HERRING, JOHN FREDERICR, 1705-1805; 1). England, the son of an American. The boy had a passion for painting horses, and for many years executed the portraits of the winners of raem. was a. great expert ia drawing other animals, fowls, etc. One of his best known works is "Three Members of the Temperance Society," representing three horses drinking at a fountain.
Pi .E1MING-FISHERY. The herring-fishery is carried on all the year round, there being both a winter and a summer fishery; but the largest quantities of fish ;ire caught in the months of Aug. and Sept., at which time the fishery becomes general on all pirts of the British coasts.
The common mode of capturing herrings is by a set of large nets joined together. and known among fishermen as a "drift" These nets, held together by a haeltqame, are let into the water in a straight line, and are kept perpendicular by a number of bladders or cork floats, balanced by a few slight weights of lead. Each single net is, composed of fine twine worked into meshes of an inch square, and is 50 yds. long and 33 ft. in depth. These nets, which are now woven by machinery, were made by the fishermen's families; but so many are used now, that it would be impossilde to make them by hand, as each boat has a train that extends nearly a mile in length.
i The herring-fishery in Scotland is regulated by acts of parliament, and watched over by the commissioners for the British.tisherics. This board will allow of no other method of taking the fish than by a drift-net. Another mode of fishing. known as " trawling," but which is in reality carried on by means of a " seine'!-net, prevails on some parts of the British coast; but in Scotland trawling is illegal, and subjects those who practice It to heavy penalties. The boats required in the herring-fishery in Scotland, although open or undecked, require to be of considerable size, in to contain the large quantity of nets which are used, as well as to bring home the fish that may be taken; the fishermen also believe that the open boats are more convenient for the manipulation of the nets. Most of the boats used in Scotland are obtained from the port of Leith, which has long been celebrated for the build of its open fishing-boats.
Each vessel is manned by a crew of five or six persons, one to guide the boat, and the others to maneuver the sails, nets, etc. The boat usually belongs to one person, who hires his assistants, or, as in some cases, may be owned by two or three relatives, wito form themselves into a crew, and share in the proceeds of the capture. The boats of a district usually gather to a particular center, for the convenience of the curers. Some fishermen will proceed a hundred miles or more to a favorite port, and many of the curers have curing-stations at five or six different places. The boats proceed to sea so as to arrive at the place selected for casting the nets about sunset, when the sail is'struck, and the nets are gently paid over the boat, which requires to be kept in motion during the process. The last portion of the nets is fixed to the boat by a long swing-rope, and when the whole train has been let into the sea, the fishermen go to rest; the boats and nets being allowed to drift with the tide. The herrings are caught by striking against the nets, in which they entangle themselves by the hpad. The herring-fishery partakes greatly of the nature of a lottery. A boat will sometimes obtain a large quantity of herrings, and as frequently take only a few: sometimes the pets arc shot twice in a night, if no fish are got on the first trial.
The commerce carried on in herrings is peculiar. The fish when brought on shore are measured ungutted by the " cran," a vessel which contains 45 gallons. and handed over to the curer. A very large proportion of the herrings taken on the British coast are pickled or cured by means of salt; owing to the facilities for speedy transport afforded by railways, however, great quantities are also disposed of fresh. At Yar mouth, and some other parts of England, and also at some places in Scotland, the herrings are, after being slightly salted, made into what are called "bloaters," by means of smoking. A large portion of the total catch is likewise made into "reds" by a more complete smoking, and both kinds are in great demand. Smoking-houses are now numerous in many parts of Scotland.