BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 397 
bent the bridle. One end of this span fastens to the upper part of the 
head-iron, and is 2 feet long; the other or lower part of the span is 2 
feet 7 inches long, and passes through the foot of the head-iron and is 
held by a knot on the end of the rope. 
Fig. 34. Section of foot rope. 
The ground rope is in striking contrast to those used by British fish- 
ermen. It is a small-sized hemp rope, scarcely larger than an inch, and 
on it are strung, at distances of inches between each two, a number 
of lead sinkers, these being 1J inches long and 1 inch in diameter, with 
holes through them sufficiently large to admit the rope. (See Fig. 34.) 
The net itself does not differ materially from other trawl-nets. 
4. Methods of Fishing. 
The methods of fishing with beam-trawls on the larger Dutch vessels 
are essentially the same as those adopted by the English, so I am 
assured by Mr. A. E. Maas, of Scheveningen. Holdsworth says : “ The 
same method of fishing is general on the coasts of Holland, Belgium, 
and France ; but the Dutch are peculiar in using two trawls at once, 
one being towed from the bow and the other from the stern of the 
vessel.” 
It is a question, he thinks, whether, taking the year through, much 
advantage is gained from this system, although undoubtedly large 
catches are made by it sometimes. It is possibly true that, at the time 
Holdsworth wrote, the Dutch were not using the large beam-trawls — a 
single trawl to a vessel— as they now do in the North Sea. His remark 
on the system of trawling pursued by the fishermen of the Netherlands 
applies more particularly to the u bomschuiten ,” all of which, according 
to Mr. Maas, still use two trawls — each with a beam about 20 to 21 
feet long, of the kind last described — one of which is put out from the 
stern and the other from the bow. The peculiar construction of the 
a bomschuiten” makes it possible for them to operate two trawls, though 
this might be found impracticable and unprofitable on vessels of the 
ordinary form. The “ bomschuiten” are so modeled that, when their 
lee-boards are up, they have a minimum of lateral resistance ; there- 
fore, when towing their gear, they slide off almost dead to leeward, drift- 
ing very much faster, of course, than a deeper vessel would. With a 
fresh breeze of wind and a lee tide effective work may be done, but 
with the tide running to windward it is difficult to understand how these 
boats can work to advantage. 
All of the Dutch vessels take their own catch to market, and are what 
^ould be termed “ single boaters” in England, The u bomschuiten” 
