TRAWLING. 277 



dreamy content, we stretch ourselves in the sun till the word 

 is given to haul in, and then anxiety dissipates the luxurious 

 calm. The trawl is a huge net of somewhat conical shape, 

 from twenty to thirty feet wide, from thirty to forty deep. 

 Along the edge of the wide opening is a stout wooden beam, 

 to the ends of which are fastened the trawl heads, namely, 

 thick flat semicircular bands of iron, which serve to keep at 

 a distance of three feet from the beam that portion of the 

 net meant to touch the bottom. In the net there are various 

 pockets. Wlien the trawl is thrown overboard, the weight 

 of the iron carries it to the bottom, the buoyancy of the 

 wooden beam, assisted by the perpendicular support of the 

 iron bands, keeping the upper edge of the net steadily 

 floating three feet above the ground. The rope sweeping 

 along the bottom disturbs the fish ; up they dart in foolish 

 distracted haste, and come in contact with the net over- 

 arching them ; this flurries them, and they dart sideways to 

 escape ; in doing which they unsuspectingly swim into the 

 net if they go one way, into the pockets if they go the other. 

 The net, thus scraping the bottom, gathers, of course, a 

 quantity of shells and weeds as well as fish ; this is known 

 to naturalists as " trawl refuse," and is always worth careful 

 overhauling. 



The contents are all emptied upon the deck, and while 

 Jack is gloating over the turbot, brill, soles, skate, and gur- 

 nard, or grimly noticing the utter absence of those desirable 

 individuals, you squat down amid the refuse, and begin a 

 long deliberate investigation thereof Tlie net is once more 

 plunging its way to the bottom, the vessel glides through 



