224 ! FISH-CULTURAL ASSOCIATION. 
‘They are catching a good many pollock in nets. Do you see 
that small boat coming? That is Horace Wiley’s; he caught 
3,000 pounds the night before last, and caught as many last 
night. He hasygot. mets: {/\Where, does: he catch) them? 7° Qa 
on a spot of rocks called Brown's.’ The Captain said: ‘I will 
get some new sperling to-night, and go off where they have got 
their nets set. We will give them fits, if we can get some new 
sperling.’ I answered: ‘ Cap., it is no use to go where they have 
got their nets set. If you do, you will get no fish.’ He replied: 
‘That be hanged for a yarn. I think you can catch fish with 
sperling as well as you can with nets.’ I said: ‘No sir, you can't 
do it.’ 
The next day he went out with some new sperling to where 
Wiley was hauling his nets. (The latter had picked out a dory 
full of cod and pollock, about 2,000 pounds). He let go his an- 
chor close to the nets and gave the order, ‘“‘all hands over lines.” 
He lay there two hours, but did not catch a fish. 
‘“T was aboard again yesterday and said: ‘Captain, how did 
they bite where the nets were?’ ‘That beats all,’ he replied; 
‘we never felt a bite. Iam going to Boston to order twenty-five 
ets. 
The boat “ Gracie,”’ which began fishing with nets the middle 
of October, did remarkably well; her crew made $145 a piece up 
to November rith. According to Captain Martin she had land- 
ed 15,000 pounds of large cod and 30,000 pounds of large pol- 
lock, and he writes: ‘‘Some of the line fishermen have not 
caught as much as 10,000 pounds inthe sametime. * * #* 
All the shore fishing will be done with nets this winter, as the 
sperling are scarce.”” This success had the effect to induce oth- 
ers to engage in this fishery, and at the date just given (Novem- 
ber rrth) there were ten boats using nets. Each one was pro- 
vided with fifteen nets, each fifty fathoms long, 24 fathoms deep, 
with a 9/6 inch mesh. 
The first vessel to go to Ipswich bay began fishing there early 
in November, and on her first trip, with only five nets, she 
caught 6,000 pounds. By November 18th, there were 26 boats 
setting 390 nets in Massachusetts bay. This would make 39,- 
ooo yards of netting. Besides this there were two or three ves- 
