134 HISTORY OF THE FISHES OF MASSACHUSETTS. 



one pound to a pound and a half each. After they have been cured, and made ready for 

 inspection, and are packed for the third quality, one hundred and fifty-four, fifty-five, or 

 fifty-six constitute a barrel. At their first appearance they will not take the hook, and 

 are therefore captured in nets. The fishermen of Provincetown are the only persons in 

 the State who thus take them. Their nets are about eighty yards long and eighteen 

 feet deep, with the meshes three and a quarter inches long, of a size intermediate be- 

 tween a herring net and a menhaden net, the one being too large and the other too small. 

 These nets are suspended vertically in the water, so that when the mackerel, as they 

 swim along, endeavor to pass through, they are caught by the gills ; or should they be 

 smaller than usual, they pass their heads through, and are caught by the body. 



Most of the fishermen engaged in this method of catching mackerel reside at that por- 

 tion of Provincetown called Long Point, north of the town ; and it is exceedingly inter- 

 esting to watch them in their laborious and successful avocation. The following notes 1 

 took upon the spot, June 26, 1847 : "Now all the male inhabitants of the Point are 

 engaged in the mackerel fishery ; from twenty to thirty boats, each of about three or 

 four tons burden, sail at four or five o'clock in the afternoon, having all their nets, vary- 

 ing from ten to fifteen in number, carefully dried and rolled up for their night's fishing. 

 Each boat has two persons on board, one to manage the boat while the other takes 

 charge of the nets. As the boats sail from the harbor, the scene is very exciting, all leav- 

 ing at about the same time, and doubling the point upon which the light-house is situated 

 nearly together. (Occasionally a boat arrives late in the morning from its night's fishing, 

 or is detained until an unusually late hour in the afternoon, by its nets being injured, or 

 by the unusually large quantity of fish taken the previous night, and then it does not 

 leave the harbor, but anchors within the Point ; this, however, is seldom done, as but few 

 mackerel, comparatively, are taken here, except when the fish first arrive upon the coast.) 

 When the, extremity of the Point is cleared, the boats separate from each other, and each 

 skipper fixes upon his own locality. Some of the boats sail but a few miles, perhaps to 

 the extremity of Race Point, which is distant four or five miles ; while others go nearly 

 to Plymouth, and others scatter all over the bay. The farther the boat sails, the later 

 will the nets be thrown overboard ; because, should the boats go, as they frequently do, 

 nearly a fourth the distance to Boston, the crew will not be able to get them overboard 

 until late in the evening, or even until midnight ; and then, wishing to return as early in 

 the morning as the other boats, they will necessarily keep them out but a few hours. 

 Having thrown over their nets, the fishermen lie down in their little cabins, and get what 

 sleep they can, having first fixed to one of the masts of their boat a light, to prevent 

 their being run down by any vessel which may be passing ; and some of the fishermen, 



