368 REPOKT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [6 J 



smaller buoy (Fig. 3, d), while at tbe end of the entire row of nets there 

 is again a large stone, from which a strong line runs up to a large buoy. 

 These buoys, which indicate the place where the nets are set, consist of 

 boat-shaped pieces of wood 2 or 3 feet long, which in front have an 

 iron hook to which the rope is fastened, and at the back a short peg 

 to which a stone is attached, to prevent the buoy from being upset 

 (Fig. 5). To the upi)er side of each of the large buoys there is at- 

 tached a twig, with a small flag or rag, or sometimes only a bunch of 

 branches, at^the top, so that it can be seen at a distance. In place of 

 these buoys small barrels are also used (Fig. 0), and recently our fisher- 

 men have begun to use buoys made of cork disks (Fig. 7), which are 

 considered better than barrels, because the barrels become leaky and 

 thereby useless. South of Helsingborg and on the Baltic coast iron 

 grapnels are nsed to hold the nets at the bottom, instead of the stone 

 mentioned above. The method of fastening nets in the manner described 

 above can be traced back to a very remote period. 



The so-called ncirdingar are also used as floating nets, as was stated 

 before, but this is done only in the Sound south of Helsingborg. It 

 seems that this manner of using these nets has been introduced recentl5\ 

 During the famous Skauor fisheries in the Middle Ages floating nets 

 Avere doubtless also employed, but probably the nets then in use were 

 arranged in the same manner as the mansorna. As an old and experi- 

 enced fisherman from the fishing station of Eaa told me, the fishermen 

 of that locality did not begin to use floating nets till the year 1838. 

 They were generally cruising, their nets floating near the surface, partly 

 ofl' the coast of IJaa and partly in the Ise-fiord. Not till 1842 did" they 

 begin to go as far south as Flintrannan. They learned this method of 

 fishing from the Blekinge fishermen who came about that time as far 

 as Malmo and began to fish near that coast. The Skanor fishermen 

 fished prior to this time in the Flintrannan, but in 1838 they had only 

 3 boats with small, coarse, and tarred nets. Near Limhamn there was 

 in 183G only one fisherman. Even the ndrdingar were smaller at that 

 time, as they were only 100 meshes deep, while at present they are 260, 

 300, and more meshes deep. Those which are used in the floating-net 

 fisheries in the Sound are very long (from 50 to 60 fathoms), and are 

 divided into two or three parts, which, when the nets are set, are joined 

 together by a band. They are held up by small buoys (Fig. 8), generally 

 with very short straps (only two feet long). The row of nets therefore 

 floats quite near the surface of the water, which is almost necessary on 

 account of the shallow water in the Flintrannan, as the net is almost 

 three fathoms deep. On the Limhamn boats the number of nets used 

 is generally 10. In that case there are next to the boat four ndrdingar 

 with a buoy ; these are followed by three ndrdingar, then again a buoy; 

 and finally at the other end of the row of nets a buoy with a light (Fig. 

 t) and Fig. 10). The row of nets is attached to the boat by a line fast- 

 ened to the first net. In calm weather this line is quite short (2 or 3 



