FROM YACHTS AND LARGE FISHING BOATS 305 



caught in the outside surrounding net. The first trial was made 

 with the ordinary cod mesh of one and a half inch from knot 

 to knot, and it was found that not less than 74 per cent, of 

 common dabs passed through the cod into the surrounding 

 net. But it was very different with plaice : only 2-4 per cent, 

 out of 2,772 captured escaped from the trawl. From this it is 

 evident that in the ordinary trawl nets used by professional 

 fishermen the great majority of small dabs escape, while most 

 of the plaice, large and small, are retained. About twice as 

 many codlings passed through the trawl net as were caught. 

 About the same number of haddocks passed through as were 

 caught ; and while 450 whiting were found in the cod, 8,000 

 were found in the outer net. The fish that escaped were, of 

 course, small ones. The proportion between fish caught and 

 fish passing through the meshes of the net would naturally 

 depend on the grounds trawled over that is to say, whether 

 those grounds were mainly stocked with small fish or large ones. 



Then followed an experiment made with a special cod-end 

 having meshes of single twine of the same size as before ; 

 after which came a trial of the trawl fitted with a cod-end 

 having meshes of two inches from knot to knot, and, as in all 

 cases, enclosed within a small meshed net. Six hauls were 

 made with this net ; the cod or purse retaining in all 546 fish, 

 while 2,426 passed through into the outer net. But here again 

 the great majority of plaice were retained in the cod, it being 

 the dabs, codling, and whiting, and a few hundred herrings, 

 which went through into the outer net. One hundred and 

 seventy-two plaice were caught, of which only three were in the 

 surrounding net. Taking the fish as a whole, 18-3 per cent, 

 were retained, while 8i'6 per cent, passed through the two-inch 

 mesh. 



The next experiment was with a cod-end having a two and 

 a half inch mesh from knot to knot ; when it was found that 



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