50 BULLETIN o^ The bureau op fisheries. 



claimed that it is better adapted for steering the boat diagonally, and also that it does 

 not kick. 



There is much variety in the form and size of the mules, which are made according 

 to the notions of the individual fisherman or in adaptation to the condition of the river. 

 In a shallow stream the necessary surface is obtained by making the mule long and 

 narrow, at times about 8 feet long by 15 inches deep. For deeper waters the sizes vary 

 according to the strength of current and the drag of the bar; 2.5 by 6 feet and 3 by 7 

 feet are common sizes. 



Boats. — ^The most satisfactory boat in use for the crowfoot method of fishery is 

 the ordinary John boat, since it is inexpensive and may be made in the camps by the 

 mussel fishermen themselves, according to their needs. Its length is from 14 to 20 

 feet, with a width at the center of from 3 to 4.5 feet, but it is always narrower at the 

 ends. It has square ends, a broad, flat bottom, long rakes particularly forward, and is 

 usually of light draft (PI. XXVII, fig. i). 



When the John boat is built particularly for this method of fishery, all unnecessary 

 interior parts are omitted, while the needed special appliances are added. These con- 

 sist of two perpendicular uprights or standards on each side of the boat a yard or so 

 from the ends, a cleat at the bow, and nails or pegs at the stern. The standards are 

 about 4 feet high and are made of light strips of wood, with notches at the top for holding 

 the bars. When the shelling is very heavy and the bars are difficult to raise, there are 

 added at times substandards or short strips of wood projecting outward from the stand- 

 ards near the gunwale; in this case the bars when lifted are first placed upon the sub- 

 standards and then transferred to the standards. At the present time nearly all of the 

 John boats are equipped with gasoline engines of power commensurate with the size of 

 the boats. In the Black River, Ark., some of the John boats are propelled by small 

 stem paddle wheels operated by hand power with a vertical lever on the side of the boat. 



Operation oi^ the Crowfoot Bar. — ^When the John boat and all the appliances 

 are complete for this method of fishery, the boat is either rowed or propelled by gaso- 

 line power to the mussel bed upon which the work is to be done. After selecting the 

 exact locality for the first haul, usually near the head of the bed, the mussel fisherman 

 lowers a bar into the river in such a way that it will lie at right angles to the shore 

 and drag parallel with it. The rope connecting the bar is played out until the latter is 

 dragging freely and is then secured to the cleat. Occasionally two bars are used at 

 the same time ; the second bar being placed into the water a short distance in advance 

 of the first and a little to one side, with a shorter rope connection. 



Unless the current be very strong, which is seldom the case where a good mussel 

 bed is found, it is necessary to bring the mule into operation; and this can be so ad- 

 justed by the guide lines as to make the outfit go very slowly or more rapidly as desired, 

 as well as to cause the boat to sheer toward or away from the shore. 



After making a haul of about 100 yards the bar is ready to be raised. The method 

 of procedure is to remove the mule from the water and then slowly draw in the connecting 

 rope until the bar can be grasped by the hands and raised to the tops of the notched 

 standards. The other bar is put into the river, and the mule is again set. The shells 

 are then taken from the hooks and are thrown into the bottom of the boat. The process 

 is repeated until the bed has been worked over, when the boat is returned to the initial 

 point or taken ashore, if a boatload of shells has been obtained. 



