THE FISHERMAN'S TOOLS 



of what is essential to the professional fishermen of civil- 

 ised countries. 



Before the sea-fisher is at liberty to bestow many 

 thoughts upon either fish or tackle, he must learn to be a 

 sailor ; must understand the mystery of tides and currents 

 and winds ; be well acquainted with the nature of the 

 ground on which he has to work ; and be prepared to 

 perform every conceivable duty on board, from swabbing 

 the deck to steering the smack through a squall or a fog. 

 Even then his education is by no means complete. Apart 

 from the thousand and one minor repairs to boat and 

 tackle for which he is responsible, apart even from the 

 many tricks of the trade that he must know before he can 

 secure and land his catch, almost every class of fisherman 

 has special duties to perform in connection with the fish 

 after they are caught : cleaning, sorting, packing, drying, 

 salting all of it work, that sounds and looks far easier 

 than it is. 



From this it will be seen that the fisherman's life is not 

 a lazy one ; neither is it a very safe one, especially where 

 open-boat fishing is concerned. It is, moreover, pre- 

 carious in the extreme ; too much or too little wind may 

 keep the boats ashore for days at a time ; an overstocked 

 market may render a whole day's catch valueless, except 

 as manure ; a sea-monster or passing ship may ruin fifty 

 pounds' worth of gear in fifty seconds. 



But there is a brighter side to the picture. There are 

 strokes of luck to be considered extraordinary catches, 

 at a time when prices are high a few of which will make 

 the fisherman comparatively wealthy. Of the healthiness 



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