Sept. 30, i()05-li ' 
Temagami and neighboring waters they troll for these 
fish almost up to the time of the formation of ice upon 
the water, and though the forked-tails are much more 
plentiful than in the summer months, they are found in 
much shallower water, and are not taken, as a rule, any- 
thing like so large, as when angled for in warmer weather 
with very much longer lines, heavily weighted. 
E. T. D. Chambers. 
Suspended Animation in Fishes. 
! St. Johns, N. F., Sept, i . — Editor Forest and Stream: 
1 have recently seen letters' in the Forest and Stream 
about Suspended animation in fishes, especially the case of 
some fish in India that were completely buried in baked 
or dried up mud, but in the next rainy season were found 
alive in the pools. The following story has been told me 
by a reliable man, but as I was not a witness to the act 
1 Cannot vouch for the truth or correctness of the tale as 
told : , , . . 
The story is, that my informant went trout fishing m a 
well stocked lake or ppnd during the winter, and that he 
caught several fairly-sized fish. The frost was keen, and 
when the trout wefe drawn from the water through the 
holes in the iCe, they froze solidly before life had become 
extinct in them. They were frozen hard when the fisher 
reached his home, where under the influence of the heat 
the ice melted, the trout became limp and actually jumped 
before they became dead, which they did in a few minutes 
in the ordinary course of nature. The theory of the nar- 
rator was that the frost, and ice supplied the necessary 
life-giving elements to the fish. 
Another story, told by an old fishing guide; In the 
winter, while crossing a hook in a pond, he saw in the 
: layers of ice caused by the overflowing of the waters, 
four or five trout. He cut them from their icy tomb, and 
after the warmer atmosphere, caused by the sun, had 
melted the particles of ice about them, the fish were alive. 
' What is your opinion of the stories? 
That yarn about Professor Muller domesticating 
whales at Salena, and of his milking them and converting 
the product into butter and cheese is a gem of the first 
water. The writer must possess a prolific lie-rnanufac- 
turing brain, and his statue should be carved while he is 
alive. Beothic. 
[We would accept both stories as true, if told, as our 
correspondent says they were, by persons of credibility.] 
Elizabethtown, N. Y . — Editor Forest and Stream: In 
regard to suspended animation of fish allow me to give 
you some experience with fish after being frozen. _ Sev- 
eral times at different periods I have had fish resuscitated 
after being frozen hard for several hours. My first ex- 
perience was with perch caught in the morning through 
the ice on Lake Champlain, thrown out on the ice, on 
which was a light snow and quickly frozen. They lay on 
the ice most all. day, were then gathered up, thrown into 
a tin pail and carried a distance of ten miles. About 10 
o’clock P. M. they were put into a large dishpan and 
water was poured, over them to thaw them out. . I was 
awakened in the night by a splashing of water, and on 
investigating, found several perch flopping on the floor ; 
others were swimming around in the pan. I took several 
and put them in a water tank at the bap in running 
water and they lived several months, but did, not seem to 
grow any larger than when caught. The average weight 
of the perch was about one-half pound. Sevepl times 
since I have had a like experience, but only with perch 
and speckled trout. My theory is, that the fish must be 
frozen quickly after being taken from the water. If al- 
lowed to lie any length of time after being taken from the 
water before freezing, they will not recover, or if they are 
lacerated very much or lose much blood by being caught 
they will die. Martin B. Davis, Guide. 
Cannibalism of Bass. 
I quote from the Fox Lake representative the following 
instance of cannibalism on the part of black bass : _ Fred 
Lorenz, of Milwaukee, caught in black bass here in less 
than an hour Sunday. This may sound pretty heavy but 
it is an actual fact. He caught a black bass that when 
dressed was found to have no little black bass about an 
inch long in its stomach. Talk about dogfish eating fry 
and spawn, it looks like bass were about as bad cannibals 
as any fish in the lake. It is possible that the bass swal- 
lowed her own brood of little ones to protect them from 
other fish, but if so she forgot to Tough up’ again and the 
brood was destroyed.” 
There is no doubt that the black bass will eat its young. 
Some writers say that it is the female pd others that it 
is the male which remains on the spawriing bed to protect 
it. It would seem, however, that in eating no small bass, 
this particular fish was acting the hog. Micropterus. 
"Chained to Business.” 
Cherryvale, Kan., Sept. 21 . — Editor Forest and 
Stream: I am chained to business, and have been for 
the space of two years, during which time it has been 
impossible for me to break the chain and use a gun or 
split bamboo. In March, 1905, I was at Halstead,- on the 
Little Arkansas River, in this State ; after my business at 
that point was transacted I walked down to the mill dam, 
to see the stage of the water, and saw about thirty men 
and boys of all ages and color engaged in fishing, and 
everyone was doing business, catching black bass and 
crappies, and I only had fifteen minutes till train time. 
Well, any lover of the rod can appreciate my regrets, a.s 
I had to leave to make that train. Again in May I was 
at Neosho Falls, and after business was ended, having 
fifteen minutes before the ’bus left for the train, I walked 
down to the dam across the Neosho River, and saw a 
motley crowd at work, and every la^t one had one or 
more bass, crappies or catfish. Again I leave to the fra- ' 
ternity to appreciate my longing -and regret. I hope to 
find time in October and November to have a try at the 
bronze-backs, and if I do L surely will give my brothers 
of the cult a fulL account in the nevp failing favorite, 
Forest ANP Stream, W- F. Rightmtre, 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
The Crab Industry of Maryland. 
BY WINTHROP a. ROBERTS. 
From the Appendix to the Report of the Commissioner of Fish- 
eries to the Secretary of Commerce and Labor for the year 
'ending June 30, 1904. 
Maryland furnishes by far a larger supply of crabs 
than any State in the Union, and it is not improbable that 
its people were the first to discover the edible qualities 
of this crustacean and its value as a market product. The 
only species taken in the commercial fisheries of the State 
is the blue crab {Callinectes sapidus), which is caught 
and marketed in both the hard-shell and the soft-shell 
condition. The fishery for soft crabs, however, is much 
more extensive than that for hard crabs. 
The Soft Crab Industry. 
The greatest crab shipping point in the United States 
is Crisfield, Md., situated near the extreme lower end of 
Somerset county on the Little Annemessex River, a 
tributary of Tangier Sound. Soft crabs are taken with 
three forms of apparatus- — scrapes, scoop nets and sniall 
seines. A few also are taken incidentally on trot lines, 
together with hard crabs. The catch by seines is insig- 
nificant compared with that by scrapes and scoop nets. 
The scrapes used for crabbing are similar to the oyster 
dredge, except that they are lighter, have no teeth on the 
front bar, and have a cotton instead of a chain bag. The 
bags originally used were three feet deep, but deeper ones 
were found more effective in preventing the escape of 
the crabs, and four feet is now the usual depth. The same 
apparatus is occasionally used both in dredging for oys- 
ters and scraping for crabs, 
A scoop net, or dip net, as it is sometimes called, con- 
sists of a circular bow of iron, with a cotton bag from 
six to eight inches deep knit around it, and a handle 
about five feet long. 
The seines are from forty to fifty feet long, and are 
hauled by two men. Crabs taken in scoop nets and seines 
are less mutilated than those caught in scrapes, and con- 
sequently command better prices. 
Scrapes are used exclusively upon sailing vessels, and, 
like oyster dredges, are drawn over the bottom while the 
boat is moving under sail. 
The soft-crab season extends from May i to Oct. 31, 
but a majority of the crabbers discontinue fishing in Sep- 
tember to engage in oyster tonging. During the first two 
or three weeks of May they follow what is known as 
“mud-larking,” that is, scoop-netting in marshes and 
along the banks of small streams, the crabs being found 
in the mud at this season of the year. By June i the 
crabs become more active and the season is then consid- 
ered at its height. The heaviest catches are made during 
June and July. Scoop-netting is followed throughout the 
seasoh, but little scraping is done after the middle of July, 
owing to the calm weather. Very often a fisherman will 
begin scraping early in the day, and when the wind has 
ceased anchor his sailboat and use his skiff for scoop- 
netting in shallow water. In some localities the bottom 
grass grows so thick that the scrane bag fills with it and 
prevents the crab from entering. The scoop net is then 
brought into service. In water less than three feet deep 
it is a common occurrence for the crabbers to leave their 
skiffs and wade out after the crabs with scoop nets. 
There are six stages of a crab’s life, commonly classi- 
fied as follows : First, the “hard crab,” or one in its 
natural condition; second, a “snot,” or one 'that has just 
entered the shedding stage; third, a “peeler,” when the 
old shell has begun to break; fourth, a “buster,” when the 
new shell can be seen ; fifth, the “soft crab” ; sixth, a 
“paper-shell,” or “buckram,” when the new shell is be- 
ginning to harden. . During hot weather it takes from two 
to three days for a “snot” to become a. “peeler.” One tide 
will often change a “peeler” to a “buster,” and another 
from a “buster” to a soft crab. A few hours after shed- 
ding the crab has reached the “paper shell” stage, and 
within three days the hardening process is completed. 
Most of the crab catch is sold on the grounds where 
taken, the dealers in Crisfield and Deal Island employing 
buy-boats for this purpose. 
Every crabber has what is known as a float, a rect- 
angular box approximately ten or fifteen feet long, four 
feet wide, and two feet deep, the sides and ends being 
constructed of laths, and the bottom of six-inch, planks. 
Extending around the float on the outside, midway of its 
height, is a shelf about seven inches wide, to prevent the 
float from sinking. The laths on the sides and ends are 
placed about one-fourth inch apart, to prevent minnows 
or eels from getting at the crabs inside. These floats are 
used by the fishermen as a means of holding crabs that 
have entered upon the shedding process, but which have 
not yet reached the “peeler” or salable condition. The 
floats are inclosed by a fence to prevent their being 
washed away by strong winds, and this inclosure is com- 
monly called a “pound.” 
Dealers employ men to watch their floats constantly 
and remove the crabs from the water immediately after 
the shedding process, to prevent the hardening of the 
shell. This sorting is done three or four times a day, the 
intervals being employed in packing the crabs for ship- 
ment, receiving fresh supplies, and in delivering those al- 
ready packed to the express office or steamboat wharf. 
A source of much loss in soft crabs is the great mor- 
tality attendant upon the shedding process. If the ani- 
mal has been injured in any way, either when being 
caught or in the subsequent handling, or if it has been 
weakened by being kept too long out of water, it is often 
unable to withdraw from the old shell and dies. There 
is but small demand for the crabs which die in the floats. 
If they are removed and cooked within two or three 
hours, however, they can still be eaten, and fOr this pur- 
pose command a small price. A few are shipped to be 
used as fish-bait, but the majority are either thrown away 
or given to persons in the neighborhood who feed them 
to hogs or to impounded diamond-back terrapin. The 
mortality among shedding crabs is greatest during hot 
and sultry weather ; thunder storms are said to be very 
destructive at times, but whether this destruction is due 
to the sultry weather preceding or to the electrical dis- 
turbance during the storm is a disputed point. The crabs 
in the floats are not fed, even though they remain there 
for several days. It. rvas formerly the practice to throw 
in pieces of stale meat or other refuse, but, althou,gh the 
270 
crabs ate it, they died more quickly than if nothing waS’ 
given theiH. . • t. 
The work of packing crabs for shipment is begun by 
covering the bottom of the box to a depth of two or 
inches with seaweed which has been thoroughly picked 
over to remove all lumps. On this soft bed the crabs are 
placed in a nearly vertical position and so close together 
that they cannot move out of place. Seaweed or moss is 
then placed over them to protect them, and over this is 
placed a layer of fine crushed ice. The other trays, after 
being packed in the same manner, are placed one above 
the other, and the lid is nailed on,. The box is then ready 
for shipment. Some dealers, in order that their ship- 
ments may present a more attractive appearance upon 
reaching market, place a piece of cheesecloth immediately 
over the crabs and the seaweed over that. By reason of 
the extreme care used in packing, the crabs can be kept 
alive from sixty to seventy hours after leaving the water, 
and crabs shipped from Crisfield to Canada arrive at their 
destination alive and in good condition. 
At present most of the crabs are shipped directly to the 
consumer, and the packers do not hesitate to fill the 
.smallest order. Competition among the packers is very 
keen, and considerable secrecy is observed regarding the 
destination of shipments. When a box is ready the 
dealer’s name and’ address are stenciled upon it, and a 
tag bearing the consignee’s name and address is attached J, 
but over the latter, so as to hide it completely, is tacked’ ai 
piece of cardboard bearing the letter “W” (west) or. “E”’ 
(east). This is known as a “blind tag,” and is not re- 
moved until after the box is in the express car, if shipped 
by rail, or in Baltimore, if it goes by steamer. 
While the great bulk of the catch, in fact nearly , all of 
it, is shipped in the manner described above, a small but 
increasing number of soft crabs are being put up_ in 
hermetically sealed tin cans for indefinite preservation. 
For this purpose the prime soft crabs are boiled and put 
up very much the same as any other animal product. 
From two to twenty-four entire crabs are put into each 
can, the former number into a can holding about one- 
half pint, the latter into a one gallon can. When put up' 
in this manner the crabs retain much of their delicious; 
flavor and should furnish an admirable substitute for the- 
fresh article during the winter season. 
The price received by the fishermen for soft crabs, or 
those in the process of shedding, varies from one-half to 
four cents each, an average during the season being about 
1J2 cents. In buying, the dealer often counts three small 
crabs as two large ones, or two small as one large one, 
according tO' the size. 
There has been no very material change in the catcli of 
crabs throughout the region, except a slight increase duff 
to the greater number of crabbers each year. 
The Hard Crab Industry. 
Oxford and Cambridge are the most important hard- 
crab centers in the State, though the industry is prose- 
cuted extensively in many other localities, including Cris- 
field, where, however, it is overshadowed by the more im- 
portant soft-crab industry. The larger portion of the 
catch is made in the Choptank, Tred Avon, Wicomico, 
St. Michaels, Chester and Little Annemessex rivers, and 
Chesapeake Bay, on the eastern shore of the State, and 
in Mill Creek, a tributary of the Patuxent River, on the 
western shore. The crabs are taken in depths of water 
varying from tv/o feet in the rivers to forty feet in the 
open waters of Chesapeake Bay. The average depth 
would be about ten feet. They usually frequent muddy 
bottoms, but at certain seasons of the year they are found 
on hard bottoms, thus differing from soft crabs, which 
always seek grassy bottoms. 
At Crisfield the fishery for hard crabs is carried on 
from early in April until the latter part of November. 
In most other localities the season is considerably shorter. 
The larger portion of the catch is taken between June i 
and Sept, i, most of the fishermen discontinuing at the 
latter date to take up oyster tonging. 
With the exception of the crabs already mentioned as 
being caught in oyster dredges and the few taken to- 
gether with soft crabs, the entire hard-crab catch of the 
State is obtained with trot lines. These lines vary in 
length from 500 to 1,000 yards, the average being about 
450 yards, and are of cotton, manila, or grass rope, the ‘ 
size running from one-eigth to five-eighths of an inch in 
diameter, but usually being about one-fourth inch. Many 
fishermen tar their lines, though the practice is not uni- 
versal. In some localities snoods about eighteen inches 
in length, of fine twine, are fastened to the main line at 
intervals of three to four feet, the bait being placed at' 
the end.s of thes snoods. Other fishermen, however, use 
no snoods, but make a loop in the main line, through 
which the bait is slipped. 
. The use of snoods is preferable where the water is 
rough, as the crabs are not so easily shaken off by the 
strain on the line when pulling the boat along and when 
the line is being lifted from the water in removing the 
crabs. Many fishermen advise their use under all cir- 
cumstances, as with snoods swinging from the main line 
the crabs are able to see the bait from any direction. Trot 
lines are always anchored on the bottom of a stream. For , 
this purpose grapnels or killicks weighing from five to 
ten pounds are used, one being placed at each end of the 
line, and in many cases one also in the center. A buoy, 
usually consisting of a small keg or some wooden object, 
is placed near each end of the line to locate it. 
Beef tripe and eels constitute the usual bait, though 
calf pelts, sting rays, hog chokers, spoilt beef, and vari- 
cjus other substitutes are sometimes used. It is likely that 
the use of tripe will be discontinued in the near future, 
owing to the fact that the steamboats , have refused to 
transport it on account of its offensive odor, and the rail- 
road companies will not handle it except when it is 
packed in tightly sealed barrels. The bait is generally 
used in a salted condition, and is placed on the line at 
intervals of three or four feet. Fishermen bait their lines 
about once a week, in the meanwhile replacing any bait 
that may have been washed away or eaten. It is usual on 
Saturday or Monday to remove the old bait and put on 
fresh. After a line has been rebaited- it is placed in a 
coil and covered with salt to preserve the ,bait until it is 
used. 
With few exceptions only one man goes in a boat. The 
lines are set about one-fourth to the tide, or diagonally' 
qcross a stream', Jr fishing, the Upe is drawn across the 
