228 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



and its capture gives employment to a large number of small vessels, 

 nmnned by (> or S men each. The American vessels fishing foi- Immp- 

 back whales on that coast have occasionally engaged in its capture 

 when whales were not in sight. Capt. George O. Baker, of New 

 Bedford, reports that on one occasion in two daj'^s' fishing he secured 

 125 barrels of shark oil while on tlie lookout for humi)back Avhales. 



The method of taking this fish off the Pei'uvian coast, according to 

 Captain Baker, is to approach it while it is lying motionless at the 

 surface of the water and to fasten a liarpoon in the top of the head 

 forward of the eyes, so as to hold the head up and thus prevent tlie 

 fish from going down or "sounding," and ihon the boat approaches 

 and lances it until it is quite dead. It is taken alongside the vessel, a 

 hole is cut in one side of the al)domen, a strap insert ed on either side of 

 the incision and the tail hoisted up so as to raise the body somewhat 

 out of tlu^ water. A man then enters the abdominal cavity and with 

 a knife cuts out the liver in pieces. These are passed up on deck, 

 minced, as in the case of whale blubbei-, and placed in the try-pots. 

 After a sufficient length of time the cooked liver-pieces are removed 

 from the pot, placed in a canvas or hempen bag, suspended from aloft, 

 and permitted to drain. Nothing but the oil is saved. A considerable 

 market for it exists in South America, where it is used principally as 

 a body for jjaints for exterior surfaces. The price is usually 8 or 10 

 cents per gallon more than that of humpback oil. 



The basking shark is taken occasionally on the California coast, the 

 individual yield of oil there averaging about 125 gallons. The same 

 siDCcies is also said to be taken in the waters of British India, being 

 harpooned in great numbers by the fishermen of Karachi and other 

 coastal districts. 



The common dog-fish (Sijucdus) of the Atlantic coast and a similar 

 species on the Pacific coast are the principal oil-yielding sharks in 

 America. These fish range from 2 to 5 feet in length and from 5 to 

 15 pounds in weight. They are the great pest of fishermen, destio}^- 

 ing nets, robbing fish from the trawls, and committing other depre- 

 dations. 



It does not appear that any important fislieries are oi-ganized espe- 

 cially for the capture of these fish, but many are taken incidentally in 

 the shore and Georges cod fisheries, particularly during the spring, 

 and the livei-s are extracted and thrown in the liver-butts along with 

 tiliose of other fish. The livers are generally of a bluish-gi-ay color, 

 shaped somewhat like those of cod or pollock and are very brittle, 

 breaking readily when lifted. 



In Boston and (iloucester dog-fish livers are sold at the same i-ateas 

 those of cod and related species — viz, 25 to 30 cents per bucket of 2| 

 gallons. The yield of oil during August, September, and October is 

 about G quarts per bucket, but at other seasons it is much smaller. 



Because of the small (inantity secured, this oil is rarely kept separate 

 from cod oil for currying purijoses, and it sells for about the same 



