214 GEOGRAPHICAL KEVIEW OF THE FISHERIES. 



soft lobsters. The State law, as to size, is said to be well observed ; yet the catch yeaily shows a 

 decrease in size and number. The practice of wedging the claws of the lobsters is not followed 

 here. The larger portion of the catch is sent to the Boston market. Occasionally large lobsters 

 are taken in Boston Harbor. One weighing 16, and another weighing 21 pounds, were noticed 

 among the catch of last year. A few small vessels are engaged in the shore herring fishery in 

 October. 



HINGHAM. Hingham, situated 12 miles southeast from Boston, was in past years known as a 

 fishing port of considerable importance. To this place at one time belonged a large number of 

 vessels engaged in the mackerel fishery. As railroads and other industries of recent date sprang 

 up, the fishery interest decreased from year to year. The harbor has been allowed to become 

 obstructed, and the wharves to decay ; and, by degrees, the port at last has ceased to be recog- 

 nized as a fishing place of any importance. Three vessels received fishing licenses during 1879 ; 

 two of them having been sold, one sail alono remains to represent the fishery industry of Hingham.* 



COHASSET. Cohasset, situated 20 miles southeast from Boston, with a fine harbor, at one 

 time had a good fishing fleet, as is seen by the records of the custom-house. Formerly, numerous 

 firms were engaged in the fisheries, but at the present time the port is noted more for its attrac- 

 tions as a seaside resort than for anything else. The fishing industry is now represented by only 

 two firms, both of which are engaged in the mackerel fishery. They have been in the business for 

 over fifty years, and in 1879 fitted out only six vessels. A few dories and small boats fish near 

 the shore for cod and lobsters. A number of vessels formerly went from this place annually to 

 the Grand Banks for cod ; none have been since 1845, in which year three were sent. Ten men 

 are engaged in gathering Irish moss. Five hundred barrels of it were produced in 1879. Twenty 

 men are occupied in catching lobsters and shore fish. Marine products secured in 1879 were worth 

 $34,339, and included 4,783 barrels of shore mackerel, 217 barrels of Bay of Saint Lawrence 

 mackerel, 175,000 pounds of shore fish, 60,000 lobsters, and 500 barrels of Irish moss. The fishing 

 fleet included eight vessels, aggregating 521.51 tons, ten dories, and ten lapstreak boats. The 

 number of persons employed was one hundred and nineteen, more than half of whom were 

 Portuguese. 



G. THE DISTRICT OF PLYMOUTH. 



70. GENERAL REVIEW OF THE DISTRICT. 



PRESENT EXTENT OF THE FISHERIES. The fisheries in Plymouth district, which includes 

 the towns of Scituate, Duxbury, Kingston, and Plymouth, are not nearly as important at the 

 present time as in past years, when a large fleet of cod and mackerel fishermen sailed from these 

 ports. An annexed tabulated statement shows the extent of the cod fisheries from 1815 to 1879. 

 We find that in 1853 there were eighty-nine vessels of 25,595.86 tons in this fishery, and that they 

 brought home 5G,313 quintals of cod and 22,223 gallons of oil. In 1879 the product of the fleet 

 was 12,500 quintals of cod and 3,465 gallons of oil. 



The business of gathering Irish moss is largely carried on at Scituate. This business was 

 begun here in 1853, and Scituate has now grown to bo the headquarters in New England for that 

 article. Shore fisheries for cod, mackerel, and other species are carried on to a small extent. A 



"In the summer of 1881 the schooner Exchange, the last of tlie once largo Hingham mackerel fleet, was sold to 

 Cape Cod. 



