Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-11-03
ABOUT THE LOBSTER.
Interesting Information from a Gov
eminent Report.

. ISE COMMISSION on the lobster nSHtIS
Of Maine shows that the poet who
| wrote:
Till, like a lobster boiled the morn
From black To red began 10 turn
| made smile almost as imperfect as
his rhyme. BY no means all Holsters
are black originally or red only after
boiling. A female lobster caught Of
! Hurricane island in 1874. was colored
| rich indigo along the middle Of the
| upper part Of the body, shading OF
| into a brighter and clearer tint on the
sides and eXtrenities. The upper sur
face Of the large claws was blue ANA
purple. family notified with darker
shades. while underneath was dell
cate cream tint The under parts ~
| the body tended also 10 melt into 4
| cream color and This was also true of
the spines and tubcrcleS of the shell
! and appendag-S. In 1852 4 Peaks
/ island fisherman caught lobster
| about eleven inches in length. whose
back was of an indigo blue. ana which
/ towards the extremities and under
parts was shaded of into pur- white
! The under part of the claw Was also A
pure white. Lewis Mcdonald II Port
land has pure white lobster pre-
served in alcohol; il was caught in
1857
! lobster about six inches long
caught at Beal island was almost q jet
black. A few bright-red Holsters look
| ing As though they had been boiled.
have also been taken along the Maine
coast al various times. 4 lobster was
caught near Lone island i'll Ca~co bay.
J 80 u ), u h.a
body Was light yellow W 10 the middi"
line Of the back while the either half
! was bright red: there were TO spots on
the shell. In September. les>. r. A.
/ Carver ~ NnalhaVen. had I'LL Ms
possession 4 female lobster about
eleven inches long. of a bright rvd color
all over except tn forward half ~ the
right side of the cardpace and the feel
p on This side. which were II the usual
color
The popular notion. also. nj lhe -iz~~ ~
tlahSl+rs appears 10 fall somewhat short
lnf th- truth On May :. l%l- q nil- lao~
ster weighing slightly more man t"rn-A-
three pounds was taken in Pen0bscot pay.
southeast nf Moose Point ]; hJd tried y
| back into the trap. hut after getting III
tail through th- funnel was unable 20 g
either in ~ ont and Wa thus c-tp;NF-0,
According To r. VI Collins. II trdieT Fl
| Rorkland in August. 1881. lobster
weighing ~. pounds was taken Al Blue
hll Falls. il uPper, B!aetliA bay VIII
lin November. 49,. female lobster
| weighing eighteen pounds Was taken Al
Green island IN January. ~. y
Tr4fethen OF Portland received lobster
from N!ndlhaV-u which weighed eighteen
According 10 r = erie & Sons .: Crie-
haven. on Sept. :. 1855. male lobster
u-ins twenty-five inches from IN. end q
the nose 10 the tip OF the tail. ana forty
FIVE inches across, including ne cls~S.
| was caught or a bake trawi Of n ATM n
Rock IiEh; Station. In August. lss3. a
Hive male lobster was exhibited at Peak
| Island which measured ioTtN-tour lhchee
| in length and weighed TWENTY-FIVE pounds
Ii had been caught near MonhesdA
| Island ard the owner was carrying il
from -own 70 town in 4 small ca. whltn
he had built for il, and charging 2 IS y
| The same report gives A. An interesting
| account o. III mode q shipping Holsters
in frozen STATE they must W. shippei
either alive or boiled. About nine-tsnths
| o. the Holsters caught in Maine waters
arr shipped IN the i've SAT- m P1lnS,l-
pal shipping stations are Portland. KOCH
Hand and EaetDOrt. which have good ran
road and steamship facilities t. points
outside ~ the STATE
a soon :. = smack arrives y u moore
directly alongside on- 81 the cars he
! Holsters are then clipped out oi n" Vel
BY means 0. a long-hAndlrd sco"p-ntt 4nd
!
doors Of the car are opened and men on
the vessel pick over the HOLSTERS lying on
| The deck and toss them two bN Two inc
the different compartments. those dead
land bllIy nutila--d b-ing ,htowa 70 one
side f1r the tirnr being Al Vigorous Ioo-
sters above 4 certain liz ar pls'-d ln
while n weak ana small ones re pui
into separate compartments. The dead
Holsters or those which have hal their
Shells broken Or have been ~n injured
. hoy
thrown overheard pr upon the dump !
.DbStr: which las lost rnr W trt7 bpth
claws * not thrown away. az sGch am m
/ Jury would h.'- very Atiir fleet upon
its health.
When an orIrr j. received .oE nre luh-
~r-r those VII. Il have b...-u longest IT'D th-
c.rs are usually shipped. Flour barrels.
| holding abuu- l4p pounds. or sugar bar-
| rrl> holding bout I'M pounds. WI p small
holes bored IN th'- bottoms IN dralnder.
ar- used for the shipment. Formerly The
holsters w-.r packed clos together IN the
/ barrel ANA a large PIECE ~ lte WAS lnt
In At The tor. but TINS va loUA- 10 nj!
i number Of hem. The ptesen; method
| is 10 split OH about OHe-third u = one
hundred pound cake of icr the long wly.
land place il upright about halfway OF the
| length Of th- barrel. the HOLSTERS then be
ling packed snCEly on all SIDE ri the ire.
/ In handling them. The packer S-.zvs n
/ lobster by ne cAr5palr with NJ Iisht
with MS Lett hand and quickly DEPOSITS II
| in the barrel
! The packer usually has Ills right hSHd
coy cred with A wooden nit or wrapped IN
2 long piece 81 linen, fQr protection from
the claws 81 the lobster,
| When he barrel is nearly fun The Ion
S.vrs AZ covered with little seaw|ei
or larsr-l-Iyed marine plants. and the
re-I Ii IT'LL. spa w Is filled with cracked ice.
| The tor j. then covered with piece u
| - cking which i secured under the up
| n-r noon of the barrel Packed in this
| way HOLSTERS have easily sIrl lived i trip
| a. lar NeSl -. Louis.
| Owing . The high price re4'IZel in
| England for live Holsters attempts have
| to that market. generally from Canadian
/ ports In 1877 MeSsrs. John Mar>ton &
Sons of Portland made a trial shipment
| III 80 They we're placed in tank twen-
| = feet long by eight feet wide and three
feet deep and constantly supplied with
/ fresh ~eawater through six faucets By
/ means OF a donkey engine. waste ripe
( preventing any overflow. The trip Wa
| fairly successful - only u:ty died. and
| he balance brought from sixty To sew
enty-tive cents a pound. The Smacks and
dealers buy HOLSTERS By count. as the
! fishermen generally have no facilities for
weighing them: but the dealers always
sell by weight. The mortality among the
/ Holsters from the time they are put
| aboard me smacks until they are barrAlel
| for shipment is estimated 1T about FIVE
per cent