128 HISTORY AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES. 



and then through the tough, muscular portions about the siphon. When baited, the hook is 

 entirely covered. 



THE MODE OP FISHING. A dory hand-liner having arrived upon the Banks and anchored, the 

 mainsail is usually unbent and stowed away below, its place being supplied with a riding-sail. 

 This operation the fishermen call "going to housekeeping." A vessel may remain for weeks in one 

 place if the fishing is good, though usually she makes occasional changes. Vessels fishing on the 

 Virgin Rocks or on the rocky parts of Banquereau frequently lay for several weeks in one berth. 



Fishing begins at or before sunrise. The dories are put out on both sides of the vessel, and sup- 

 plies of bait and lines are placed in them. Each man takes his own dory and rows away in search of 

 a good place for fishing. Sometimes the dories scatter in various directions, trying here and there in 

 the hope of finding an abundance of fish. At other times, as in the vicinity of the Virgin Kocks, all 

 the dories in the fleet will gather in some favorite locality, crowding closely together side by side. 

 When hand-lining was more common than at present it was not unusual for 500 or 600 dories to 

 be fishing together about the Virgin Rocks or on Bauquereau. In other localities they are apt 

 to be more scattered. The direction in which they row from the vessel is, to a great extent, gov- 

 erned by the tide and force of the wind. When one of the fishermen is perceived to have good 

 success, his mates are apt to gather around him and try their luck on the same spot of ground. 

 While the dories are out fishing the skipper and the cook generally fish from the deck of the vessel. 

 The men continue their solitary employment until nearly noon, when they are recalled to the vessel 

 by a signal announcing that dinner is ready. In clear weather the signal is made by hoisting some 

 conspicuous object, generally a large basket ; in thick weather by the blowing of a horn. The 

 men return to the vessel, unload their fish, and after partaking of their meal again go out in their 

 boats, remaining at their work until they are again recalled by the skipper. The second recall is 

 usually about the middle of the afternoon. The men then go on board, get their supper, and pro- 

 ceed to dress their fish. A careful record is kept by the captain of the number of fish caught by 

 each man, and upon this record depends each man's share of the proceeds. 



Even when men are working for wages, extra pay is given to the man who proves to be most 

 efficient. In this fishery, as in all others where record is kept of the achievements of individuals, 

 there is a strong emulation among the crew to be high-line. 



When there is good fishing a man may get four or five dory loads a day, under which circum- 

 stances he will necessarily return to the vessel more frequently than he is recalled by the skipper. 



On the old-fashioned deck hand-liners the men fished much as in the George's fishery, except 

 that they were stationed on both sides of the vessel and often fished " watch and watch." The day 

 and night were divided into watches of four hours each, half of the crew being thus constantly occu- 

 pied in fishing. While one watch was fishing the other watch was employed in dressing the fish 

 and then in sleeping until they were called. It has been stated that on the dory hand-liners the 

 skipper and the cook usually fished from the deck of the vessel ; in some instances there is a 

 dressing gang on board, consisting of the skipper, cook, and a boy, or "green hand," also in some 

 cases a salter. Under these circumstances the men on board do not fish, but devote their time to 

 dressing and salting the catch; and, if not hired, they draw a definite share of the proceeds of the 

 voyage. 



The number of fish which may be caught by a crew of hand-line fishermen is shown by the 

 accompanying memorandum of the work of each member of the crew of the schooner Gertie Lewis, 

 of Portland, Me., on her first trip to the Western Bank in 1879. 



