AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 2589 



Q. When they return from their trip they receive an account, do they 

 not, from the owners? A. Yes; and they are on the wharf to take ac- 

 count themselves of their catch. 



Q. Do yon know of anything like attempts to defraud them ? Would 

 it be a practicable thing ? A. I never heard of such a thing being done. 



Q. Would it be practicable ? A. I don't know how it could be done. 



Q. As a rule, crews are attentive to their settlements ? A. The ma- 

 jority of them are. 



Q. And the number of persons employed on vessels is, of course, very 

 large. Do the men who go in Gloucester vessels change from one em- 

 ployer to another ? A. Yes ; very frequently. 



Q. Are there various habits among the different employers and out- 

 fitters, as to liberality or illiberality, as to closeness or generosity in 

 making up accounts and feeding the crews, and are these pretty well 

 known in Gloucester? A. Perfectly well known among the crews. 



Q. When the crew comes home the vessel's cargo is packed out. The 

 mackerel are culled over when the crew are present. Is that an open 

 or a close transaction ? A. They are supposed to be all there, and gen- 

 erally are. 



Q. They are present to see fair play ; they see the process of putting 

 them into barrels and weighing? A. Yes; and one of the crew super- 

 intends the weighing. 



Q. So as to the culling ; is there any objection made to the culling ? 

 A. The crew are always there and speak of it. 



Q. Is it sometimes the case that the owner of vessels, instead of fur- 

 nishing a fisherman with his outfit and clothing, gives him an order or 

 indorses his bill on some shop where the fisherman buys? A. Quite 

 frequently gives the man an order to get his outfit and clothes at some 

 other store. 



Q. In that case the owner becomes responsible ? A. Yes. 



Q. If the fisherman is lost during the voyage and does not leave prop- 

 erty behind him, the owner has to pay the debt ? A. The owner loses 

 the amount. 



Q. And if the voyage turns out unprofitable, and the man has not 

 the money to pay it, the owner must pay it ? A. The owner has to 

 pay it. 



Q. From your experience, do you know that, when an owner has a 

 store he retails articles out to his crews at retail prices, and buys ac- 

 cording to his skill and sagacity at wholesale prices? A. Yes. 



Q. What do you think, on an average, is the difference between the 

 wholesale price at which the owner is able to buy, and the retail price 

 charged to the crew! A. Probably eight or ten per cent. 



Q. You don't think it exceeds that? A. I do not. ' 



Q. Is that a matter perfectly understood by the fishermen ? A. Yes. 



Q. Do you think the fisherman who has to take credit can do better 

 than that, if he undertakes to supply himself? A. I don't think he can. 

 do better than that. 



Q. Is it not understood to be the business of the skipper to stand by 

 and take accounts of all the weighing and other matters ? A. Always. 



Q. He has an interest like one of the crew ? A. Yes ; and more than 

 they. 



Q. And an account is made out of what is charged to fclie crew and 

 what to the master, and the same rate of charge is rna'de to the skip- 

 per as to tlie crew? A. Yes. 



Q. There is a regular charge for the captain as well as for each mem- 

 ber of the crew ? A. Yes. 



