92 BRITISH IND U8TRIES. 



even very small size may be the means of catching a 

 great variety of fish. The peculiarity in its working 

 consists simply in the net being always hauled on 

 shore, and that being the case, there is no necessity 

 for the meshes at the wings being as small as is 

 desirable at the bunt or middle of the net, where the 

 fish sooner or later collect, and the greatest pressure is 

 felt. Each wing has a pole to which the ends of the 

 upper and lower edges of the net are fastened, and to 

 this pole a long drag-rope is attached for the purpose 

 of hauling in the net. When the sean is to be shot, 

 the end of one of the drag-ropes is left on shore in 

 charge of some of the fishermen, and the whole of the 

 net with the rope at the other end is put into the sean- 

 boat, which is then rowed out from the shore, and, 

 after shooting the net in a semicircle, returns with the 

 second rope to the beach. The two ropes are then 

 slowly hauled in, the two parties of fishermen gradually 

 approaching each other as the net comes to land, until 

 at last they meet, and the bunt of the net, in which all 

 the fish are collected, is then drawn on shore. The 

 ground-sean may be made of small dimensions, and is 

 therefore very convenient for amateurs who may not be 

 able to muster hands enough to work a large net. 

 Yachting men frequently use it, and often procure a 

 moderate and varied supply of fish by its means. It 

 can be easily worked, wherever the bottom is smooth, 

 and there is a bit of beach on which the net can be 

 landed. At Brighton, and along the Chesil Beach, 

 near Portland, however, nets of this kind and of a 

 large size are regularly used in the proper season for 



