NELSON] FISH TRAPS AND NETS 185 



figure 13, plate Lxx, showing the method of construction. Splints of 

 spruce are fastened together in a bunch to form the small end of the 

 trap, and are held in position by a rawhide or spruce-root lashing j 

 thence toward the mouth they are held in place by a wrapping of 

 spruce root, which is wound spirally several times around the circum- 

 ference to the mouth, forming a cone-shape basket; the splints are 

 fastened to the wrapping by a lashing of spruce root or rawhide, which 

 is wound around the crossings of the framework; in the mouth of the 

 trap is a conical mouthpiece attached to a square framework of four 

 sticks and inserted in the larger end of the trap, where it is fastened by 

 lashings on each side. 



By means of traps of this character vast quantities of blackfish are 

 taken in the waters of the low country between Yukon and Kuskokwim 

 rivers, where they are very abundant, and form one of the principal 

 sources of food supply for the jieople during several months of the 

 year. 



After the salmon season, the main trapping for fish is done along the 

 lower Yukon and in the adjacent region in autumn, just before and after 

 the streams become frozen; at this time the salmon traps are set again 

 and vast quantities of whitefish, losh, i)ickerel, and blackfish are secured 

 and j)reserved by freezing for use later in the season. The trai)s are 

 kept out until midwinter, but the main catch is while the fish are crowd- 

 ing in from the small streams. Plate lxxi, from a photograph, shows 

 the method of setting these traps through the ice on the Yukon, near 

 Ikogmut (Mission). 



On Norton sound, when high gales blow from the north during Sep- 

 tember and October, very low tides ensue, and the women go out among 

 the exposed rocks to gather mussels, ascidians, and several kinds of 

 fish which are found concealed beneath the large stones off the rocky 

 points. 



NETS 



Gill nets for salmon are set usually on a line leading from the shore. 

 The inner end of the line is made fast to a stone or a stake, and the 

 owner carries the other end out to the proper distance and anchors it 

 with a stone. At the outer end of the net is fastened a wooden marker- 

 float, commonly made in the form of a bird. Bounded wooden floats, 

 varying considerably in form, are also strung at intervals along the 

 upper edge of the net. A specimen of these net floats, from Ikogmut, 

 is illustrated in figure 4, plate lxx. It is fashioned in the shape of a 

 loon, with a long, projecting neck, and is made from a single piece of 

 wood. A hole runs through it for attaching the cord,; two incised 

 grooves outline the wings, and a wide, shallow groove extends around 

 the edge. All of these grooves are painted red ; the center of the back 

 has a greenish tint, but the wings are not colored. 



At Cape Blossom, on the Arctic coast, the people were seen using gill 

 nets about 25 feet in length, strung with floats and sinkers in the usual 



