334 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
clove hitch, the end being stopped back with a small rope. In the mean 
time (or previously), the cod-end is tied up with the “poke-line,” one 
end of which is taken through the eye-splice in the lower end of the 
long “ cod- line,” which reaches to the beam. The trawl is now all ready 
to be shot, and the beam lies stretched along the port side of the ves- 
sel, resting on or against the rail, from the taffrail nearly to the main 
rigging, with the net piled loosely over it, the forward trawl-head rest- | 
ing on deck and held in place by a stopper, while the after trawl-head, j 
which is outside the stern, is held by two short ropes, called “canting 
lines,” and which serve the several purposes of supporting the after ! 
end of the trawl when the dandy bridle has been slackened off, securing 
and holding firmly in place the trawl-head, and also for “ canting” the 
apparatus when it is being shot. 
All hands are required to shoot a trawl. 
“If on the port tack,” writes Olsen, “ the captain on the quarter deck 
gives his orders, looks to see the trawl all clear over the side, attends 
the after stopper, and squares the gear. The mate and third hand amid- 
ships, stream the trawl, and afterwards veer the gear away. The fourth 
hand stands by to let go the fore head, and the cook takes the helm .” 1 
The following are the details of shooting a trawl as observed by the 
writer : 
When all are ready, the lashing is taken off the forward trawl -head, 
the captain casts off the canting lines and holds them in his hands with 
a single turn around a cleat or stern timber. The “cod ” is now thrown 
out, followed by the rest of the net, until the whole is clear of the side 
and trailing out from the beam; which still remains in its place. The 
time having now arrived, the trawl is lowered, and considerable skill 
is required to do this properly, for, simple though it may seem, much 
care must be exercised to insure the landing of the net and beam on the 
bottom in the right position, namely : With the ground rope below, and 
the beam upwards resting on the trawl-heads, the mouth of the appar- 
atus being distended. Unless the lowering is skillfully performed the 
trawl may strike the bottom on its back, which would result in its mouth 
being closed ; therefore no fish could be taken. After the forward head 
and end of the beam are thrown out, the captain slacks away a little on 
the canting lines, until the after end of the beam is nearly to the water, 
but he does not let go of them until the forward end of the beam swings 
off from the vessel’s side at an angle of about forty-five degrees, being 
slacked away gradually by the fore bridle. When the beam is two or 
three fathoms astern of the smack, the fore bridle and dandy bridle are 
usually checked, in order that the skipper may see that the trawl is all 
right. As soon as the bridles are out the gear is again stopped from 
running to ascertain if the bridles lead clear, and a good full is given 
the vessel, so that she may start ahead and straighten the trawl . 2 One 
1 Fisherman’s Seamanship, p. 30. 
2 According to Holdsworth the Brixham fishermen do not bend on the dandy bridle 
to the towing warp before throwing over the trawl, though, so far as I could learn, 
