th, 17; 12th, 37; 14th, 135; 22d, 14. October 1, 51. 



Blue-fish are bought of the fishermen for 5 cents a pound. George 

 Crabb averaged 100 pounds a day. lu the mouth of Jane, last year, 

 he caught 1,109 pounds of tautog. 



Mr. J. M. K. SouTHWiCK, a dealer in fishing-tackle, nets, &c., said that 

 small scup had been observed almost every fall about Saughkonet Eiver. 

 xV gentleman of Tiverton remembered that many yeai'S ago there was 

 preciselj' such a run of small scup as last year. The hook-and-liue fish- 

 ing is now connected with lobstering, aud the lobsters are the most im- 

 portant part to that class of fishermen . 



Edavard M. Gladding, pilot and fisherman, said line-fishing had not 

 been much attended to this year. He had tried all summer, and could not 

 catch uuiny. It is much poorer fishing than it was last summer; as much 

 worseasyoucan think. You cannot catch a mess in allday. Tautog'inghas 

 been good for nothingtliis summer. He had not caught any blue-fish this 

 summer. He had fished more or less for fifty years. No mau ever saw the 

 fish so scarce as they are now. He had not caught more than four scup 

 this summer. Two-thirds of the fishermen with set-seines have not 

 made anything ; but thousands of fish have been carried to New York 

 , and thrown overboard. The heart-seines are death on fish ; they catch 

 anything and everything. The West Bay trap never caught more than 

 this season ; fish were plenty in the spring, and theu they caught them. 

 One trap caught 1,500 pounds in one day. The first fish of the season 

 are tautog. Fifty years ago sea-bass were plenty about the Vineyard, 

 and he used to fish there ; but no sea-bass are caught there now. We 

 used to get some nights over one hundred big bass, and sell them at 

 New Bedford. 



Samuel Southwick was a trapper three years ago, at Coddingtou 

 Cove, and had seined more or less for forty years. Used to catch scup, 

 menhaden, alewives, and pretty much all kinds of fish. Large scup are 

 now scarce, but other fish are about as plenty as they have been. Last 

 spring more tautog were taken at one haul than he ever took at two in 

 the same place. Twenty years ago the market for fish was better than 

 now. We did not formerly catch Spanish mackerel. He once caught 

 two near Brinton's Keef, which he sold for a dollar apiece, but did not 

 know what they were. 



Bulls-eye mackerel were very plenty here fifteen years ago and more. 

 They were considered better than ordinary mackerel. They were fat 

 and small. When found now they are with the small mackerel. 



Squeteague first appeared about twenty years ago; and they grew 

 more and more plenty. About thirty-five years ago the people did not 

 know what blue-fish were. One night he got 200 and put them on the 

 wharf, aud uobody would carry them off'. 



