42 HISTORY AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES. 



of live halibut, if the weather was cold, but not more than half that amount could be kept alive 

 in warm weather." 



THE BAIT USED IN THE EARLY HALIBUT FISHERY. In regard to the bait used by the George's- 

 men and halibut trawlers we have obtained the following statements : " Gapt. Ben. Rumby," says 

 Sinclair, "was the first to carry pogie bait in ice to George's Bank. This was in 1847. He 

 bought 1,000 of these fish (an amount then considered a large baiting) from two boats, each of 

 which had one net 14 fathoms long. I and William Gardner were in one of the boats which caught 

 and sold the pogies, and William Rowe and his young son in the other." 



Captain Sinclair, while in the schooner Anna, usually carried several pogie gill-nets as part of 

 the outfit in summer. When starting out on a summer trip he would, with these nets, "sweep" 

 pogies for bait, rarely failing to get a full supply either off Cape Ann or along the coast of Maine. 

 For a halibut trip he generally carried about 7,000 pogies in number, and, while using them for 

 bait, caught nearly equal quantities of cod and halibut. 



HALIBUT AT SAN FRANCISCO. The following record of an attempt to prosecute the fresh- 

 halibut fisheries from that port was clipped from a San Francisco paper: 



" When the large and abundant supply of this fish is considered, it is a matter of wonder that 

 so small a quantity is smoked or canned for market. There is a prejudice in favor of Eastern 

 halibut, which doubtless to some extent hinders the development of this branch of business. The 

 North Pacific Canning Company can some halibut at Klawack, Prince of Wales Island, and it is 

 said to be of good quality. 



"The endeavor to bring fresh halibut to San Francisco from Puget Sound does not appear to 

 have been financially successful. A schooner load suddenly brought into market already fully 

 stocked with fish caused the price to fall to about ten cents per pound, and much of it could not 

 be disposed of at that price." 



The Gloucester Telegraph of July 30, 1853, says: "Halibut, in California, is just double the 

 price of salmon a pound of the sea fish exchanging for two pounds of the river fish. Halibut in 

 the San Francisco market are brought from the Russian settlements, and are similar to those on 

 our coast." 



RECOLLECTIONS OF CAPTAIN MARKUSON. The following statements of Capt. Knud M. Mar- 

 kuson, a veteran halibut fisherman, contain many facts interesting in this connection: 



"I began halibut fishing," he says, "in 1861, at which time I was in command of the schooner 

 Silver Spring. I followed the fishery continuously in Summer until 1864. I used to go to George's 

 for cod in the winter, but in the spring wo would fit out for halibut trawling, and go to La Have 

 Bank, Brown's Bank, or the Seal Island Ground. In 1861 we carried only three dories ; the trawls 

 had only 150 hooks each, these being placed 3 fathoms apart on the ground line. We used to catch 

 an average of about 15,000 pounds of halibut each trip, which was considered a good take for the 

 times. 



"During the seasons of 1865, '66, and '67 I did not engage in the halibut fishery. In 1868 I 

 took command of the new schooner Notice and went on a halibut trip to Saint Peter's Bank. The 

 schooners Scotland, Isaac Patch, James G. Tarr, and several others had fished for halibut the pre- 

 vious year on Saint Peter's Bank, generally on the northern part, and had met with great success. 



"I succeeded in discovering a new halibut fishing ground on the southeast end of Saint Peter's 

 Bank, where fish were generally abundant. This particular locality has somewhat less depth than 

 the other portions of the Bank immediately surrounding it, and is known among the fishermen as 

 the 'Southern Shoal Water.' [This locality is of comparatively small extent, being a ridge about 

 20 miles long. The bottom is chiefly composed of coarse sand, gravel, and pebbles, among which 



