﻿[87 
  J 
  THE 
  GULF 
  FISHING 
  GROUNDS 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  3 
  ->o 
  

  

  cedar 
  frames 
  are 
  sometimes 
  used. 
  According 
  to 
  Stearns, 
  both 
  tiie 
  cat- 
  

   rig- 
  and 
  and 
  sloop-rig 
  is 
  in 
  vogue, 
  in 
  either 
  case 
  a 
  boom 
  and 
  gaif 
  main- 
  

   sail 
  being 
  carried. 
  The 
  size 
  ranges 
  from 
  21 
  to 
  2(3 
  feet 
  in 
  length, 
  and 
  7 
  

   to 
  8 
  feet 
  in 
  width. 
  Two 
  men 
  constitute 
  a 
  crew. 
  They 
  usually 
  content 
  

   themselves 
  with 
  making 
  one 
  trip 
  each 
  week, 
  and 
  consider 
  five 
  to 
  twelve 
  

   barrels 
  of 
  oysters 
  a 
  fair 
  take. 
  

  

  0. 
  — 
  Fisheries 
  of 
  Saint 
  Andrew's 
  and 
  Saint 
  Joseph. 
  

  

  The 
  shore 
  seine 
  fishery 
  is 
  the 
  only 
  one 
  prosecuted 
  from 
  these 
  harbors. 
  

   There 
  has 
  not 
  yet 
  been 
  any 
  hook 
  and-liue 
  fishing, 
  and 
  the 
  abundance 
  

   of 
  sharks, 
  saw-fish, 
  and 
  tarpum, 
  or 
  silver-fish, 
  would 
  make 
  it 
  difficult, 
  

   if 
  not 
  impossible, 
  to 
  profitably 
  employ 
  gill-nets 
  or 
  pounds. 
  

  

  The 
  seine 
  fishery 
  is 
  prosecuted 
  chiefly 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  and 
  fall, 
  when 
  

   various 
  kinds 
  of 
  fish 
  are 
  migrating 
  along 
  the 
  coast. 
  At 
  this 
  time, 
  for 
  

   a 
  few 
  weeks 
  or 
  months, 
  as 
  the 
  case 
  may 
  be, 
  the 
  business 
  reaches 
  quite 
  

   important 
  proportions, 
  25 
  boats 
  and 
  150 
  men 
  being 
  employed 
  from 
  Saint 
  

   Andrew's, 
  and 
  3 
  boats 
  and 
  18 
  men 
  from 
  Saint 
  Joseph. 
  A 
  few 
  of 
  these 
  

   men 
  may, 
  perhaps, 
  do 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  fishing 
  throughout 
  the 
  year, 
  depend- 
  

   ing 
  on 
  it 
  chiefly 
  for 
  a 
  livelihood, 
  but 
  nearly 
  all 
  are 
  farmers, 
  whose 
  prin- 
  

   cipal 
  dependence 
  is 
  on 
  agricultural 
  pursuits, 
  but 
  who 
  thus 
  utilize 
  tbe 
  

   time, 
  in 
  autumn, 
  that 
  cannot 
  be 
  turned 
  to 
  profitable 
  account 
  on 
  their 
  

   farms. 
  Having 
  harvested 
  their 
  crops, 
  they 
  leave 
  their 
  homes, 
  which 
  

   are 
  often 
  some 
  distance 
  inland, 
  and 
  go 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  to 
  gather 
  the 
  har- 
  

   vest 
  of 
  the 
  seas. 
  The 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  scattered 
  coast 
  population 
  are 
  

   also 
  farmers, 
  to 
  a 
  greater 
  or 
  less 
  extent, 
  though 
  many 
  of 
  these 
  tish 
  in 
  

   spring 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  fall, 
  and 
  probably 
  derive 
  the 
  chief 
  part 
  of 
  their 
  income 
  

   from 
  the 
  sea. 
  

  

  1. 
  fishing 
  grounds. 
  

  

  The 
  sandy 
  beaches 
  which 
  stretch 
  along 
  the 
  Gulf 
  coast, 
  and 
  are 
  nu- 
  

   merous 
  in 
  the 
  harbors 
  and 
  bays 
  of 
  this 
  region, 
  afford 
  abundant 
  oppor- 
  

   tunity 
  for 
  hauling 
  seines, 
  and 
  these 
  constitute 
  the 
  fishing 
  grounds. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  N. 
  W. 
  Pitts, 
  of 
  Saint 
  Joseph, 
  tells 
  me 
  that 
  pompano, 
  Spanish 
  

   mackerel, 
  bluefish, 
  sheepshead, 
  mullet, 
  sea 
  trout, 
  redfish, 
  and 
  a 
  f<-\\ 
  

   other 
  less 
  important 
  species 
  are 
  taken 
  on 
  these 
  grounds. 
  There 
  are 
  also 
  

   many 
  kinds 
  that 
  are 
  not 
  marketable 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  seines, 
  these 
  being 
  

   called 
  " 
  sorry 
  fish" 
  or 
  "waste 
  fish." 
  ' 
  

  

  Pompano 
  are 
  caught 
  in 
  the 
  greatest 
  numbers 
  in 
  May 
  and 
  J 
  nne. 
  Some- 
  

   times 
  they 
  are 
  fairly 
  abundant 
  in 
  April, 
  and 
  occasionally 
  a 
  few 
  are 
  

   taken 
  in 
  March. 
  

  

  Spanish 
  mackerel 
  and 
  bluefish 
  are 
  caught 
  in 
  spring 
  from 
  A.pril 
  1 
  to 
  

   June 
  1, 
  and 
  in 
  fall 
  from 
  October 
  1 
  to 
  December 
  1. 
  Sometimes 
  (he 
  Span- 
  

   ish 
  mackerel 
  are 
  caught 
  in 
  schools 
  by 
  themselves, 
  but 
  ipore 
  frequently 
  

   they 
  are 
  mixed 
  with 
  other 
  species. 
  

  

  Sheepshead 
  are 
  also 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  a»nd 
  fall, 
  but 
  are 
  seldom 
  seen 
  

   schooling 
  by 
  themselves. 
  Mr. 
  Pitts 
  says 
  ^< 
  they 
  are 
  a 
  fish 
  tli-at 
  run 
  with 
  

   others." 
  

  

  