OF MASSACHUSETTS. 45 



The Wellfleet and Chatham Eake. This rake is perhaps the most 

 generally used for all deep-water quahauging on Cape Cod, and finds 

 favor with all. It consists of an iron framework, forming a curved 

 bowl, the under edge of which is set with thin steel teeth vary- 

 ing in length from 2 to 4 inches, though usually 2V2-inch teeth are the 

 favorite. Formerly these teeth were made of iron, but owing to the 

 rapid wear it was found necessary to make them of steel. Over 

 the bowl of this rake, which is strengthened by side and cross pieces 

 of iron, is fitted a twine net, which, like the net of a scallop dredge, 

 drags behind the framework. An average rake has from 19 to 21 

 teeth, and weighs from 15 to 20 pounds. 



Edgartown Basket Rake. The basket rake used at Edgartown and 

 Nantucket is lighter and somewhat smaller than the Wellfleet rake. 

 The whole rake, except the teeth, is made of iron. No netting is re- 

 quired, as thin iron wires % inch apart encircle lengthwise the whole 

 basket, preventing the escape of any marketable quahaug, and at the 

 same time allowing the mud to wash out. This rake has 16 steel teeth, 

 11/2 inches long, fitted at intervals of 1 inch in the bottom scraping bar, 

 which is 16 inches long ; the depth of the basket is about 8 inches. Much 

 shorter poles, not exceeding 30 feet in length, are used with this rake, 

 and the whole rake is much lighter. The price of this rake is $7.50, 

 while the poles cost $1.50. 



The third form of basket rake is a cross between the basket and 

 claw rakes. This rake is used both at Nantucket and on Cape Cod, but 

 is not so popular as the other types. The basket is formed by the curve 

 of the prongs, which are held together by two long cross-bars at the top 

 and bottom of the basket, while the ends are enclosed by short strips 

 of iron. This rake exemplifies the transition stage between the claw 

 and basket types, indicating that the basket form was derived from the 

 former. Handles 20 to 30 feet long are generally used with these rakes. 



Shallow v. Deep Water Quahauging. Two kinds of quahauging 

 are found in Massachusetts, the deep and the shallow water fisheries. 

 This arbitrary distinction also permits a division of localities in regard 

 to the principal methods of fishing. Although in all localities there 

 exists more or less shallow-water fishing, the main quahaug industry of 

 several towns is the deep-water fishery. In all the Buzzards Bay towns 

 except Fairhaven and New Bedford the shallow-water fishery prevails; 

 this is also true of the south side of Cape Cod. On the north side of 

 Cape Cod the opposite is true, as the quahauging at Wellfleet, Eastham, 

 Orleans and Brewster is practically all deep-water fishing. At Edgar- 

 town and Nantucket, although there is considerable shallow-water dig- 

 ging, the deep-water fishery is the more important. 



The deep-water fishery is vastly more productive than the shallow- 

 water industry, furnishing annually 118,500 bushels, compared to 

 23,227 bushels, or more than 5 times as much. The deep-water fishery, 

 i.e., the basket-rake fishery, is the main quahaug fishery of the State, 



