THE MENHADEN FISHERY. 371 



of menhaden for fertilizing purposes upon Long Island commenced about a century ago. At that 

 time they were taken near the head of Pecouic Bay, in short draw-seines, made from twine manu- 

 factured by the farmers' wives from flax grown upon the farms." 



Mr. Couklin quotes the following extracts from the journal of Mr. David Warner, one of the 

 old fishermen: 



"1793. May 29. Left my bed early; went down to the nets and caught 14 fish. After school 

 went out with Mr. Payne gunning. Went to the ship-yard; saw Jason, who had made a draught 

 of bass." "Mr. Warner was at this time," says Mr^Couklin, "engaged in teaching school, and 

 used a set-net evidently on Saturday. When he went to the Point he used a haul-seine." 



" 1S2G. May 15. Went down to the fishing ground before daylight. Went over to Eed Creek 

 Point and made a haul of upwards of 100,000 [menhaden]. In evening came home with one boat. 



l 'May 16. Attended to the fishing. Boated over the above haul. Got to the fish-house and 

 reeled our seine and shifted our clothes, when we discovered fish on the east side of the Point. In 

 a great hurry got the seine onto the boats and made a draught of 150,000 fish by estimation. 



"May 17. Attended to fishing. Spent the day in getting out the last- mentioned haul. I 

 acted as clerk, and had a very busy day. The weather extremely warm. The ground is becoming 

 very hard. 



" 1827. May 4. Up very early. Went down to the fish house on foot. All the seines out but 

 ours. Got the seine ou the boat, and rowed to Miamogue. When there discovered fish to the 

 eastward. Rowed ou, and soon put off the seine a great distance from tbe shore and were about 

 six hours a drawing. I labored hard at whipping the rope [to keep the fish from passing over 

 the seine]. We began to scoop out, and before sun-setting quit the seine and rowed up to Simeon's 

 Point. Retired about 9 o'clock and slept about foiii- hours. 



"My 5. Left our beds before day, rowed down to our fish, and carried out until almost high 

 wafer. Labored all day. The haul will amount to about 500,000, we judge. We shored the fish 

 at Old Mill. Came home about sunset greatly fatigued. 



"1830. May 17, Monday. Rain this morning and wind easterly, and like fora stormy day. 

 Shot one blackbird in defense of my corn, for the birds pull it up. Much water fell in the course 

 of the day. Carted three loads of fish from Old Mill landing. The draught of fishes made partly 

 on Saturday evening will amount to several hundred thousands, perhaps 500,000. The fishermen 

 have had a day of hard labor, and the weather has been uncomfortable. 



" 1833. May 17. Cloudy in the morning and a little misty. Rode down to Miamogue. Our 

 gang put their seine around a uutnber of porpoises and saved or got ashore 24 of them. A number 

 made their way through the seine and escaped. Rode home between one and two o'clock and took 

 dinner. Then rode down to Miamogue again and attended to the porpoises. Divided some of 

 them and sold some. It was in the evening when I got home. Clear all the afternoon. The 

 northern lights showed bright in the evening. [The fish-house, at the time 'Squire Warner was 

 fishing, was located at Simeon's Point, which is at the head of the bay. Miamogue is where the 

 village of Jamesport now stands, and Old Mill Landing is in the bend just east of Jamesport. 



CONKLIN.]" 



" These fish," continues Mr. Gonkliu, " proved so valuable as a fertilizer that the business was 

 gradually enlarged, until, in my boyhood, nearly every farmer owned a right in a seine, and it was 

 a part of the yearly business to go or send a hand fishing from the first of April until haying 

 time, or about the middle of June. These seines at this time were made of cotton twine, and were 

 nearly a mile in length, with about the same length of rope on either end. They were used to 

 sweep largo semicircles of surface, and the lisli inclosed were drawn to the shore by means of 



