(1) "_Treading._"--The early settlers in Massachusetts quickly learned from the Indians the primitive method of "treading" quahaugs, which required no implements except the hands and feet. The "treader" catches the quahaug by wading about in the water, feeling for them with his toes in the soft mud, and then picking them up by hand. Nowhere in Massachusetts is it used as a method of commercial fishery. (2) _Tidal Flat Fishery._--Often quahaugs are found on the exposed tidal flats, where they can sometimes be taken by hand, but more often with ordinary clam hoes or short rakes. Owing to the scarcity of quahaugs between the tide lines, this method does not pay for market fishing, and is only resorted to by people who dig for home consumption. (3) _Tonging._--In most parts of Buzzards Bay and in a few places on Cape Cod quahaugs are taken with _oyster tongs_. This method is applicable only in water less than 12 feet deep, as the longest tongs measure but 16 feet. Four sizes of tongs are used, 8, 10, 12 and 16 feet in length. Tonging is carried on in the small coves and inlets, where there is little if any rough water. A muddy bottom is usually preferable, as a firm, hard soil increases the labor of manipulating the tongs, which are used in the same manner as in tonging oysters. (4) _Raking._--The most universal method of taking quahaugs is with rakes. This method is used in every quahaug locality in Massachusetts, each town having its special kind of rake. Four main types of rakes can be recognized:-- (_a_) _The Digger._--In some localities, chiefly in Buzzards Bay, the ordinary potato digger or rake, having four or five long, thin prongs, is used. Usually it has a back of wire netting, which holds the quahaugs when caught by the prongs. As the digger has a short handle of 5 feet, it can be used only in shallow water, where the quahauger, wading in the water, turns out the quahaugs with this narrow rake. This method yields but a scanty return, and is more often used for home consumption than for market. (_b_) _The Garden Rake._--The ordinary garden rake, equipped with a basket back of wire netting, is in more general use in shallow water, either by wading or from a boat, as it has the advantage of being wider than the potato digger. (_c_) _The Claw Rake._--This type of rake varies in size, width and length of handle. It is used chiefly at Nantucket. The usual style has a handle 6 feet long, while the iron part in the form of a claw or talon is 10 inches wide, with prongs 1 inch apart. Heavier rakes with longer handles are sometimes used for deep water, but for shallow water the usual form is the short-claw rake.