490 GEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF THE FISHERIES. 



WHALE AND PORPOISE FISHING FKOM THE SHORE The oldest residents of Beaufort state 

 that the whale and porpoise fisheries of that region began prior to their earliest recollections. 

 There seems never to have been any extensive fishery, and, with the exception of two vessels (the 

 Daniel Webster and the Seychelle, of 24.15 and 47.07 tons, respectively), it has been prosecuted 

 only from small open boats, manned by fishermen living along the shore. The Daniel Webster 

 came to Beaufort in the winter of 1874-'75, with a crew from Provincetown, Mass., but after three 

 months' cruising she returned to the North, having taken nothing. The Seychelle came in the 

 winter of 187S-'79, but was lost in the summer of 1879, before taking a whale. 



The shore whalers resort to the outer beach with their boats and other apparatus about the 

 1st of February, and after building a camp for cooking and sleeping, they establish a " crow's-nest" 

 or lookout station on one of the highest sand hills, where some of their number are stationed to 

 watch for the whales that follow the shore in their migrations toward the north. The season lasts 

 till the 1st of May. A camp usually consists of three boat crews, of six men each, and while wait- 

 ing for whales some of the men fish with seines for such fish as happen to be moving along the 

 shore. A lookout is kept constantly in the crow's-nest, and when a whale comes in sight the signal 

 is given and the boats start in pursuit. When the whale is overtaken the harpoon is plunged 

 into it. A wooden drag is usually attached to the iron by means of a short line. This is at once 

 thrown out, and the animal is allowed to "have its run." Harassed by the drag, the whale soon 

 turns to fight, when the boats quickly overtake it, and one of the gunners shoots it with an explo- 

 sive cartridge. When the creature has been killed it is towed to the shore, where it is cut up and 

 the blubber tried out. 



The number of men engaged in the whale fishery varies from year to year. Formerly there were 

 two to three camps of about eighteen men each. In 1879 there were four camps, with a total of sev- 

 enty-two men. Five whales were taken during the season, the products of which sold for $4,000. 

 In 1880 there were one hundred and eight men stationed between Cape Hatteras and Bear Inlet, 

 which mark the limits of this fishery, but the season being unusually open, most of the whales had 

 passed before the fishermen arrived. One small whale was taken, from which the fishermen real- 

 ized $408.46. 



The stretch of coast above referred to is also a favorite " run " for porpoise (Plioctcna amcricana), 

 and often immense herds of them may be seen moving along within a few rods of the shore. Dur- 

 ing a visit to the region in April, 1880, they were very abundant. Droves of 50 to 100 of them 

 were frequently seen together, and the fishermen assure us that they were even more numerous 

 earlier in the season. As early as 1810 parties engaged in the porpoise fishery, and from one to 

 three crews followed it quite regularly each winter up to 1860, when the fishery was discontinued. 

 The fish were taken in heavy seines, about 800 yards long. These, on account of their weight and 

 bulk, were in sections of 200 yards each. They were shot simultaneously from four boats, the ends 

 being securely fastened after they had been brought together. The seine was then hauled in as 

 far as convenient, after which the porpoise were landed with a smaller and stouter seine. The 

 crews usually numbered from fifteen to eighteen men, and the fishing season lasted from late in 

 December till the following April. The average catch was about 400 or 500 porpoise to the seine, 

 each yielding 5 to G gallons. 



There is a growing disposition on the part of the people of the region to resume this fishery, 

 and were it not for the expense of "fitting out" (which, according to their statements, would be 

 about $400), many would doubtless engage in the work. There seems no reason why this fishery 

 should not be very profitable to any who would engage in it; on the contrary, there is reason to 

 believe that, if properly managed, it would be more remunerative than almost any other fishery on 



