Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1883-07-12

One of the important industries of
Virginia in the fall and winter is the
accumulation of crabs. The best of
our .'sllcdders" and ''hard-shells'' come
from the vicinity of Old Point Comfort,
the waters hereabOuts seeming particu-
larly adapted for the wary crustaceans,
and here they are found in vast schools.
At ebb tide in the season the water is at
times fairly alive; myriads are gong
out by swimming, while along the shore
the bottom is literally covered with the
warlike throng. A professional crab
Der at Old Point, named Aleck, has for
many years carried off the palm as the
''boss cotcher and treader.n Early in
the morning the old man could be seen
wading over the flats of Mill Creek,
that leads up from Fort Monroe to
Hampton. He was treading for she'd
ders, and when he felt sOft-shell he
would dexterously lift it up, using
his toes in lieu of fingers. Sometimes
u mistake would occur, and
hard-sheIl would seize his feet.
Then the old mans black leg
would double up with the vicious
shell-fish dangling from it, while
groan of agony would escape him, his
eldership in the Butler bethel prohibit
inc stronger expressions. The shedders
having been exhausted, the base of OPP
erations would be changed to the east
beach, where fishing for hard-shells"
was carried on, men, boys and children
joining in the sport in a most primitive
fashion. A large iron barrel-hoOp is
to hor ho,f
placed in the center and by several
strings attached to the hoop, and so
lowered to the bottom, to b. covered in
a few moments by the hungry crusta-
ceans, who are thus summarily jerked
to the surface and landed before they
can pet out. Seven to ten are captured
in this way at haul, while long scoop
nets and simple bait upon string are
some of the other methods. The pot,
so successfully used for the lobster, is a
complete failure when used for crabs,
the latter walking out as soon as the
bait is eaten. While fishing is carried
on at the docks and shore, numerous
"dug-outs,'' graceful crafts formed
from single log, are plying similar
vocation all about the great bay faml.
larry kUOWu dS AlduIptcu hCd'iS. hs
soon as caught, the crabs are packed in
barrels, layer of sea-weeds and layer
of crabs alternating until full, when a
bucket of water is dashed over them
and they are headed with piece OF
bagging and taken to Norfolk or Old
Point, and shipped that night to Balti-
more to the wholesaler, and from there
to Philadelphia, New York. Boston and
other large cities North and South.
The greatest demand for crabs comes
from Baltimore, where hard-shells''
are valued equally to soft, and are the
Holsters of the locality. Quantities OF
them are canned. and the demand is
upon the increase. The
original dealers obtain usually from
two dollars and half to three dollars
per barrel for hard-shelled crabs. Soft
shells bring from twenty-five cents per .
dozen according to the season, and are
sent all over the country at various fan
CIV prices that would astonish the orig
NAL producer. The crab industry ex-
tends up the coast as far as Shark
River. N. j.. but the great area at the
mouth of the 1aneEproduces the bulk
2f the trade. as car-,N T. Ere'a"s
Post.