[23] THE HALIBUT FISHERY—DAVIS STRAIT. 211 
had been brought for making seats, and, as might have been expected, 
different degrees of proficiency were displayed by the men in working 
them up. The men in each dory are expected to do everything per- 
taining to their own boat, such as taking care of dory, baiting, setting, 
hauling and keeping the trawls in good condition. 
Two barrels of pickled menhaden were taken to use for the first bait- 
ing, or until enough fresh bait had been caught for this purpose. After- 
ward the cod and smaller halibut were employed, and, when these were 
not enough, the napes of the larger halibut were used. The bait is cut up 
into strips about six inches long and an inch square at the end. The 
cutting of this is done mainly on the roof of the cabin, by large heavy 
knives. Thick planks had been nailed on top of the cabin for this pur- 
pose, and the men of each dory had their places for chopping (for the 
cutting is more of a chopping than anything else) chosen by lot. There 
not being room on the cabin for all the men, those of the forward dories 
used boards laid across the large flitching tubs, for cutting their bait. 
After enough bait is cut, the skate of trawl is placed on the cabin, 
and, being untied, the skate is taken away from the coil and spread out on 
the deck below. The fisherman then commences at the top of the trawl 
and, baiting the hooks as he proceeds, recoils it again on the skate below. 
The baited hooks are thrown into the center of the coil. Both the chop- 
ping of bait and the baiting are lively times, and wonderful stories are 
told about the speed with which some fishermen can perform these oper- 
ations. There is however, a limit to the speed with which these can be 
done well, and those who boast most of their quickness are, ten to one, 
not the best fishermen. 
The skates, baited and tied up, are ready for the water, and, if the set 
is to be made immediately, they are placed in the stern of the dories. 
When the weather is favorable, it takes about fifty minutes to set four 
skates to a dory, but, when either tide or wind is strong, more time is 
necessary. Two to four hours are allowed from the time of setting to 
the time of hauling. 
This last is usually commenced from the outer end, so that the men 
may work toward the vessel and have less distance to row should they 
be so fortunate, as to secure a load of fish. When the buoy is reached, 
the oars are taken in and laid one side, where they will be the least in 
the way; a roller, whose wheel is four to six inches in diameter, with 
two or three grooves on its rim, is fastened to the side of the dory near 
the bow; the buoy is taken in, unfastened from the line, and placed in 
the stern of the boat, and the hauling commences. The roller is almost 
indispensable. The line is hauled over this by the man in the bow, who 
does the hauling, and is then passed on to the man in the stern, to be by 
him coiled up and put with the buoy in the stern. (The stern is sepa- 
rated from the rest of the boat by a cross-partition of boards.) 
After the buoy line and anchor have been taken into the boat, comes 
the fishy part of the haul. The hooks, whether with or without fish, are 
