THE MACKEREL-HOOK FISHERY. 277 



SOUTH COAST OF NEW ENGLAND. Of late years a small quantity of extraordinarily fine 

 mackerel Lave beeu caught in the vicinity of Block Island in summer and fall. In previous years 

 the mackerel fishery in this vicinity was chiefly carried on in the spring. 



THE COAST OF THE MIDDLE STATES FROM MONTAUK POINT TO DELAWARE. This fish- 

 ery was chiefly carried on in May, and in many respects corresponded to the spring mackerel fishery 

 described in another section of this chapter; this is now prosecuted with seines on the same 

 grounds, and the fish are mostly taken to New York for sale, principally in a fresh condition, 

 though formerly they were generally salted. 



THE EASTERN COAST OF NOVA SCOTIA. In tlifs region, although great quantities of mack- 

 erel are sometimes taken in pounds, nets, and seines, in the early summer and fall, they are very 

 rarely taken on the hook. About 1854 and 1855 several fares of extremely large mackerel were 

 caught at Sable Island by Cape Cod vessels. 



2. THE FISHERMEN. 



The men engaged in the mackerel hook fishery, especially in the period of its culmination, 

 were almost exclusively natives of New England. From 1850 to 1870 the provincial element in 

 the fleet gradually increased. When this fishery was most prosperous not less than 10,000 men 

 and boys were employed on board the vessels belonging to the American fleet. The vessels engaged 

 in this fishery carried very large crews; in fact, larger than have ever been carried by other ves- 

 sels. Not infrequently a schooner of 80 to 100 tons would carry twenty men, and, in some instances, 

 twenty -four. Among the crew were generally three or four boys, sometimes five, from ten to seven- 

 teen years of age. These boys fished from the extreme ends of the vessel ; they were frequently 

 very successful, and by the training in this fishery fitted themselves to assume responsibilities in 

 the fishing fleet at a much earlier age than otherwise would have been possible. At sixteen or 

 seventeen years of age many of the boys ranked among the first of the crew to which they belonged, 

 and it sometimes happened that the command of a schooner was given to the most enterprising 

 before they were out of their teens. 



3. THE VESSELS. 



Prior to 1848 the mackerel fleet was made up exclusively of the old-fashioned square-stern 

 schooners registering from 25 tons to 80 or 90 tons, old measurement, and of pinkies registering 

 from 20 to 60 tons. JSfewburyport had a large fleet of pinkies, registering, old measurement, from 

 40 to 60 tons. Most of them carried a flying jib. 



From 1848 to 1850 the necessity for swifter vessels was felt, and various experiments, which 

 are described in the chapter on the schooner, were made. From this time on, all the vessels added 

 to the fleet were of improved model, approximating, more or less closely, to the modern type of the 

 fishing schooner. These vessels were in those days known as "sharp-shooters." As early as 1855 

 the character of the fleet had become very much modified, there being a large percentage of 

 modern-built vessels, and the pinkies and square-stern schooners were retained only by conserva- 

 tives and at the smaller ports, especially those on the coast of Maine. Many of these old vessels 

 had by this time been withdrawn from the mackerel fishery and employed in other branches of the 

 fisheries. As early as 1870 the old square-stern vessels and pinkies had entirely disappeared from 

 the fleet, most of them long before that date. 



The mackerel hookers, when fitted out for fishing, had the decks clear. Upon the starboard 

 side of the vessel were arranged line-cleats. These were in early times small narrow cleats of pine 

 nailed to the inside of the waist, but after the introduction of finer vessels the fishermen became 



