THE HERRING FISHERY. 429 



the capture of small herring along the eastern part of the coast of Maine. The spawning herring 

 are usually taken in gill-nets, a method which has been employed for many years on different 

 portions of the coast. 



The well-known instinct of herring to follow a light was observed by the Indians prior to the 

 settlement of the country by the whites. The discovery was doubtless the result of their exten- 

 sive camp-fires, which were built along the shores in the principal fishing districts. The method 

 of torching is also said to be in use by the fishermen of other countries. Torching is a very sim- 

 ple method. For this purpose the fishermen usually_select a medium-sized boat, which can be pro- 

 pelled rapidly through the water by means of oars. The boat is provided with a small iron frame 

 called a "dragon," which projects from the bow. In this dragon a fire of birch bark and other 

 highly combustible materials is kept constantly burning while the fish are being taken. The fish- 

 ermen usually go to the shore late in the afternoon and time their departure so as to reach the 

 fishing grounds shortly after sunset. As soon as it becomes sufficiently dark the fire is lighted, 

 one man takes his position in the stern to steer the boat and another stations himself in the bow, 

 armed with a dip-net for securing the fish as they gather in little bunches just in front of the light. 

 The remaining members of the crew row the boat rapidly through the water, while the man in the 

 bow is busily engaged in throwing the fish into the boat by means of his dip-net. Great numbers 

 of herring are attracted by the light and it is not uncommon for fifteen or twenty barrels to be 

 taken in a few hours. 



Where the current is strong it is often customary to row out into the channel, and then grad- 

 ually work in toward the shore, thus bringing the fish into shoaler and stiller water where they 

 can be more easily secured. 



Torching is the method commonly employed at Ipswich Bay, Massachusetts; it is also practiced 

 to a considerable extent at Eastport, Me., these being the only points where it has been generally 

 adopted ; but the method is occasionally employed on a smaller scale by the fishermen of other 

 portions of the New England coast. 



POUNDS, TRAPS, AND WEIRS. Pounds, traps, and weirs are also used for the capture of her- 

 ring. These are all built upon the same general plan, having a "leader" or "wings," which direct 

 the fish to one or more "pockets" or "pounds," which retain them until they can be secured. They 

 vary greatly in size and shape, according to locality and the peculiar character and shape of the 

 shore and adjoining ocean bed. The material of which they are constructed also differs. In one 

 region netting will be exclusively employed, in another the traps will be built largely of lath and 

 boards, while in another still the entire weir will be built of brush and poles. At Cape Small 

 Point, near Portland, Me., and at Bristol, the pounds, which are quite large, are composed chiefly 

 of netting; and, owing to the rocky character of the bottom, the poles, instead of being driven 

 into the ground, are secured by means of large flat stones, in which they are inserted, or poles are 

 entirely dispensed with and the pounds are held in position by means of anchors and ropes. In 

 this case the bottom of the netting is weighted with lead or stones and the top is supplied with 

 large floats to keep it at the surface. Some of these floating traps are very successful in the cap- 

 ture of large quantities of fish. 



About Gape Cod, according to Mr. F. W. True, the traps usually have leaders of netting and 

 pockets of board or lath. Though fished for other species, they often take considerable numbers 

 of herring at certain seasons. 



The brush weir is extensively used in the herring fisheries of the coast of Maine. It is pecu- 

 liarly adapted to the capture of small herring, which are used in the preparation of sardines at 

 Eastport and other places along the eastern shores of the State. Being the principal method by 



