AN ACCOUNT OP THE FISHERIES IN NORWAY IN 1877. 725 



Lad several profitable years. lu the nortliern fisheries, work begius ordi- 

 narily in the latter half of January, at Froio (parish of Bremanger); 

 thence it is carried on toward Kinn and Batalden, and c<?ases generally 

 in the beginning of February, to continue if possible in Nordljord. 



The Karmo fishery formerly began earlier than the preceding ; the 

 contrary has taken place toward the end of a more recent period. Feb- 

 ruary was considered the best period. 



The fishery is carried on either with nets or with seines. The net fish- 

 ery is conducted by means of 20 to 25 nets to a boat, with 4 or 5 men. In 

 the north they use 15 to IS nets per boat. The nets are usually 10 to 

 12 fathoms in length. The old nets were made with meshes of Ij'o 

 inches on the side; but the herring being counted at the time of sale, 

 they have decreased the size of the meshes from 1.12 to 1.20 of an inch. 

 The depth of the net was formerly calculated a't 80 meshes, about eight 

 feet deep ; but ^ince bottom-nets have come into use they are made with 

 a^ depth of 12 to 15 feet. 



To maintain the nets in a vertical position they at one time used floats 

 of juniper or willow ; now cork is employed exclusively. The glass 

 floats, introduced in the cod-fisRery at the Loflbden Islands, have not 

 been tried for the herring. The nets are joined by threes and are put 

 in the water in the evening, either near the shore or far out and near 

 the bottom, according to the places where the fish are seen. The nets 

 are raised in the morning, and give a result that is very variable. Some- 

 times one set of nets will produce as much as 20 hectolitres (50 and 

 more bushels) of fish. A single net has been known to bring up 10 to 

 12 hectolitres (28 to 33 bushels). One boat has generally several com- 

 binations of nets out at the same time ; but one of these sets is often 

 more than sufficient to fill the boat. 



Besides the night-fishing, one is also prosecuted in the daytime, but 

 especially when the herring is pursued by the whale or sey pollack; the 

 more virulent the pursuit, the moi^e productive is the fishing and it is 

 sometimes extremely profitable. 



It is considered desirable for net-fishermen to be provided with re- 

 serve nets, as they are liable to lose those in use by the currents or by 

 becoming entangled with other nets. The situation is a little amelio- 

 rated since the law has introduced more order into the fisheries. The 

 losses are, however, still very serious, and the masses of nets are some- 

 times so considerable that they form floating islands, and support with- 

 out sinking the weight of a great number of men. Every year are 

 brought to the authorities hundreds of stray nets that are sold later at 

 public sale for the benefit of the state. The product of the net-fishery 

 is always sold in the south of Bergen to the collecting-boats which 

 come to the spot to serve as middlemen between the fisherman and the 

 Salter. 



Seine-fishing is carried on in quite a different manner. A complete 

 equipment is composed of three seines, a large one of 100 to 150 lath- 



