﻿THE 
  HEKRING 
  FISHERIES 
  OF 
  THE 
  NORTHEAST 
  COAST. 
  391 
  

  

  Gill 
  nets 
  are 
  the 
  most 
  recently 
  adopted 
  of 
  the 
  appliances 
  used 
  by 
  

   the 
  herring 
  fishermen 
  of 
  Passamaquoddy, 
  being 
  introduced 
  about 
  1829. 
  

   Those 
  employed 
  in 
  the 
  limited 
  tisbery 
  for 
  Quoddy 
  Kiver 
  herring 
  have 
  

   a 
  mesh 
  of 
  about 
  3 
  inches 
  in 
  extension, 
  but 
  for 
  the 
  winter 
  and 
  spawn 
  

   runs 
  a 
  smaller 
  mesh 
  has 
  always 
  been 
  used. 
  They 
  are 
  always 
  set 
  at 
  

   some 
  distance 
  below 
  the 
  surface, 
  the 
  depth 
  to 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  sunk 
  being 
  

   regulated 
  by 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  the 
  bridles 
  by 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  suspended 
  

   from 
  the 
  buoys. 
  The 
  nets 
  are 
  anchored 
  at 
  one 
  or 
  both 
  ends, 
  according 
  

   to 
  circumstances, 
  the 
  former 
  being 
  the 
  method 
  usually 
  pursued 
  near 
  

   Eastport, 
  where 
  the 
  operation 
  is 
  usually 
  known 
  as 
  drifting, 
  Tlie 
  quan- 
  

   tity 
  of 
  fish 
  caught 
  is 
  sometimes 
  sufficient 
  to 
  sink 
  the 
  buoys, 
  and 
  in 
  order 
  

   that 
  such 
  nets 
  may 
  not 
  be 
  lost 
  it 
  is 
  customary 
  to 
  have 
  a 
  buoy 
  attached 
  

   to 
  the 
  anchor 
  by 
  a 
  line 
  long 
  enough 
  to 
  reach 
  to 
  the 
  bottom. 
  This 
  is 
  

   esi^ecially 
  necessary 
  during 
  the 
  spawning 
  run, 
  when 
  the 
  scIiooIh 
  are 
  

   often 
  very 
  dense 
  and 
  the 
  catches 
  are 
  correspondingly 
  large. 
  Further 
  

   details 
  are 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  chapters 
  relating 
  to 
  the 
  Quoddy 
  River 
  and 
  

   winter 
  herring 
  fisheries.* 
  

  

  The 
  brush 
  weir 
  is 
  an 
  ancient 
  form 
  offish-trap, 
  invented 
  independently 
  

   by 
  many 
  peoples 
  of 
  widely 
  separated 
  habitats 
  and 
  of 
  various 
  scales 
  of 
  

   civilization. 
  There 
  is 
  ample 
  evidence 
  that 
  simi)le 
  forms 
  of 
  the 
  device 
  

   were 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  aboriginal 
  inhabitants 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  prior 
  to 
  

   the 
  coming 
  of 
  the 
  white 
  man, 
  but 
  it 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  unknown, 
  or 
  at 
  

   least 
  unused, 
  by 
  the 
  settlers 
  on 
  the 
  border 
  between 
  Maine 
  and 
  New 
  

   Brunswick 
  prior 
  to 
  about 
  1820. 
  

  

  Concerning 
  the 
  introduction 
  and 
  the 
  early 
  history 
  of 
  this 
  fishery 
  the 
  

   following 
  account 
  is 
  given 
  in 
  The 
  Fishery 
  Industries 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  

   States 
  : 
  t 
  

  

  The 
  typical 
  hrush 
  weir 
  introduced 
  from 
  Xova 
  Scotia. 
  — 
  According 
  to 
  Mr. 
  D. 
  I. 
  Odell, 
  

   of 
  Eastport, 
  aud 
  Mr. 
  Jacob 
  McGregor, 
  of 
  Lubec, 
  the 
  fishermeu 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  

   owe 
  their 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  brush 
  vreir 
  in 
  ita 
  present 
  form 
  to 
  Nova 
  Scotin, 
  where 
  it 
  

   was 
  in 
  nse 
  before 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  century. 
  According 
  to 
  these 
  parties 
  

   the 
  date 
  of 
  its 
  introduction 
  into 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  was 
  about 
  1820, 
  when 
  two 
  or 
  

   three 
  small 
  ones 
  were 
  built 
  near 
  the 
  western 
  end 
  of 
  Cami>obello 
  Island 
  and 
  along 
  the 
  

   shores 
  of 
  North 
  Lubec 
  for 
  the 
  capture 
  of 
  ditferent 
  species. 
  These 
  were 
  notsutSciently 
  

   snccessfnl 
  to 
  warrant 
  Ihiir 
  extended 
  nse 
  and 
  after 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  seasons' 
  fishing 
  

   they 
  were 
  abandoned. 
  The 
  first 
  large 
  weir 
  exclusivelj' 
  for 
  licrring 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  built 
  in 
  1828, 
  by 
  Mr. 
  .John 
  McGregor 
  and 
  his 
  son 
  .Jacob, 
  :»t 
  North 
  Lubec. 
  Mr. 
  

   McGregor 
  was 
  a 
  native 
  of 
  Digby, 
  Nova 
  Scotia, 
  and 
  had 
  become 
  thoroughly 
  familiar 
  

   with 
  the 
  brush 
  weir 
  as 
  employed 
  in 
  the 
  fisheries 
  of 
  that 
  region 
  before 
  his 
  removal 
  

   to 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  several 
  years 
  earlier. 
  Thus 
  far 
  during 
  liis 
  stay 
  iu 
  Lubec 
  he 
  

   had 
  been 
  engaged 
  in 
  the 
  smoking 
  of 
  herring, 
  depending 
  wholly 
  upon 
  torching 
  for 
  

   his 
  supply; 
  but 
  he 
  soon 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  movements 
  of 
  the 
  herring 
  were 
  very 
  similar 
  

   to 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  school 
  that 
  visited 
  Digby, 
  where 
  the 
  weir 
  was 
  snccessfully 
  used. 
  

   He 
  therefore 
  decided, 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  labor 
  and 
  exposure 
  in 
  torching 
  and 
  the 
  

   comparatively 
  small 
  quantity 
  of 
  fish 
  taken, 
  to 
  build 
  a 
  brush 
  weir 
  for 
  the 
  capture 
  of 
  

   the 
  fish. 
  Accordingly 
  he 
  selected 
  Rogers 
  Island 
  as 
  a 
  suitable 
  location 
  and 
  proceeded 
  

   at 
  once 
  to 
  construct 
  his 
  weir. 
  It 
  was 
  built 
  in 
  shoal 
  water 
  and 
  was 
  much 
  smaller 
  

  

  * 
  For 
  a 
  more 
  detailed 
  account 
  of 
  nets 
  and 
  methods 
  refer 
  to 
  The 
  Fishery 
  Industries 
  

   of 
  the 
  United 
  States, 
  section 
  v, 
  vol. 
  i. 
  

   + 
  Section 
  V, 
  vol. 
  I, 
  pp. 
  499 
  and 
  500. 
  

  

  