^32 THE SEA FISHERIES 



stopped by Knut the Sixth, who confiscated both ships and goods ^ 

 According to Philip de Masieres,'' in 1382, 40.000 boats, 500 freight 

 ships and 300,000 men were employed in this fishery." This is 

 probably a gross exaggeration, though by this time the fishery was 

 a flourishmg and important one. Two centuries later, the Ltibeck 

 bailifE-who would be unlikely to overestimate, because the 

 Danish king collected taxes from the fishery-stated that 751^ 

 boats were employed, each manned by five men, a total of over 

 37,000 fishermen. 



Along the coast the land was divided into separate areas the 

 representatives of the various foreign communities having their 

 own spaces, marked off by boundary stones. On these plots were 

 built the company-house, booths for storing barrels, sheds for 

 curmg and a church. The fishermen's quarters were quite distinct. 

 Ihese latter were almost exclusively Danes, there were a few 

 Germans from the Hansa towns. The fishermen's booths were 

 sheds of timber or wattled work, or tents of mats or canvas, and 

 each was occupied by one boat's crew, consisting of the skipper 

 (styrman) and four or six oarsmen (rorkarlar). Each man provided 

 his own nets, and payment was by share, the skipper getting two 

 shares. So far as is known the boats were open and propelled by 

 oars. The nearest modern approach to these old Scandinavian 

 boats of high stem and stern is seen in the " fourerns " and " six- 

 erns " of the Shetlands. The fishery, like the Lammas fishing on 

 the east coast of Scotland, was for spawning fish, which came near 

 the shore. Nets were either drift (drifgam) or set, i.e. anchored 

 (sattgam). These latter are still used on the west coast of Scotland 

 (Ballantrae Bank) and Wales (Cardigan Bay). The set nets were 

 sunk to varying depths by means of anchors or stones, but only 

 one breadth of net was used, and they were kept erect by buoys, 

 usually kegs. Several nets were attached together to form a fleet 

 (lank), and at the end was placed an upright staff with a flag or 

 bundle of twigs. Probably the set net is the more ancient, at any 

 rate, they were much the more common in the earlier years, and 

 even in 1494 there were only 141 drift net boats to 460 set net boats 

 at Skanor and Falsterbo. 



The drift nets were always shot outside the set nets. The fishery 

 regulations were precise and draconic. They related to a great 

 variety of subjects — the distance from shore at which the nets were 



' There is reference to this fishery at this period (circa 1203) in the continuation 

 of the Chronicon Sclavicum oj Helmoldus, by Arnoldus, published by Lindenbrogius, 

 Hamburgh. See also Anderson, History of Commerce, Vol. I, p. 240. 



* Le Songe du vieux Pelerin (circa 1389). 



' In 1394 this fishery was totally interrupted by pirates. Werdenhagen, Trac- 

 taius de Rebus publicis Hanseaticis, Vol. II, p. 366. In 1417 the Llibeckers were again 

 imprisoned by the King of Denmark (Eric IX]. See Chronica Slavica, ante. 



