AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 2251 



Banks ? A. 1 have not been on the Banks since 1873. I have not 

 heard it. 



Q. The French fish with trawls ? A. Altogether. 



Q. You fished with trawls ? A. Altogether. 



Q. Did you know any Frenchmen fishing with hand-lines ? A. Some 

 of them, towards the rocks. 



Q. Very few, I believe ? A. No ; there are a good many. 



Q. Those who fish with hand-lines, do they fish in vessels or in do- 

 ries ? A. In dories, principally. 



Q. In a vessel fishing with dories and hand-lines, how many will com- 

 pose the crew I A. 1 don't know ; it will be according to the size of the 

 vessel. 



Q. Say for a vessel of 70 or 80 tons ! A. I don't know. 



Q. Take a vessel of that size fishing with trawls, what will be the 

 number of her crew? A. About 12 men all told. 



Q. How many dories will she have ? A. Four, five, or six. 



Q. Taking a vessel of that size, what do you consider would be a fair 

 trip of codfish ? A. 150,000 pounds of fish. She would not lose any- 

 thing with that, if she did the voyage in a reasonable time, and the fish 

 brought a fair price. That would be a fair good trip. 



Q. It would be a full trip ? A. A vessel would carry from 150,000 

 pounds to 200,000 pounds, a full trip. 



Q. What would you consider a fairly good trip f A. 150,000 pounds I 

 would consider a good trip. 



Q. How many trips do you consider a Grand Bank codfish and hali- 

 but fishing vessel could make during the year, sailing from Salem or 

 Gloucester, and going to the Grand Banks ? A. It is probable she 

 might make twelve, and might not make more than six. 



Q. She might make six trips? A. Not for salt fish. lam speak- 

 ing about fresh fish. For salt fish, the most trips 1 have ever known 

 made were three, and much oftener one or two. 



Q. You are of opinion that fresh bait enables fishermen to catch the 

 fish more quickly than salt bait ? A. Yes ; for the time being. 



Q. Then with a good supply of fresh bait always on hand, a greater 

 number of trips would be made ? A. Yes; but they cannot keep a good 

 supply a long while. 



Q. But if it was on hand ? A. If they had it there they would do bet- 

 ter than if they had to go after it. 



Q. They would increase the number of trips ? A. It is likely they 

 would, if they always had it on hand ; but if they have to run after it 

 three or four hundred miles and spend five or six weeks doing it, they 

 might get the fish more quickly, but would not increase the whole catch. 



Q. But if they could get the fresh bait easily they would be able to 

 increase the number of trips ? A. Yes. 



Q. Are you carrying on the cod and herring fishery at the Bay of 

 Islands ? A. No ; we don't catch any. 



Q. You are engaged trading ? A. Yes. 



By Mr. Foster : 



Q. When you say 150,000 pounds of salt codfish would be a fair trip, 

 did you mean an average trip ? \. No. 



Q. What would be an average trip ? A. I don't know ; I should not 

 like to say. 



Q. What would be regarded as a paying trip ? A. That depends on 

 the length of time the vessel is on it. She might go and get 100,000 



