In die maritime districts on gjje north-east aide of die island, a very
large »proportion jaf it he (population its .Employed in die fisheries, and so
moderate ace the seasons, (that .-exceptperhaps for a few days:at thechange
■of the monsoon, they are seldom interrupted by the weather.
The sea fish is taken .either by die aagt, in stakes (mtfiSf), or with die hook
and l in e th e smort nqnsiderabfe quantity as of (course procured by means
.of the two fipemer, generally distinguished by the terjn mciycmg, whence
prahii mayang, fishing-boat. The whole apparatus of thé hook and foe is
.called punching, the usual term for angling among the Malayus. The
fishing-boats quit the shore at .about three or -four o’clock in the morning,
and .ase driven oast by the land breeze bnyswtd. sight before daylight. At
about poon they .are .seen uetnajnmg .with the sea breeze, and .generally reach
the shore (by Jaro In ttiie afternoon. The stakes along the whole .ihf the
northern coast, wih&oyer the banks and projecting land admit, are very
extensive.; they arc often feed in several fathom water, and constit.n*p a
very important property. They are usually closed in the night.
f$ets.#re (principally .made .of rand, though sometimes of gadang’an, and
ewen .ef iOoften. They ^ steeped in an igfenon, which nfooidy darkens
their colour, but is considered essentially to .eontribute 3p their strength.
Fish that is »ot eaten .or disposed *£ while ftesh, is salted and dried in the
sun,nr smoke-dried at a short distance from a fire, and in that state forms
an extensive article .of internal commerce. Besides the abundance of fish
thus obtained from the sea, extensive tracts of country, salt marshes, and
inlets of the sea, have in several parts of the island béai converted into
fish-ponds ( tâmba). These ponds .are to be found in most of tile low maritime
districts : those a t Qrésik, which are the mort extensive, appear to
have been first established during the visit of "one of the êarly Mahometan
princes of the island in the fifteenth century. The bândengis generally
considered as the richest and highest-flavoured fish known in these seas :
the young fry are "taken in the sea, and transferred to these ponds, where
they grow and fatten fqr seven months, when they are fit for the table.
An annual supply of young fish from the sea is found necessary to keep
up the «teek the itanks ; and* whether from a desire to raise the value of
the fish so -obtained in them, or otherwise, the natives generally affirm,
that the fish rarely attains its full size in the sea. The extent and value of
thèse nurseries for the fish may be estimated from the rent paid for those at
Çüpçsikj, whiçh at© the property pf government,
The
Thé, river fish are taken by a variety o f methods: one is to throw a
number of branches of trees into a deep part of -thé -fiver-1; here the fish
collect;'they'are then1 'surrounded by stakes, t- or • the branches are taken
out, and the'fish easily caughtr,t this method.'is termed rûhvpon. Bâfribu
fences are sometimes thrown across they fiÿef^ at night, and so constructed
that the fish are easily entrapped as-thèÿ pass down the stream : ' this method
ivs called pasang wadong. The rivers and ponds afe frequently dragged by
nets of different sizes/ ^he^èocutès tndicus, and ' otW^ritoxiCating drugs,
are sometimes thrown'into ttaffifef, after which the fish are found floating
on the surface and easily taken ; this method, termed tuba, is prohibited on
large rivers : 'when the fish are afterwards driven down the river by a
number of men into a snare laidWow;4hè usual term i^j'mâproHg. In the
western districts, afishihgpartyof^ ls description’affords a very favourite
amnsement on great occasions. A time is selected whéfi the rîvesr is mode-
ratelyhlow ; temporary stands made of, tué trunks of small trees or stout
bambus are then thrown across, each consisting of three piles, fastened
together at the top and expanding below, the bottoms- being pointed so as
to: fix in^the ground. On à small stage on each, just above the surface of
■%e water, are piled a féwkïonès, by which they are' steadied white the
- nurrdht:' is ' allowed- a free course ' below. The piers or stages thus formed,
answer well for the construction of a temporary bridge over the rocky or
stony béd of the most irregular river. A coàm matting, "made of bâmbu or
K 0me other material, is then carried fforii one1 to thè^othef^sb as to shut the
^current in within a marrow space, across which a temporary platform and
shedfethföwri, with a’ slojfing floor rising above the s#fa’ce of the water,
^Twhfere the party is assembled, The drug having been thrown into the
river, a considérable distance higher up several hundred ' people now-'enter
the river, and driving the half-intoxicated fish before them, they home
floundering one after the other on^te- Pârnbu stage, to the no smalt amusement
of the party collected, fish of a cbnsidéfapué^ size literally jumping
into their laps. On these occasions, whengrae ente rta inmen tg iv en to
Europeans, a great concourse of' people Attend, a feast is prepared, and
the wild and antic music and dance of the,, mofotmneÿs^ performing On
the ânklang and rude drum, give great pecufoxity and zist to the amusement.
Fish are sometimes striiek at night by torch light, both at sea and in
1, .the rivers ; but this ipethod is not very general. ■
2 B 2 Pearls