136 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 
But others follow; and as we again look out upon the waters, boats 
may be seen approaching from up the bay, or from the sea, all leaning 
to the breeze under a cloud of canvas, their long, tapering yards and 
the lofty peaks of the lateen sails bending to the strain. And so they 
come, till the rising sun appears above the eastern hills across the bay, 
by which time most of the fleet lie snugly moored in dock.* 
The wharf sale usually begins about 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning, 
but on Friday it commences as early as 1 o’clock. In each case it con- 
tinues until the fare of the last boat is sold, unless the glut of fish is 
so great that the entire catch can not be disposed of. Generally, 
however, most of the fish are sold early, and at daybreak loaded fish 
vans are on their way to the large markets or shipping houses, or 
have already arrived there; the cry of u fresh fish! fresh fish!” may 
be heard from many pedestrian street hawkers, while the unmusical 
‘Hoot, toot” of fish-horns announces the presence of fish-peddlers’ 
wagons in the distant sections of the city and suburbs. Down in 
Chinatown u moon-eyed” fish- venders hawk their wares about through 
streets and alleys and shout their peculiar cries in their native tongue.t 
These generally have a yoke across their shoulders, from each end of 
which depends a basket containing the fish. Soon the retail markets 
are open, and few buyers are abroad before they can be accommodated. f 
But while the daily arrivals of fish are generally promptly disposed 
of, it nevertheless often happens that large catches may temporarily 
glut the market and render it difficult to sell at any price. As a rule, 
the fishermen quickly dispose of their products to the dealers or huck- 
sters. The sale of herring and some other of the more abundant species 
is, however, often left to agents who sell on the wharf. When the 
market is overstocked by the arrival of thirty or more cargoes of fresh 
herring, the fishermen have a cooperative arrangement for regulating 
the sale, so that all may fare alike and no more fish be offered than can 
be disposed of.§ The crew of each boat fills a box holding 80 pounds 
of fish, which is placed in the hands of the agent, who, when he has 
* Each boat, when engaged in fishing, pays a stated sum for dock fees, assessments 
being made weekly when the boats are at work. The rates vary in proportion to the 
number of men, as follows: Boats with 5 men, $1.25 a week; with 3 men, 75 cents; 
with 2 men, 50 cents; and with 1 man, 25 cents. The boats, however, can remain in 
deck without charge when not engaged in fishing. This is nearly the same as a classi- 
fication by size of the boat, and Alexander states it that way, saying that “a 31-foot 
boat pays $1.25 per week ; the next in size (23 feet) $1, and one 18 feet long, 75 cents.’’ 
This entitles them to all the privileges of the wharves and buildings. 
t Dr. Bean says the Chinese are good customers of the market fishermen, since they 
pay extra prices for choice fish. The red-tailed perch is a special favorite with them 
and they often pay three times as much for it as for other species. 
t Alexander estimates that 350 men are employed in marketing fish in San Fran- 
cisco, including the street peddlers and proprietors of small stands. 
$ A writer in the San Francisco Chronicle (already quoted) says : u Each boat has 
a representative in the market, and every Saturday night he. divides the x>roceeds of 
the week’s sales among his partners.” 
