NORTH CAROLINA: THE MORE IMPORTANT DISTRICTS. 497 



shad, lying npou the beach where they had been driven by their pursuers, and bluefish were sakl 

 to be abundant in the water. 



THE FIRST LARGE BLUEFISH TAKEN IN 1842. It seems that little was known of the presence 

 of large bluefish in the locality prior to 1842, though small ones had often been seen and takea in 

 the sounds. At this time Mr. Adam Etheridge, of Roanoke Island, saw and captured a school of 

 350 of them near New Inlet with a haul seine. These fish averaged 12 to 15 pounds apiece. A few 

 were taken from time to time from that date, but no extensive business was done till 1849, when 

 Capt. J. B. Etheridge made a seine of heavy twine expressly for bluefish, and in 1850 he claims to 

 have landed between 4,000 and 5,000 large fish at a single haul. In 1852 there were three bluefish 

 seines in the locality. This method of capture has continued to the present -day, though gill-nets 

 are now more extensively used, as they are thought to be far preferable to seines. The first gill- 

 net was introduced by Mr. Midgett, of Roanoke Island, in 1S53, and from that date their number 

 has gradually increased. 



NORTHERN VESSELS FIRST VISITED THE REGION IN 1866. As nearly as can be ascertained, 

 no vessels engaged in this fishery prior to 1806; but at the close of the war the Northern fishing 

 vessels began to visit the locality with nets and boats, carrying their catch in ice to the Northern 

 markets. They also bought a large part of the fish taken by the residents, and within a few 

 years the business assumed important proportions. The fishery reached its height between 1870 

 and 1876, when, according to Mr. J. W. Etheridge, fully one hundred crews, averaging five men 

 each, fished along the shore between Hatteras Inlet and Cape Henry. At this time about twelve 

 sail of Northern vessels came yearly to the region to catch and buy; while local dealers bought 

 extensively for shipment to the Northern markets. For the past three years few fish have been 

 taken, and the vessel fleet has been greatly reduced. In the fall of 1879 not a single vessel visited 

 the region. 



The boat fisheries have also been reduced to seventy crews of five persons each, making a total 

 of three hundred and fifty men. Many of these are parties employed at the various life-saving: 

 stations along the shore. Such are permitted to fish within the limits of their respective districts. 

 They fish only occasionally or at times when the fish are unusually abundant. 



THE EXTENT AND METHODS OF THE FISHERY. The fishing begins about the 1st of November 

 and continues till Christmas, when the bluefish follow the menhaden into deeper water. During the 

 fishing season the men remain constantly on the shore and those not employed in the life-saving 

 service build small shanties for cooking and sleeping. Two crews, or ten men, usually occupy a 

 camp together. Each crew is provided with a boat and two or three nets. The nets are 100 

 yards in length, with a mesh varying from 4 to 6 inches, arid have an average depth of fifty meshes. 

 They are set on the bottom at a distance of one quarter to four miles from the shore, and the mesh 

 is so large that the small fish pass easily through them, while the bluefish are "gilled" in attempt- 

 ing to follow. The catch varies considerably from year to year and also from day to day during 

 the season. At times very few fish will be seen, and again they will be so plenty that a crew may 

 secure a large part of their season's catch in two or three days. In 1850, as has already been stated, 

 between 4,000 and 5,000 fish, averaging 12 pounds each, were landed at a single haul of the seine, 

 and on December 28, 1874, the crew of one boat took 1,700 in three gill-nets. During the height 

 of the fishing an average catch was 3,000 to 4,000 fish of 10 to 12 pounds' weight to the boat each 

 season. In 1879 bluefish were more plenty than in either 1877 or '78, but they were so small that 

 many passed through the meshes of the nets; and the average of those taken did not exceed 6 

 pounds. The total catch for 1879, according to Capt. J. W. Etheridge and others, was about 

 40,000 fish, valued at $6,000. 

 32 GRF 



