6Q TRANSACTIONS OF TIIE 



the American marine, and which is of such importance to our 

 country as a training school for mariners, and as a medium through 

 which one of the most valuable food resources of the continent is 

 made available. 



Prof. Goode referred to the mental and physical traits of the 

 New England fishermen, their enterprise as shown in their readi- 

 ness to adopt improved methods, their, intelligence and public 

 spirit. He spoke also of the education of the young fishermen, 

 and the injury to good seamanship resulting from the custom of 

 deferring the shipment of boys who formerly entered the business 

 at the age of ten or twelve but who now remain on shore until* they are 

 fifteen or sixteen, and have had their perceptive faculties dulled by 

 school training. Reference was made to the morality of the fisher- 

 men, the strict observance of the Sabbath to be met with among large 

 classes of them, and the entire absence of ardent spirits on the fish- 

 ing vessels. The character of their favorite books and newspapers, 

 their amusements, their dialect and their superstitions were dis- 

 cussed. The chief diseases were noted to be dyspepsia and rheu- 

 matism. They are, as a rule, long lived, though the fishing popu- 

 lation of large ports like Gloucester is decimated by disaster every 

 year or two. The financial profits vary from $1,000 to $100 a year 

 for each man, though sometimes a year's work results solely in an 

 embarrassing burden of debts. 



Prof. Mason expressed surprise at the statement made in the 

 paper that the quality of American fishermen was deteriorating, in 

 consequence of the superior educational facilities now enjoyed by 

 the people. Prof. Goode accounted for it by the fact that education 

 tended to deter bright boys from engaging in the business. The 

 paper was further discussed by Dr. Morgan and others. 



The second paper was by Major A. M. Hancock, of Maryland, 

 on Prehistoric Discoveries in the South of Spain, where he 

 was, for nearly seventeen years, United States consul. ** 



The paper was delivered extemporaneously and illustrated by 



