56 THE KEEE-DEAG. 



the bottom, it embraces nothing, merely driving every- 

 thing before it, and coming up empty. The hide net 

 is almost indestructible. 



To the two ends, or short sides of the frame, which 

 forms an oblong square, are attached by a hinge two 

 long triangles, which meeting in front at some distance 

 from the mouth, are connected by a swivel-joint. To 

 this the dragging rope is bent, which must be long 

 enough to allow thrice as much at least to be over- 

 board as the perpendicular depth would require : — if 

 you are dredging in ten fathoms, you must use at 

 least thirty fathoms of Une, or your dredge will make 

 long jumps over the ground instead of steadily raking 

 it. The inward end of the rope having been made 

 fast to one of the thwarts, the dredge is hove to wind- 

 ward, and the boat is put before the wind, or at least 

 allowed a flowing sheet. 



The keer-drag is in principle similar to the dredge, 

 but there are peculiarities in its construction, and it is 

 employed for different game. It is considerably 1 arger ; 

 the one which I used was six feet wide, and one foot 

 high at the mouth, whereas the width of the dredge 

 does not usually exceed two feet. The mouth consists 

 of a stout iron rod bent up to form three sides of the 

 quadrangle, neither of which is thinned to a lip ; the 

 fourth side is made by a stout beam to which the iron 

 ends are riveted, and this by its lightness is always 

 uppermost when on the bottom. The handle is made 

 by three lines, one of which proceeds from the middle 

 of the beam and one from each of the two iron ends ; 

 they are united at some ten feet from the mouth, 

 where the drag-rope is attached. The net affixed to 



