PRESENT CONDITION OF THE FISHERIES. 67 



40. Think they spawn out south, in the fall. 



5. They are much diminished — almost exterminated. 



71. We catch them with hooks in the spring ; hnt they will not weigh 

 half a pound apiece, and are all of the same size. 



30. These little ones go into the ponds every year. 



8. The largest weigh from three to seven pounds, and then the old sea- 

 bass, as they are called, weigh from ten to eighty or ninety pounds. 



17. There are three runs of striped-bass ; the smallest coming the 1st of 

 May, the second size abont the 20th to the 2oth, and the biggest about 

 the 1st of July. 



72. They will not go into pounds j or if they do they get out ; except 

 the small ones. 



5. They are less plenty than formerly. 



71. They begin to bite about the 10th of June. 



30. The little ones go into fresh water ; the larger ones never do. 



2. I have known them here all winter. The little bass stay in the 

 ponds nntil it is very hot, and then come out, and go in again when it 

 is cooler. The large ones are caught in deep water. 



37. Mostly they feed on briL — -little fish. They will eat crabs, and a 

 large one will eat herriug or menhaden. 



11. They go eastward in spring and westward in the fall. 



81. The highest price this year was not over half a cent ai)ound. We 

 caught none of the large ones. 



COD-FISH. 



72. With the hook j none in pounds, to speak of. 



2. Last of March and first of April off Roman's Land. Come into 

 the sound about the 10th of April ; they stay till about the first of May. 

 11. I think those that come into the sound go west. 



-^ HERRING. 



2. Caught in pounds about the 1st of Axml. 



11. Bound eastward. When they run low they are traveling. 



75. The largest haul last year was 13,000. 



5. More plenty this year and last than for some years before. 



0. I do not think it is from the planting on the coast. Perhaps it is 

 because the blue-fish are gone. They were appreciably more abundant 

 this year than last; and also last year than the year before. 



Wood's Hole, Sei)temJ)er 5, 1871. 



Captain Isaiah Spindel : 



Captain Spindel is the manager of afish-x)ound at the eastern extrem- 

 ity of Buzzard's Bay. They took scup first this year on the 27th of 

 April. The pound was put down on the 12th, and the first fish were 

 taken on the 11th. Herring and alewives were the first fish taken. 

 Some English herring were caught with the rest, but not very plenty. 

 They are easily distinguished from the alewives. I call them '' blue- 

 backs." They are the same as they catch down east in nets, and also in 

 Cape Cod Bay. We got the English herring all the time we did ale- 

 wives. I should say both were caught as late as the middle of May, 

 We caught them most plenty about the last of April. Xever caught 

 over three thousand at a time. We sold them for bait ; all the alewives 



