640 HISTORY AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES, 



The crab catchers of the vicinity of Dover are, as a rule, professional fishermen, who, during 

 the summer, after the close of the trout season, gather large quantities of crabs and carry them to 

 Dover, where they hawk them through the streets, together with fish of several species which they 

 may have caught at the same time. Between Dover and Lewes, crab fishing does not appear to 

 be regularly carried on. The residents of the towns in this section who desire crabs for their own 

 use, can readily obtain them almost any time by simply dipping them up from the outer edge of the 

 beaches. At Lewes, however, the crab fishery is combined with that for other species, and most 

 of the men engaged in it may be regarded as professional fishermen. South of Cape Henlopeu, in 

 the towns bordering on Rehoboth Bay and Indian River, a large proportion of those employed in 

 crabbing are boys, and colored women also take a slight part in the fishery. The fishermen, 

 whether young or old, are, as a rule, also farmers. Mr. Harmond, of Millsborough, states that he 

 has in his employ during the fishing season, from May 1 to September, twelve men, all of whom, 

 with one exception, are farmers. 



Most of the boats employed in the crab fisheries of Indian River are patterned somewhat after 

 the sharpie, being flat-bottomed, sharp-bowed, and wide-sterned ; they are constructed of pine 

 boards in the simplest manner possible, and at very slight expense, their average value, as stated 

 by the fishermen, being from two to three dollars each. About two hundred and fifty of these 

 boats are in use in the crab fisheries of Indian River and Bay. In addition to these skiffs espe- 

 cially designed for crabbing, the boats used in the other fisheries are also employed to a large extent 

 for the same purpose. 



The principal appliance for catching crabs is a small scoop-net of the ordinary pattern, having 

 a bow from 12 to 15 inches in diameter, with a shallow net-bag, attached to a pole from 10 to 12 

 feet long. 



On the south side of Indian River, many of the crab catchers have small live-cars, which they 

 drag after them as they wade along in search of crabs. The latter, as they are taken, are trans- 

 ferred to the cars, in order that they may be kept alive until the time of shipment arrives. 

 When larger boats than the skiffs above described are used, the cars are towed astern of them or 

 alongside. 



At Lewes, crabs are frequently taken incidentally in the gill-nets and haul-seines of the fish- 

 ermen, who do not regard them as of much value. In regions where the fishery is regularly car- 

 ried on, however, the fisherman, as a rule, stands in the bow or stern of his skiff', shoving it along 

 with the handle of his dip-net, at the same time watching closely for " shadows " on the bottom. 

 The depth of water visited rarely exceeds 3 or 4 feet, and is sometimes shallower. When a crab 

 is sighted, it is quickly picked up in the dip-net and thrown into the midship section or well of the 

 skiff. When the water is warm, the crabbers often wade along, towing their skiffs after them. 

 On the south side of Indian River, many of the boys and others use the crab-cars above described 

 instead of boats. 



According to Mr. Isaac Harmond, the crab fishery continues active for about three months, 

 or from the 1st of May to the 1st of August. During this period, however, the men fish very 

 irregularly, some going out only four or five times in a season, while others go much more fre- 

 quently. They are said to average, as a whole, about one-fourth of their time crabbing during 

 the season of three months. The crabs are caught mainly about the full and change of the moon, 

 being most abundant for three or four days at each of these periods. 



Nearly all the crabs caught north of Cape Heulopen are retailed by the fishermen in the towns 

 and rural districts of that section. At Dover the catch is mostly sold in the town, the soft crabs 

 bringing 18 cents a dozen, and the hard crabs 80 cents a hundred. At Lewes the few soft crabs 



