FYKE NETS AND FYKE-NET FISHERIES. 
349 
of dead net; in the next row set in 5 false meshes equidistantly ; then 20 rows of dead net; then a row 
with 5 false meshes; then 20 rows of dead net; then 5 false meshes in the next row; then 36 rows of 
dead net; net the thirty-seventh row in double twine. This done, cut off both threads, leaving ends, 
and fill a needle with single twine, but the last row you have netted being in double string, you have 
an upper and a lower row; to the end proceeding from this lower row, where the double thread was 
cut off and from which the valve is to issue, tie the twine you have on the needle and work as follows, 
taking care to pick up only the loops of the lower row on the needle as you go round : Net 14 rows of 
dead net, then, at equal distances in the circumference, make in the fifteenth row 8 stole meshes, 
i. e., take 2 loops up at once 8 times in that row; then 2 rows of dead net; in the next row 8 stole 
meshes, and so on as before for 3 times more. After you have for the fifth time put in 8 stole meshes, 
net a row of plain netting; then lay aside your 2-inch spool and take a 12-inch, on which net 1 row. 
The funnel or valve is now finished and must be reflected inward to gain its right position. You 
now take your needle, charged with single twine, and join on to that other row which was left before 
and where the funnel issued from the body of the net. Net 11 rows of dead netting on your 2-inch 
spool; in the next row set in 5 false meshes, at equal distances from each other, and continue to set 
in 5 false meshes at every fourth row for 7 times, leaving 3 rows of dead netting between. After you 
have set in your false meshes for the seventh time, make 7 rows of dead netting, then one row on a 
4-inch spool. This last row is strung on to a length of wood about 6 inches long and bent in a bow ; a 
piece of stout string keeps the two extremities bent, answering to the string of an archer’s bow, and 
the last meshes of the net’s mouth are strung on to this string as well as on the bow. A moderate 
weight is generally attached to the bow at its extremities. Four hoops are placed round the net 
through the meshes of twenty-first, forty-second, sixty-third, and One hundredth rows (reckoning 
from the pointed end). The hoops are made larger as they proceed from the point toward the mouth, 
and all are made of much slighter wood than the bow. The diameter of the first or smallest hoop is 
about 1 foot 5 inches ; the next about 1 foot 7 inches ; the third about 1 foot 10 inches ; and the fourth 
about 2 feet. The hoops are bound to the meshes by twine after they have been passed, and this, of 
course, is done before the ends of the hoops are lashed together. In some hoop nets more than one 
funnel is inserted, but many fisherman prefer only one.* 
In the various parts of Germany a number of different forms of the fykes are used, 
and it appears to be a rather common means of fishing both on the coast and in the 
interior waters. Some of the nets closely resemble kinds used in the United States, 
which in all probability have been introduced by German emigrants, but most of the 
styles observed differ in some slight features from types employed in this country. 
One common form consists of 8 iron hoops and 2 wings 6 feet in length ; the first 
hoop is 16 inches in diameter, the last 6 inches, the hoops being from 10 to 18 inches 
apart. There are 3 funnels, which terminate in a square opening, from the corners 
of which lines pass to the adjacent hoops for the purpose of keeping the end of the 
funnel in proper position. The funnels are peculiar in that they do not originate from 
the hoops but several inches in advance of the hoops to which they would ordinarily 
be attached. The net described is such as is employed for eels. Similar nets, 
with 4 to 6 hoops made of iron or wood, are also used for both eels and fish. One 
style with 4 hoops, 2 funnels, and wings about 20 feet in length, employed in the 
vicinity of Memel, in East Prussia, on the Baltic Sea, is known as the neunaugen 
reuse , in allusion to the lampreys ( neunaugen ) taken. Another type, practically iden- 
tical with this, but set for fish, is called a Jischsack. 
A double fyke, with wings and leader, such as is found in the Middle Atlantic 
States and shown in plate lxxx, fig. 1, is also used in parts of Prussia; each bag has 
4 hoops and 2 funnels, the latter arising from the netting in front of the hoops, as 
already mentioned. 
A very interesting fyke, analogous to an eelpot and probably set for eels, is found 
in northern Germany. It is known as a bollreuse (round fyke) and is peculiar in 
* Notes on Nets. By Charles Bathurst. Lonilon, 1838. 
