THE CRAB FISHERIES. 631 



depths of water farther from the shore, but in such localities they would not be generally 

 noticed when they could be obtained nearer land. According to correspondents, they are 

 obtained for food and bait in the summer months in all depths from high-water mark to 3 or 4 

 fathoms, but mostly where they can be reached with a hand net. As above stated, cold weather 

 drives the crabs away from the shore and causes them to seek depths which are not subject 

 to sudden changes of temperature. Nearly all observers agree in stating that during the 

 winter months they remain quiet and more or less concealed in the bottom mud or sand. At this 

 season they are often taken by means of tongs and spears, but being then obtained with so much 

 difficulty, the winter crab fishing has never assumed any considerable proportions. In some 

 localities it appears that the crabs do not entirely leave the very shallow water in the fall, but a few 

 bed near the shore, where the conditions are favorable, and these crabs are said to suffer greatly 

 in times of extreme cold. A very severe winter kills many of them, and after heavy winter 

 storms many dead ones may often be found thrown upon the beaches by the waves. After an 

 unusually cold winter, crabs are less abundant than after a mild one. Little can be said regard- 

 ing the depths frequented by crabs in the winter season. They are taken for food in depths of 3 

 to 4 fathoms, but probably live also in much deeper water. A correspondent at Hampton, Va., 

 states that the winter crabs are less savory than those procured in the summer, their flesh being 

 rather soft and watery. 



According to the statements of many persons along the entire coast from Cape Cod to Mexico, 

 edible crabs are as abundant now as they have been at any previous time. Despite the immense 

 quantities taken and sold or destroyed, there has been no apparent diminution in their numbers. 

 They vary in abundance from year to year, being especially scarce after severe winters ; but if 

 they are less abundant one year, they are just as likely to be more abundant the next. Still it 

 would not be wise to countenance an indiscriminate fishing, for there is no reason why the crab 

 fisheries, like many others, might not be overdone. We are informed that on one section of the 

 New Jersey coast, where a law exists to protect crabs during the winter, they have apparently 

 increased in abundance since the law has been enforced. 



HARD AND SOFT CRABS. Both hard and soft shell crabs are used as food and bait, but for 

 both of these purposes the soft-shelled individuals, called simply " soft crabs," are greatly preferred 

 in nearly all localities. While shedding, however, and as long as they remain soft, the crabs 

 generally seek shelter and protection in secluded places or by partly burying themselves out of 

 harm's way. It is also certain that soft crabs are much less abundant than hard ones at any- 

 time, as the shedding period is of several months' duration, and it is probable that but a compara- 

 tively small proportion shed at exactly the same time. Soft crabs are, therefore, much more diffi- 

 cult to obtain than hard ones, and being in greater demand, bring much higher prices; in many 

 places they are regarded as great luxuries. Soft crabs have this advantage, that there is little 

 waste in preparing them for the table; but with hard crabs, on the contrary, the external 

 coating or shell is thick and hard and constitutes a large proportion of both the body and the 

 claws. At the South, however, it is considered that the soft crab is fit only for frying, while hard 

 crabs may be prepared in a multitude of ways. Only hard crabs are used at the canneries. The 

 quantity of hard crabs consumed upon our coast probably far exceeds that of soft crabs, but the 

 aggregate value of the latter appears to be much greater. 



CRABS AS BAIT. Crabs form an excellent bait for many kinds of fish taken with the hook 

 and line, and are very extensively used for that purpose throughout their entire range from Cape 

 Cod to Texas. About New Bedford they are especially recommended for tautog, and during some 

 seasons nearly all the catch of crabs, amounting at times to many thousands in number a week, 



