318 NEW ENGLAND FISHERIES 



strength or adaptability. Among these the most notice- 

 able were in the rig. The foremast was made consider- 

 ably shorter than the mainmast, and the foretopmast, in- 

 stead of being of the same length as the maintopmast, as 

 had previously been the custom, was not so long by several 

 feet. The schooner was also rigged to carry a forestaysail 

 the forestay coming down to the stem head and com- 

 paratively small jib, this arrangement of head sails being 

 considered preferable to the large jib until then in almost 

 universal use. Wire rigging was used instead of hemp. ' ' 1 



The appearance of the Grampus among the fishing ves- 

 sels easily demonstrated the superiority of the new type 

 over the old. Immediately other vessels were constructed 

 along the new lines and rig, so that within a decade the 

 appearance of the fleet had undergone a revolution. The 

 deep-sea fishing fleet of New England to-day represents 

 grace of outline combined most efficiently with the require- 

 ments of speed and the demands of stability and capacity. 

 The modern schooner is immeasurably swifter than the 

 clipper of the early eighties, besides being safer in heavy 

 weather. Many instances are on record in recent years 

 where the new type has been able to beat to windward 

 and escape shipwreck when caught on a lee shore in the 

 face of a raging gale, when schooners of the old type could 

 hope for no escape. 



All vessels engaged in foreign commerce or domestic 

 business under the American flag are listed and documented 

 by the Government. Those that are engaged in foreign 

 commerce are "registered," while those employed for 

 domestic purposes are "enrolled"; if under twenty tons 

 measurement they are "licensed." The tonnage of a ves- 

 sel may be of three kinds : displacement, gross register, and 

 net register. Displacement tonnage is the weight of the 

 vessel, and it may be found by multiplying by 62.4 the 



i Collins, pp. 347-348. 



