Page:The history of silk, cotton, linen, wool, and other fibrous substances 2.djvu/509

 VI.

[Greek: HYPOCHÊ.]

The [Greek: hypochê], which is the fourth in Oppian's enumeration, was the landing-net, used merely to take fishes out of the water when they rose to the surface, or in similar circumstances to which it was adapted. It was made with a hoop ([Greek: kuklos]) fastened to a pole, and was perhaps also provided with the means of closing the round aperture at the top.

Of the [Greek: Kalumma] we find nowhere any further mention.

VII.

TRAGUM, TRAGULA, VERRICULUM.

[Greek: SAGÊNÊ].

These were the Greek and Latin names for the sean. Before producing the passages in which they occur, we will present to the reader an account of this kind of net as now used by the fishermen on the coast of Cornwall (England) for catching pilchards, and as described by Dr. Paris in his elegant and pleasant Guide to Mount's Bay and Land's End.

"At the proper season men are stationed on the cliffs to observe by the color of the water where the shoals of pilchards are to be found. The sean is carried out in a boat, and thrown into the sea by two men with such dexterity, that in less than four minutes the fish are inclosed. It is then either moored, or, where the shore is sandy and shelving, it is drawn into more shallow water. After this the fish are bailed into boats and carried to shore. A sean is frequently three hundred fathoms long, and seventeen deep. The bottom of the net is kept to the ground by leaden weights, whilst the corks keep the top of it floating on the surface. A sean has been known to inclose at one time as many as twelve hundred hogsheads, amounting to about three millions of fish."