OF MASSACHUSETTS. 109 



Two men are usually required to tend from 6 to 8 dredges in a large 

 catboat, but often one man alone does all the work. This seems to 

 be confined to localities, as at Nantucket nearly all the catboats have 

 two men. At Edgartown the reverse is true, one man to the boat, 

 though in power dredging two men are always used. 



Several styles of dredges are used in scalloping, as each locality has 

 its own special kind, which is best adapted to the scalloping bottom 

 of that region. Four different styles are used in Massachusetts, two of 

 which permit a subdivision, jnaking in all six different forms. Each 

 of these dredges is said by the scallopers using them to be the best; 

 but for all-round work the " scraper " seems the most popular. 



(1) The Chatham or Box Dredge. — As this dredge was first used in 

 Chatham, the name of the town was given to it to distinguish it from 

 the other styles. At the present time its use is confined to Chatham and 

 the neighboring towns of the Cape. With the exception of a very few 

 used at Nantucket, it is not found elsewhere in Massachusetts. 



The style of the box dredge is peculiar, consisting of a rectangular 

 framework, 27 by 12 inches, of flat iron 1 by % inches, with an oval- 

 shaped iron bar extending back as a support for the netting bag, which 

 is attached to the rectangular frame. To the side of the rectangular 

 frame is attached a heavy iron chain about 4 feet long, to which is 

 fastened the drag rope. 



(2) The Scraper. — As can be seen by the illustration, this style 

 of dredge consists of a rigid iron frame of triangular shape, which 

 has a curve of nearly 90° at the base, to form the bowl of the dredge. 

 Above, a raised crossbar connects the two arms, while at the bottom 

 of the dredge a strip of iron 2 inches wide extends from arm to arm. 

 This strip acts as a scraping blade, and is set at an angle so as to dig 

 into the bottom. The top of the net is fastened to the raised crossbar 

 and the lower part to the blade. 



The usual dimensions of the dredge are: arms, 2% feet; upper 

 crossbar, 2 feet ; blade, 2% feet. The net varies in size, usually holding 

 about a bushel of scallops, and running from 2 to 3 feet in length. 

 Additional weights can be put on the crossbar when the seaUoper 

 desires the dredge to scrape deeper. A wooden bar, 2 feet long, buoys 

 the net. 



Two styles of this dredge are in use. At Nantucket the whole net 

 is made of twine, while at Edgartown and in Buzzard's Bay the lower 

 part of the net is formed of a netting of iron rings, the upper half 

 of the net being twine. The iron rings are supposed to stand the wear 

 better than the twine netting. This difference seems to be merely a 

 matter of local choice. The " scraper " is perhaps the dredge most 

 generally used, as, no matter what style is in use, a scalloper generally 

 has a few " scrapers " among his dredges. 



(3) The "Slider." — The principle of the "slider" is the reverse 



