172 The Commercial Products of the Sea. 



unbearable, the sponge exhuming a bloody, slimy matter 

 of most offensive odour. 



The vessel having secured a full cargo makes for port, 

 when the sponges are taken ashore and buried in the sand 

 in a place technically called a "crawl." It is generally 

 constructed of a paling of oak staves driven in the sand, 

 and the lee of some island is selected as the spot. The 

 sponges are left a week or longer, when the slimy flesh, as 

 it may be called, having rotted off, the sponger goes into 

 the crawl with a " bruiser " (a small paddle), and with a 

 few strokes on the top of the sponge, clears it from the 

 filth and skin ; after which it is assorted into the dif- 

 ferent varieties, collected upon strings of convenient length 

 and bleached in the sun, when they are ready for the 

 market. 



The sponge on the bar grows something like a bed of 

 cabbages or mushrooms, and presents a beautiful appear- 

 ance, very dark and seemingly having eyes. The sponge 

 reefs in deep water are called "feather bars," from the 

 feathery or fan-like appearance of the coral, very often 

 seen growing up through the sponge, and in such places 

 the larger sponges are generally found. The different 

 kinds of sponge found on this coast are known as " log- 

 gerhead," "sheep-wool," "turtle-grass," and "yellow." The 

 sheep-wool and yellow only are marketable. The latter 

 is worth is. per pound ; sheep-wool averaging 4^. per 

 pound. 



There are two sponge seasons proper, during the winter 

 and summer months ; should the water continue clear, 

 however, it then lasts all through the year. 



The common practice is to gather sponge on shares, 

 the vessel getting one-third and the crew two-thirds, the 

 provision bill being assessed in the same ratio. The 



