374 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 

 VESSELS, BOATS, ETC. 



In New Jersey the principal railway shipping-point is Bayside, while 

 in Delaware most of the product is handled at Delaware City. As 

 most of the cami^s are located some few miles either np or down the 

 bay from these places, it is necessary to ship the caviar and carcasses 

 by vessel. In 1897 the Kew Jersey fishermen nsed 25 vessels, with a nel 

 tonnage of 540, and valued at $31,G50, as transporting or "market" 

 vessels, or as "lay" vessels. In Delaware G vessels, having a net 

 tonnage of 145 and valued at $5,500, were used, while none were used 

 in Pennsylvania. 



If the fishermen have their camp located near a swampy shore, they 

 usually engage a vessel of anywhere from 8 to 50 tons. This is taken 



Scow boat used in sturgeon fishing, 



to a convenient sheltered spot near where they intend working and is 

 securely anchored. The fishermen then make their headquarters on 

 this vessel for the rest of the season, eating, sleeping, and preparing 

 their catch for market on board. This is called a "lay" boat. The 

 cost of maintaining such a vessel is usually about $100 per month for 

 rental or charter, with the additional expense, in most cases, o 

 provisions for one man who accompanies the vessel. Others tow to 

 the fishing-grounds immense scows, with a cabin at each end, and use 

 them for camps. One of these cabins is much larger than the other, 

 and is used for sleeping quarters, while the butchering of the sturgeon 

 and the preparing of the caviar is carried on in the smaller cabin. Still 

 others use the ordinary houseboat, or cabin boat, which is nothing but 

 a house built on a small scow. 



