The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-05-26 00:00:00

FISHING VESSELS AT THE EXHIBITION.

There are, probably, no objects in the Fisheries
Exhibition claiming more of the public attention than
the models of the fishing vessels used by different
nations. Nor is this a matter for any surprise, when
it is remembered that, with the exception of the com-
paratively small quantity of fish, such as mackerel
and pilchards, caught in Seine nets from the beach,
the whole of the British and foreign markets are sup-
plied with fish for the capture of which vessels of one
kind or another are required.

Prominent among the models in the English section
are those of steam trawlers and carriers, the latter
being steamers that take the fish horn the smacks and
convey it to market.
The American collection of models of fishing vessels
is very complete, and should on no account be missed
by the visitor. The majority of the American deep-
sea fishing vessels are larger than our own, and are
almost invariably schooner-rigged. The American
fishing craft is nothing if not fast, so they are built on
lines as fine as those of a yacht, in fact it is said that,
given a stiff breez-., they will, in many, instances beat
yachts. They are heavily ' canvassed, too and the
booms of the mainsails project so far over the stern
that in some vessels they are actually slung at the
middle of their length. Some of the cod and hallibut
boats are as much as 160 tons, and 90 or 100 tons seems
a common size; the latter carry a crew of 14 to 16,
the liberal way in which the vessels are canvassed
necessitating a full complement of hands.
The Newfoundland vessels, like the American, are
built for speed, as far as fine lines are compatible with
roominess, and some of the models show that these
two qualities have had a fight for supremacy. One of
them is a brigantine—that is, a vessel square-rigged on
the foremast and schooner-rigged on the mainmast—
used in the seal fishery.
A curious rig is seen in the Danish section, in a
Faroese whale-boat. There is but one sail—a very
long lug on a correspondingly long yard • it reaches
almost from one end of the boat to the Other, while
the mast is stepped nearly in the centre of the boat's
length, giving it a peculiar look to English eyes.

- - -
On passing into the Belgian section, we find a smack
used by the Heyst fishermen built on very antiquated
form, the bows being as bluff as those of a coal barge,
the sides fitted with large lee boards, and the rig a
peculiar square one.
The Norwegian section is interesting, if only on
account of the model of the Viking ship with its
graceful lines, but there are plenty of others, arranged
in the centre of the department on a mimic sea. The
Norwegians employ a great many small boats. Some
of them are shaped with both ends alike; others have
large square sterns that one would think must cause a
great suck and stop their speed. The larger vessels
have a peculiar sail, quite oblong in shape, and kept
in place by a sprit, though it differs from the Eng-
lish spritsail in being quite straight from what we
should call the peak to the mast, and from the peak
to the lower end.