Scientific American Supplement, No. 421, page 69 by Various Authors
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in bad weather. Bream sells at about 3½d. a pound. Cod are taken during the first six months of the year, about 9 miles off shore, by hand lines. Sold fresh the price is about 6_d._ per lb. A small quantity is preserved in tins. Anchovy or cuttlefish is the bait used; sometimes the two are placed on one hook.
A smaller description of boat, called traineras, is built especially for taking sardine and anchovy, although in fine weather they often engage in the same fishery as the larger boats. The traineras are light and shapely vessels, with a graceful sheer and curved stem and stern posts. The keel is much cambered, and the bottom is flat and has considerable hollow. The usual dimensions vary between: Length, 38 feet to 42 feet; beam, 7 feet to 7 feet 6 inches; depth, 2 feet 6 inches to 2 feet 10 inches. The sails and gear are much the same as in the larger boats, excepting that there are only four shifts in place of six. The largest main lug has an area of about 90 square yards and the fore lug about 50 square yards. The other sails for heavier weather are naturally smaller. The largest masts for fine weather are respectively 36 feet and 22 feet, long. The average cost of one of these boats and gear is about £122, made up as follows: Hull, £32; sails, gear, and oars, £30; nets and gear attached, £60. The season for anchovy fishing commences on the 1st of March and ends 30th of June; it begins again on the 15th of September, and continues until the end of the year. Most fish are taken at a distance of about 9 miles from the land, although they often come in much closer. Anchovies are sold fresh, or are salted to be sent away, some are used for bait, and in times of great plenty quantities are put on the land for manure. The greater part are, however, preserved in barrels or tins, and are exported to France or England.
The net used in the capture of anchovies is called traina or copo. It is in principle like the celebrated purse seine of the United S