of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



Ill 



and 4 feet in depth. When the men go shrimping, there are either one 

 or two men on board of each boat ; but in the season for flounder trawling 

 in the winter, there are always two men on board. So that in Annan 

 alone there are fully 100 men who are fishermen pure and simple, and an 

 additional 60 who are at times fishing and at other times are engaged in 

 land occupations. Most of the men, however, combine trawling with 

 whemmle or drift-net fishing for salmon. There are 34 whemmle boats 

 in Annan, and three men are necessary as crew for each boat. 



The net used for shrimping is a small beam-trawl with a beam 20 to 22 

 feet long, the net being triangular in shape, and the mesh being about J 

 inch from knot to knot. In order to preserve the net, and to make it 

 1 sharp,' it is ' barked ' with a mixture of boiled oil and red lead. In this 

 condition it appears as if it were made of catgut. 



The trawl for flat-fish has a beam of about the same size as the shrimp- 

 trawl, and the mesh of the net is two inches from knot to knot. 



Stake-nets for salmon, and miniature 3take-nets called paidle-nets, also 

 capture great quantities of flat-fish. 



Fishing. 



Shrimping is chiefly carried on between Annan and Buoy No. 5 by the 

 Annan boats, and the Creetown shrimpers trawl in the upper reaches of 

 Wigtown Bay. The depth of the water on the best shrimping ground is 

 8-15 feet, while 10-20 feet depth is best for flounders. 



In the early months of the year the shrimps are to be got by the Annan 

 boats chiefly about 16 miles or so below the mouth of the Annan; but as 

 the season advances and the weather becomes warmer, the shrimps ascend 

 the Firth, and great quantities of them can be got. In cold weather they 

 are chiefly caught off Southerness, but during the warmer months of the 

 year they are caught from below Powfoot as far up as Newbie. 



While the fishermen begin shrimping in the middle of February, their 

 time is about equally divided between shrimp fishing and whemmle-net 

 fishing. In the months of June, July, and August, and particularly the 

 last, they obtain the greatest quantities. During some years the boats have 

 caught as many as 200 quarts each in one tide, but this is an unusually 

 large quantity, Mr John Holmes told me that he obtained 400 quarts 

 once. The best season that ever the Annan boats had was during three 

 months in 1877, when the shrimps not only were thick, but the price was 

 good. Generally speaking, the shrimps command their best price in the 

 market during May. The average price for Annan shrimps is 4d. per 

 quart, and as it is reckoned that there are 75 quarts in 1 cwt., the 

 price is therefore 25s. per cwt. In summer, however, the price generally 

 is 2d. to 2Jd. per quart, and last spring it was 6d. per quart. One 

 fisherman obtained as much as 9Jd. per quart, but he describes this price 

 as ' very rare.' The largest shrimps are caught in March, April, and May, 

 and in September, October, and November. 



Flounder fishing is confined to the winter months. The fishermen 

 trawl for them above the Sol way viaduct ; but the best ground is below 

 Powfoot, and the ground is good between the latter and Southerness, when 

 the channel leads right. The Annan fishermen go also to Luce Bay to 

 trawl, and the flounders they get there are larger than in the Upper 

 Solway. From September to November the fluke trawling is chiefly carried 

 on on hard ground. 



Fishing for flat-fish also takes place by means of fixed engines — paidle- 

 nets. The arm of the paidle-net is 25 yards long, and the cross arm is 

 also 25 yards in length. 



m 



