(1) For bait the soft clam (Mya arenaria) is generally preferred, and but few quahaugs are used for this purpose.
(2) The shell was once prized by the Indians for their wampum; now it is occasionally used for ornamental purposes.
(3) Oystermen use it for cultch when they can get nothing better; though more fragile shells are usually preferred, so that the masses of oyster "set" can be easily broken apart.
(4) Shell roads are occasionally made from quahaug shells. Possibly lime could be profitably obtained.
History of Quahaug Industry in Massachusetts.
South of Plymouth harbor quahaugs have always been plentiful along the shores of Cape Cod, Buzzards Bay and the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. Frequent shell heaps show that the Indians were accustomed to use this mollusk as a food, and even indulged in an occasional clam bake. Colonial records show us that the early colonists were not slow in learning to "tread out" this mollusk from the mud flats. The shells of the quahaug were much prized by the Indians for wampum beads, because of their purplish color.
Although reckoned inferior by many to the soft clam (Mya arenaria), the quahaug was dug for home consumption for years in Massachusetts, and but little attempt was made to put it on the market. The commercial quahaug fishery started on Cape Cod, about the first of the nineteenth century, growing in extent until about 1860. From 1860 to 1890 the production remained about constant. The production in 1879 for Massachusetts, as given by A. Howard Clark, totaled 11,050 bushels, valued at $5,525. It is only in the last fifteen to twenty years that the actual development of the quahaug fishery has taken place. The present production of Massachusetts is 144,044 bushels, valued at $194,687. To the popular demand for the "little neck" can be attributed the rapid development of the quahaug industry during the last ten years. This development has furnished employment for hundreds of men, and has given the quahaug an important value as a sea food. What it will lead to is easily seen. The maximum production was passed a few years ago, constant overfishing caused by an excessive demand is destroying the natural supply, and there will in a few years be practically no commercial fishery, unless measures are taken to increase the natural supply. Quahaug farming offers the best solution at the present time, and gives promise of permanent success.
The following statistics, taken from the United States Fish Commission reports, show the rapidity of the development of the quahaug fishery:—
| Date. | Bushels. | Value. | Price (Cents). |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1879, | 11,050 | $5,525 | 50.0 |
| 1887, | 35,540 | 21,363 | 60.0 |
| 1888, | 26,165 | 14,822 | 56.5 |
| 1898, | 63,817 | 50,724 | 79.5 |
| 1902, | 106,818 | 131,139 | 124.0 |
| 1905, | 166,526 | 288,987 | 155.0 |
Not only has there been an increase in production, but also an increase in price, as can be seen from the above table, which shows that the price has more than doubled between 1888 and 1902. This increase in price has alone supported a declining fishery in many towns, making it still profitable for quahaugers to keep in the business, in spite of a much smaller catch. The advance in price is due both to the natural rise in the value of food products during the past twenty-five years and also to the popular demand for the "little neck," or small quahaug.