282 BRITISH FISHERIES 



drag its contents are dumped out on the narrow 

 deck of the boat.^ The net may then be " shot " 

 again, and the fisherman then begins to sort the 

 catch. Small fish, crabs, etc., are quickly thrown 

 overboard, an operation not free from most serious 

 inconvenience, on account of the presence of " sting- 

 fish " {Trachinus vipera), which can inflict most 

 painful wounds. The shrimps are put into a 

 riddle, the smaller ones are shaken out and returned 

 to the sea, and the larger ones, which are destined 

 for the market, are usually boiled at once. The 

 operation of sorting the catch is performed in a 

 surprisingly short time, and in cool weather a large 

 proportion of the fish caught are returned to the 

 sea alive. But in hot weather the latter die very 

 quickly, and the whole contents of the net are 

 sometimes stowed away for the time in baskets and 

 sorted at leisure. In the latter case the fishes 

 caught die, of course, and usually also when, by 

 reason of the presence of mud in the net, they are 

 smothered. Cart " shankers," too, may sort their 

 catches on going up the beach, and young fishes 

 thrown overboard on the dry sand are obviously in 

 an unfortunate predicament. 



1 Shrimping boats are usually half-decked, and are about 36 feet 

 long. They are worked by two men, a man and a boy, or by one 

 man. It speaks volumes for the skill of English fishermen, and is 

 almost incredible to the ordinary landsman, that one man may 

 manage such a boat (with perhaps a mainsail, topsail, foresail, and 

 jib all set), work two " bow-nets," shoot them, haul them, and sort 

 his catch, unaided. 



