THE LOBSTER PISHEEY. 699 



the lobster fishery has also been carefully studied and its condition is well known. We commend 

 the n port of Prof. A. Boeck, on its history and prospects, from which we have largely quoted, to 

 the attention of lobstermen in this country, as much valuable information, quite applicable to our 

 own coast, may be obtained from it. 



The question of how to protect the fishery is one most difficult of solution, and from the state- 

 ments given by the fishermen and others, it will be seen that a great variety of opinions exists 

 regarding it. None of the State 1 iws now in force have been effective in stopping the decrease, 

 although they may have retarded it more or less, and in any investigation it will be found more 

 perplexing to decide upon proper laws than to establish the fact of a decrease. 



It was found difficult to collect the data for a complete history of the lobster fishery, but many 

 of the more interesting facts regarding its origin and progress are given in the following brief 

 sketch : 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE FISHERY. 



MAINE; GENERAL REVIEW. On the coast of Maine the lobster fishery began about 1840, in 

 the western part of the State, and gradually extended eastward, reaching the Penobscot Bay region 

 about 1848 or 1850 and Eastport about 1855. At that time, and previously, lobsters were very 

 abundant in all favorable localities close inshore during the summer months, and could be gaffed 

 out at low tide from their favorite haunts under the shelter of rocks and seaweeds. This method 

 of capture was resorted to mainly by boys, who could generally obtain a mess in a short time 

 and with little trouble. It gave rise, however, to no regular fishery. In those early days lobsters 

 were also more frequently reported from the fishing-grounds lying at short distances off the coast, 

 where the depths of water are from 25 to 30 fathoms. They would seize the bait on the hooks of 

 the fishermen or become entangled in their lines, and were often brought to the surface. 



The regular fishery began with the use of hoop-net pots, which were generally of very rude 

 construction. They were mostly made of the wooden hoops of hogsheads, measuring from 3 to 3J 

 feet in diameter, and with two wooden half hoops crossed above for the attachment of the bait and 

 buoy-line. The bag usually had a depth of 18 to 24 inches. Contrary to what might be supposed, 

 these open traps would often secure as many as four or five lobsters at a time. As a rule, two 

 lobstermen went in each boat and used from twenty-five to fifty pots to the boat, setting them 

 singly and marking their location with buoys, as is done with lath-pots. These pots were gen- 

 erally hauled twice a day, morning and evening. 



The facility with which the lobsters escaped from the hoop-net pots led to their disuse as 

 soon as the lath pots began to be introduced, and within a very few years from the time they 

 were first employed, they had almost disappeared from the coast. The change, though rapid, 

 was not at once completed, for a fisherman could not afford to give up his entire gang of old pots 

 for new ones in the course of a single year, and so, for a short period, many of the fishermen 

 were using some of each kind. The lath pots which superseded the hoop-net pots were essen- 

 tially the same in construction as those now used on the coast of Maine, and each pair of fisher- 

 men handled between twenty-five and fifty. 



Competition, rivalry, and the supposed decrease in abundance of lobsters, caused the fisher- 

 men to gradually increase the number of traps used by each, and the increased number of men 

 who entered into the fishery from year to year also tended to the same results. Up to the time of 

 the introduction of the method of setting the pots trawl fashion, the custom of fishing in pairs 

 remained in vogue. It was supposed that two men were absolutely necessary to the work, one to 

 handle the boat and. keep it in position while the other hauled the pots. 



Lobster pots were first set on trawls about the year 1865, several different persons laying 



