[Sidenote: II 222]
[Sidenote: II 232]
The “howker” was used not only as a fishing boat but also as a
_Haringjager_ (herring hunter), a boat which is sent to get the first
catch of the fleet.
The “howker” was also used as a _Buisconvoyer_ (convoy for bushes); it
was then armed with several guns and intended to defend the “bushes”
against the enemy. Various circumstances contributed to the complete
disappearance of the “bushes” and the “howkers”; these are the more and
more severe demands laid on this traffic, the combination of herring
fishing with that for cod and haddock on one and the same boat, the use
of cotton nets which are much lighter than the old ones so that casting
the nets is less important on the boat itself. All these causes brought
about the creation of boats with fine lines, so that there existed, in
1886, but one howker for 8 sloops and 181 luggers. The sloop and the
lugger, which followed it came to us from France.