MACKREL. 
172 
ni ght, and stretch, across the tide, to the extent 
of several miles; and the meshes are made just 
large enough to admit the heads of the large-sized 
fish, and catch them by the gills. Mr. Bingley 
relates the following method of fishing for mackrel 
with a ground seine, as it was communicated to 
him by J. Stackhouse, esq . : — “ A roll of rope of 
about two hundred fathoms in length, with the net 
fastened to the end, is tied at the other to a post, 
or rock, on the shore. The boat is then rowed to 
the extremity of this coil, when a pole fixed there, 
loaded heavily at the bottom, is thrown overboard. 
The rowers from hence make as nearly as possible 
a semicircle, two men continually and regularly 
putting the net into the water. When they come 
to the other end of the net, where there is an- 
other leaded pole, they throw that overboard. An- 
other coil of rope, similar to the first, is by degrees 
thrown into the water, as the boatmen make for 
the shore. The boat’s crew now land, and, with 
the assistance of persons stationed there, haul in 
each end of the net till they come to the two poles. 
The boat is then again pushed off towards the 
centre of the net, in order to prevent the more 
vigorous fish from leaping over the corks. By these 
means three or four hundred fish are often caught 
at one haul.” 
These fish are said to be exceedingly voracious ; 
a circumstance not forgotten by Bishop Pontop- 
pidan ; who, among other things equally extraor- 
