INTRODUCTION. xxm 



Another net in very general use on the Nile and the lakes is called " gouraffa," 

 larger ones being sometimes called " dowar." These two names are also used by the 

 fishermen of the Birket Karun in the Fayum, but refer to a different kind of net. 

 At Rosetta it is known either as a "gouraffa" or " eclda heshna." It catches all 

 kinds of fish and can be used either by day or night, the most satisfactory results 

 being obtained where there is little or no current, such as in backwaters, shallow 

 channels, &c. This net varies in length from 25 to 250 yards and in width from 4 to 

 25 feet, whilst the mesh is from \ to f of an inch. The floats are made of cork, wood, 

 or " garra," the last being a kind of pumpkin which grows very freely in Nubia, is 

 round in shape, and makes excellent floats when dried ; leads are generally used 

 for the bottom. 



Tig. 1. 



The most suitable conditions for working this net are fairly shallow water with little 

 or no stream, a muddy or sandy bottom with no rocks and as few stones as possible. 

 One end is held on the shore, and the rest is coiled up in the stern of a boat from 

 w r hich it is payed out, or if the water be very shallow it is simply dragged out by the 

 men. A semicircular piece of water is enclosed by the net, which is then dragged 

 ashore bit by bit, as the men at each end work towards the middle. It is most 

 important to keep the bottom line close to the ground to prevent the escape of the 

 fish, and this is facilitated by having a pole of about the width of the net attached at 

 each end, this being kept upright with the end resting on the bottom (see diagram, 

 fig. 2). If worked in a narrow channel the net can be stretched from, bank to bank, 

 and, after being dragged down-stream a short distance, one end is brought across to the 



