194 HISTORY. AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES. 
ten years. When fish are plenty the hardiest of the crew will fish night and day for three and four 
days, being ambitious to be “high line,” or to catch more than any of their mates; and when fish 
will bite freely the men on watch at night usually" pass their time in fishing. The greater part of 
the wogk is, however, done in the day-time. The day’s labor begins at daylight and lasts until 
dark, the fish usually being dressed in the evening. When the tides run too strong for fishing 
the fish are dressed in the day-time. The monotony of fishing is broken by breakfast at daylight, 
dinner at 9.30 to 11 a. m., supper at 3 to 4 p. m., and a lunch in the evening. 
The strong tides which prevail upon George’s Bank and other grounds visited by these vessels 
have necessitated the adoption of peculiar methods, such as are not practiced in any other fishery. 
It is only by the use of extremely heavy leads that it is possible to keep the hooks near the bottom. 
Fishing with these leads and the long lines is extremely laborious. As the vessel rides at anchor 
the helm is put down and she sheers across the tide, so that the lines stray out from the side at a 
considerable angle with the rail. The men take their position at the rail all upon the side opposite 
to that upon which the tide current strikes. When the tide is running dead to leeward, or in the 
same direction with the wind, it is impossible to sheer the vessel, and then the lines all stray out 
directly astern. While they are fishing the course of the tide is constantly changing and the vessel 
is veering in every direction, and it is frequently necessary to change from one side of the vessel 
to the other in order to keep the lines clear from the side. 
The best opportunity for fishing is on the slack tides. While the tides are running at the 
greatest speed, or at the rate of about two miles or more an hour, the lines with their heavy weights 
are carried out so that it is impossible to keep the hooks on the bottom. When fishing at slack- 
water only a small portion of the line is used, while on the strength of the tide it is sometimes 
necessary to use the whole 900 feet of the line. The fishing is then carried on by “sounding.” 
The line is slacked out as rapidly as possible until the lead touches the bottom; it is then held for 
a few minutes until the force of the current has raised it, and then it is again slacked out and 
allowed to touch, and this operation is continued until a bite is felt. This is called “tending the 
bottom.” When the tide is flowing at a moderate rate, and there is no reason to believe that the 
bait has been lost, the whole length of the line is let out before being pulled in on deck; and when 
the tide is running moderately sometimes from seven to ten “sounds” are made. When the fish 
are not biting and the tide is at half slack or running ata comparatively moderate rate, as happens 
in the low course of tides, fishing in water 30 to 35 fathoms deep, it takes about twenty to thirty 
minutes to run out the whole line, and fifteen or twenty minutes to haul it in if there is no fish on 
it. Pulling up a pair of cod at the end of a whole line takes five or ten minutes longer, while to 
pull up a halibut usually takes much longer still. In fishing with the tide running at a rapid 
rate, making one or two sounds, the line will run out in ten or fifteen minutes. 
When fish are very plenty it is a common occurrence to catch a pair, one on each hook, and 
the men will catch from one hundred to one hundred and fifty, and sometimes nearly two hundred 
cod, in a day; at other times a man may fish all day long and only get three or four. When fish 
are plenty a man may throw out and haul his line over the side seventy-five or one hundred times 
in the course of the day; when scarce, not nearly so often, perhaps not more than ten or twelve 
times. 
The bite of the fish is fiiislaly detected by the practiced hand of the fishermen, and he, when haul- 
ing in, can usually tell whether he has hooked one or a pair. Expert fishermen often know when 
they begin to haul in that there is only one, and they haul slowly, in order to give another a chance 
to bite at the free hook. When the heads of the fish appear at the surface, if they are not well 
hooked or are too large to lift over the rail with the ganging, the gaff is used; when brought on 
