﻿56 
  OTTEK-TRAWL 
  FISHERY. 
  

  

  entailed 
  great 
  labor 
  in 
  an 
  effort 
  to 
  arrive 
  at 
  the 
  facts, 
  but 
  has 
  neces- 
  

   sitated 
  some 
  lack 
  of 
  uniformity 
  in 
  the 
  consideration 
  of 
  the 
  several 
  

   periods, 
  and 
  has 
  also, 
  taken 
  in 
  connection 
  with 
  modifications 
  in 
  the 
  

   methods 
  of 
  the 
  fishery, 
  dictated 
  the 
  selection 
  of 
  the 
  particular 
  periods 
  

   considered. 
  If 
  the 
  data 
  for 
  the 
  entire 
  series 
  of 
  years 
  had 
  been 
  pre- 
  

   sented 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  adopted 
  since 
  about 
  1906, 
  many 
  difficulties 
  would 
  

   have 
  been 
  removed, 
  and 
  the 
  matter 
  presented 
  in 
  this 
  report 
  would 
  

   have 
  been 
  more 
  explicit 
  in 
  some 
  respects. 
  While 
  this 
  report 
  appears 
  

   to 
  consider 
  and 
  compare 
  certain 
  years 
  only, 
  largely 
  for 
  the 
  reasons 
  

   just 
  explained, 
  all 
  English 
  and 
  Scotch 
  reports 
  since 
  1891 
  have 
  been 
  

   laboriously 
  examined, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  believed 
  that 
  if 
  other 
  years 
  were 
  

   substituted 
  there 
  would 
  be 
  any 
  material 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  apparent 
  trend 
  

   of 
  the 
  analysis. 
  

  

  MINOR 
  AMERICAN 
  TRAWLNET 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  In 
  considering 
  the 
  matter 
  of 
  the 
  regulation 
  of 
  the 
  otter-trawl 
  

   fishery 
  on 
  the 
  oceanic 
  banks 
  adjacent 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  New 
  England, 
  

   which 
  is 
  the 
  prime 
  purpose 
  of 
  this 
  report, 
  it 
  is 
  necessary 
  to 
  keep 
  in 
  

   view 
  two 
  minor 
  fisheries 
  prosecuted 
  by 
  the 
  otter 
  trawl 
  or 
  its 
  equiv- 
  

   alent 
  concerning 
  which 
  there 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  little 
  or 
  no 
  complaint. 
  

  

  CAPE 
  COD 
  FLOUNDER 
  FISHERY. 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  of 
  these 
  is 
  the 
  flounder 
  fishery 
  on 
  the 
  shores- 
  of 
  Cape 
  Cod. 
  

   The 
  fishery 
  was 
  established 
  about 
  1895 
  or 
  1896, 
  and 
  27 
  trawl 
  nets 
  

   were 
  in 
  use 
  in 
  1898. 
  In 
  1902 
  the 
  number 
  had 
  increased 
  to 
  65, 
  and 
  

   in 
  1908, 
  the 
  latest 
  year 
  for 
  which 
  we 
  have 
  information, 
  there 
  were 
  

   126 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  understood 
  that 
  the 
  number 
  has 
  increased 
  since 
  then. 
  

  

  The 
  vessels 
  in 
  the 
  Cape 
  Cod 
  otter-trawl 
  fleet, 
  which 
  is 
  owned 
  prin- 
  

   cipally 
  in 
  Provincetown, 
  Hyannis, 
  and 
  Falmouth, 
  is 
  composed 
  of 
  

   craft 
  ranging 
  from 
  motor 
  dories 
  to 
  auxiliary 
  motor 
  vessels 
  of 
  25 
  

   to 
  30 
  tons. 
  Beam 
  trawls 
  were 
  formerly 
  employed, 
  but 
  they 
  have 
  

   been 
  practically 
  supplanted 
  by 
  otter 
  trawls 
  measuring 
  from 
  30 
  to 
  

   50 
  feet 
  between 
  the 
  boards. 
  The 
  fishery 
  is 
  conducted 
  in 
  depths 
  of 
  

   10 
  fathoms, 
  more 
  or 
  less, 
  and 
  as 
  it 
  is 
  confined 
  to 
  Cape 
  Cod 
  Bay 
  and 
  

   Nantucket 
  Sound, 
  it 
  is 
  within 
  territorial 
  waters 
  and, 
  therefore, 
  within 
  

   the 
  jurisdiction 
  of 
  Massachusetts. 
  Few 
  fishes 
  other 
  than 
  flounders 
  

   are 
  taken, 
  the 
  principal 
  species 
  being 
  the 
  winter 
  flounder, 
  locally 
  

   known 
  as 
  the 
  " 
  black 
  back," 
  and 
  the 
  rusty 
  dab, 
  known 
  to 
  the 
  fisher- 
  

   men 
  by 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  " 
  fluke 
  " 
  and 
  " 
  yellow 
  tail." 
  The 
  present 
  catch 
  

   of 
  these 
  trawls 
  is 
  not 
  known, 
  but 
  in 
  1898 
  they 
  took 
  766,850 
  pounds, 
  

   valued 
  at 
  $8,564; 
  in 
  1902, 
  1,419,809 
  pounds, 
  valued 
  at 
  $43,169; 
  and 
  

   in 
  1908, 
  2,893,000 
  pounds, 
  yielding 
  the 
  fishermen 
  $64,000. 
  At 
  Hy- 
  

   annis 
  and 
  Falmouth 
  the 
  trawl 
  fishery 
  is 
  of 
  very 
  recent 
  development. 
  

  

  Previous 
  to 
  1908, 
  from 
  6 
  to 
  12 
  small 
  boats 
  employing 
  hand 
  lines 
  

   made 
  an 
  aggregate 
  annual 
  catch 
  of 
  200 
  to 
  300 
  barrels. 
  With 
  the 
  

  

  