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through them. Sometimes the fish come so near the land, 

 that one end of the net is fastened on shore. The principal 

 fishing-banks are situated from half a mile to one mile and a 

 liLiH' (Nordland measure) from the land, in a depth of sixty, 

 seventy, or eighty fathoms. At the end of March, or the 

 beginning of -April, the fish leave the banks and return to 

 the ocean : these enormous quantities approach the banks 

 fur the purpose of diffusing their spawn, and thus they sacri- 

 fice their life in order to propagate the species. 



To this fishing the peasantry come from the whole of 

 Nordland and Finmarken in their boats and yachts ; and 

 nuuiy other vessels from Bergen, Trondhjem, and the towns 

 in N'ordlandene, in order to buy raw fish, which they after- 

 'wards prepare as stockfish, and roes. From Helgoland, 

 and that part of the district of Salten to the south of 

 Foldenfjord, the fishermen always come to Lofoden in their 

 yachts : those from the northern and nearer districts come 

 only in boats. The proceeding of the former is as follows : 

 At the end of January they equip themselves for their 

 departure with victuals, 'fishing-tackle, &c., which, under 

 the denomination of bornskab, is divided into two equal 

 parts, one of which is embarked in their boats, and the other 

 in the yacht that accompanies them. This is done partly in 

 order to lighten the boats, and partly that they may not be 

 too much embarrassed should the one or the other be lost. 

 The fishermen divide themselves into what are called (baad- 

 laug) boat-guilds, who fish in common, and divide the pro- 

 duce according to certain regulations. A boat-guild consists 

 of two boats, each with ten oars and five men. Every twenty 

 or thirty of these boat-guilds have a yacht in common. 

 During the fishing the yacht remains at the fishery, and is 

 used as a sort of magazine by the fishermen. When the 

 fishing is ended, the livers and roes are salted down in 

 barrels and put on board the yachts. On the return of the 

 yacht to the harbour from which it is freighted, the liver is 

 unloaded, boiled, and converted into oil. It is then re- 

 shipped, together with the prepared fish that may chance to 

 have remained from the former year ; after which the yacht 

 proceeds to Bergen. This is what is called the first meeting. 

 They generally arrive in Bergen by the end of May or the be- 

 ginning of June. The yacht on its return enters its harbour, 

 takes on board the empty liver-barrels, fishing implements, 

 &c. required for the winter fishing, and sails to Lofoden, 

 where the dried rund-fishis embarked and carried to Bergen. 

 This is the last meeting; and on returning from this voyage 

 their task in finished for that year. The yacht is paid for 

 this voyage by a share in the produce of the fishing. This is 

 divided for each boat-guild into eleven parts, of which every 

 man receives one ; the eleventh part is divided between 

 the owners of the yacht and the proprietors of the boats. 



To the complete equipment of a boat-guild belong oars, 

 masts, sails, tackle, and the requisite implements for fish- 

 ing, either with net or with line. Each guild has six or 

 eight nets, of thirty fathoms in length, thirty meshes in 

 depth, every mesh being, when extended, six inches long, 

 composed of strong double hemp threads. The lines are 

 1000 fathoms in length, to which are attached 1200 large 

 tinned iron hooks, by strings of a fathom in length. Besides 

 this, every man must be furnished with provisions for two 

 or three months. The expense of each man's equipment 

 from Helgoland is estimated at about 4 dollars (6/. \3s. 4rf.). 

 The boat is either the property of the fishermen, or is hired 

 by them for the voyage. 



The fishermen from Nordlandene commonly unite them- 

 selves in companies of twenty, forty, or sixty boats, and sail 

 along the coast of Helgoland and Salten to the islands 

 called Grotuen and Lo\Y>en. Here they wait for favourable 

 winds to pass the bay Westfjord, at the spot where it is about 

 forty English miles across. They are sometimes, during the 

 short days, detained here a considerable time, before the 

 weather permits them to hazard the perilous passage. A 

 council is held among the men, and it is decided by a 

 majority of votes whether the passage shall he undertaken 

 or not ; but it not unfrequently happens that some daring 

 fellows seduce the others to make an attempt in bad weather, 

 and thus many lives are lost. 



When the fishermen arrive at Lofoden, every boat-guild 

 proceeds to the spot (fishevcnr) where they intend to fish, 

 each having a certain place, not in consequence of any 

 restriction in this respect, but because they require a place 

 for a dwelling-house, and for erecting the frames of wood 

 upon which the fish is hung to dry. The house is built of 

 timber, from twelve to sixteen feet square ; in the middle is 



a stove, consisting of a flat stone on the floor, and a hole in 

 the roof by which the smoke escapes, with a small windov 

 giving a feeble light. This cabin is inhabited by a boat- 

 guildconsequently by from ten to twelve persons who 

 cook, sleep, and repair their nets during the fishing season. 

 The above-mentioned frames, called in Norwegian hjeld, 

 consist of wooden crosses fixed in the earth, which support 

 poles laid horizontally, upon which the fish, tied by the tail 

 in pairs, are hung to dry. This scaffold must be so high as 

 to prevent the fish from being taken by the fox, or damaged 

 by high water. 



The fishing is regulated according to certain rules con- 

 tained in several antient laws, and of late by that of the 4th 

 August, 1 827. These laws prescribe the order to be observed 

 in the fisheries, the time for placing and removing the nets, 

 the preparing, salting, and drying of the fish. Several 

 persons, chosen from among the fishermen themselves, are 

 appointed to superintend the observance of them. The fish 

 are for the most part caught in nets, which are placed in 

 the evening, and removed in the morning, after a signal 

 given by these superintendents. There is, however, a dif- 

 ference of opinion whether the use of the net or the line is 

 the most advantageous. 



The fish are prepared in two different ways for rund-fish, 

 or as it is commonly called, stock-fish, and also for klip-fish. 

 The rund-fish is prepared by opening the belly, taking out 

 the liver and roe, and cutting off the head ; after which ope- 

 ration the fish are hung in pairs upon the drying scaffold, 

 and exposed to the wind and weather. The livers are col 

 lected in barrels, and the roes are parfiy salted, and partly 

 used as bait. The heads are dried, taken care of, and 

 brought home to serve as food for cows. The hiip-jish is 

 cut along the hack, and the back-bone taken out, after 

 which it is salted down in the bottom of the vessel : three 

 and a half to four barrels of salt, mostly French, or half 

 French and half Spanish, are required for every 1000 fish. 

 A vessel commonly stows 20,000 salted fish, and, being 

 loaded, departs for the coast of Helgoland, or the northern 

 part of the diocese of Trondhjem, where the principal ope- 

 ration is performed in the following manner : The fish is 

 landed at a place where there are large flat mountains with 

 a southern aspect, upon which it is spread, and exposed to 

 the sun. In rainy weather it is collected in large heaps, 

 and covered with heavy stones to prevent its being damaged. 

 During this operation, which is frequently repeated accord- 

 ing to the weather, the fish undergoes a fermentation, which 

 gives it a good flavour. In fine seasons this preparation is 

 completed in three or four weeks. Klip-fish, on account of 

 the humidity of the climate, is seldom prepared at Lofoden. 

 In bad seasons, when there are continual rains during the 

 preparation, great quantities are spoiled. One hundred fish, 

 wages and freight included, cost five dollars, and produce 

 from sixteen to eighteen vogor of klip-fish.* Under the pro- 

 cess the fish becomes much lighter in weight ; so that two 

 cargoes of salt-fish give one cargo of klip-fish. If circum- 

 stances are favourable, this trade gives a considerable profit, 

 and indeed it ought to do so, as it is attended with consider- 

 able risk. The klip-fish is not prepared by the fishermen 

 themselves, but either by the merchants settled at Lofoden 

 and in the neighbourhood, or for the most part by mer- 

 chants from Trondhjem, Christiansand, Molde, Bergen, &c., 

 who send their vessels to Lofoden with provisions, brandy, 

 salt, and other articles to be used in barter: partly with 

 these articles, and partly with money, they purchase the raw 

 fish. It being more lucrative to prepare rund-fish than to 

 sell the raw fish for making klip-fish, the fishers seldom do 

 the latter, unless they are distressed for victuals, money, or 

 brandy. One hundred or one hundred and twenty raw fish 

 commonly sell for one dollar or less, but when prepared 

 as rund-fish, they produce at least from four to five voger, 

 which, at the rate of half a dollar per vog, give from two 

 to two and a half dollars. 



The liver is brought home by the fishermen themselves, 

 and their first task after their return is to prepare oil from 

 it : two barrels or two barrels and a half of liver, being the 

 produce of from two to five hundred fish, according to their 

 fatness, give one barrel of oil, which is preserved in oaken 

 casks, and bought in Bergen. 



The roes are salted in quantities proportioned to the pros- 

 pect of sale, and are principally exported to France, where 

 they are used as bait in the sardel (sardine) fishing. 



A vogof-klip-fish, the largest being selected, averages from five to ix Bsh. 

 A VOR of rund flsh contains from twenty-live tq thirty ush. 



No. 239. 



[THE PENNY CYCLOPEDIA,! 



VOL. IV -2 N 



