The crews of coastal fishing vessels were composed, in parts more or 

 less equal, of sailor-fishermen to whom fell the operation of the vessel and 

 sailings, as well as the capture of cod, and an auxiliary complement of non- 

 sailors called graviers (shore men) who had charge of the care of the beaches, 

 construction of docks and cabins, and the long process of drying the cod. The 

 crews of vessels in the shore fishery were, in general, greater in number for 

 equal tonnage than those fishing the banks. 



The fishery was executed more often by nets and also on a part of the 

 coast, by bottom lines or line trawls. 



The net fishery was used only on the east coast where the line fishery was 

 forbidden. The only net authorized by the regulation was the seine, which was 

 forbidden to be hauled from the land. The mesh was 48 millimeters between 

 knot centers, that is to say, stretched. No dimensions were imposed on the 

 seine itself. The length of seines used in the Newfoundland fishery varied gen- 

 erally between 150-180 fathoms, with a depth of about ten fathoms. 



The net being placed aboard the seine boat, the crew looked for, at some 

 distance from shore, the passage of a school of cod. As soon as one was sight- 

 ed, the seine-master commenced to put over the seine into the water, letting 

 fall, at the same time, a buoy which marked the end. Then he directed the 

 boat in a manner to encircle the fish. 



The circuit achieved, the crew of the seine boat, composed generally of 

 six men, hauled in the floats and the leads in such a way as to form a vast 

 pocket enclosing the fish. 



In general, the long-boats did not go far from the station. They were 

 watched by the men on shore who, on seeing the seine haul, joined them to 

 load the fish in boats and to transfer it to the landing platform. It sometimes 

 happened that a single haul netted 20, 000 cod. 



On the west coast, the fishery was prosecuted by seine and also by line 

 trawl, the two procedures being sometimes employed simultaneously by the 

 same crew. Thelines were of variable length: the shortest carried 100 hooks. 

 Sometimes they also used the hand line. According to season, the herring, 

 the capelin, or the launce were used for bait. They were caught by means of 

 a capelin seine. The dimensions of this net, fixed by regulation, were from 



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