bait was very plentiful and caught with spears.

The lobsters were placed in cars at that time, after having been
"plugged" to keep them from injuring each other. The plugs were almost
1-1/2 inches long, flat on one side, round on the other, and with a
sharp point. Plugging has since been discontinued, as the trifling
injury the lobsters did each other was nothing compared to the value
of cans of meat spoiled by one of these pine plugs being boiled with
it.


[Illustration: The steam smack _Mina and Lizzie_ landing her cargo at
Portland]


[Illustration: Fleet of lobster boats in harbor at York Island]



THE FISHING-GROUNDS.

It is difficult to estimate the comparative value of the grounds
in the State, owing to the movements of the lobsters. In the early
spring, in April or May, as the waters in the bays and rivers warm up,
the lobsters come into the comparatively shallow waters. They remain
here until late in the fall, going back to the ocean or deep waters
of the bays in either October or November. They love to congregate on
rocky bottom, and pots set on such bottom will frequently make large
catches, while those on sandy or muddy ground will catch almost
nothing. In the early years of the fishery they came in very close in