The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-08-19
Flshlnw UP wheeling Greek
How an EdlIor did It.

The local editor OF the Washington
Reporter has been fishing In the upper
waters Of Wheeling and tells about It,
After describing his trip hlLherward
over the raging Hempfeld, he says:
Reaching Wheeling, we found our
jolly fisher friends Ia readiness with
tackle, nets, buckets, baskets, old cloth.
90, and three days raLlous Of biscuit,
fried chicken and eLcsteTRs. The first
plunge we made out Of that city Of wa
teTmelons and smoke, was up a bill T.,
rising 10 the extent OF mile or therea-
bouts. II was frlghtful climb, and
we hung over the rolling mills and fac.
tories somewhat like q balloon car In
mid air. For sixteen miles we travelled
up one hill and down another with q
rise and fall az regular aB n ship over q
blllowy sea. We never did see such a
country In all our life before, and we
trust In Divine Goodness never 10 be-
hold its like again. All the territory
there, Is set precisely on end, and you
have the incalculable advantage OF be.
Ing an American and Chlnaman al
the same tlme-wRlkiug upon both
sides OF the earth. The productions
OF the soil are principally black
berries and tow.headed children. We
saw hundreds OF the former and
at least thirteen carloads OF the
latter. The dwellings are mainly Of a
style OF architecture peculiar 10 the
country, and possess uniformity Of
appearance which is exceedingly
pralseworthy. II is an elegant ooun.
try 10 live In for people who like to
gossip without being bored by visiting.
You can stand at your house door and
talk with five or six Of your nelghbors
any time you desire 1t, yet II you un-
dertake TO pay them n visit you must
travel perhaps eight or nine miles.
Sheep, cattle, &c., are kept occasional.
~, at rare intervals. We understand
they are let down by ropes during the
day to Craze on the hillsldes, and are
drawn up at night. The people are all
descendants OF Nlmrod, we should
Judge-'mighty hunters no doubt-as
they all wear hunting Shirts or an
anomalous kind of o garment called a
red wamus.' at about the highest
point on our journey, we should guess
that we were at least seven Thousand
feet above the level OF our Catfish.
AT that point we encountered toll
gatel Shade OF the Plank Road only
think OF III A toll.gate with the regu-
lar stereotyped well sweep on the top
OF mountain, away out Of Gods
country on route Travelled In all
likelihood only by the wild gazelle
or the dun deer; pressed by no other
foot than the raw cowhide encased
one OF the still wilder and dunner
West Virginia squatter; marked by
no vehicle but the trail Of his
dog.wood-soled sled; on which the
hand OF mortal man had never laid
mattock or shovel; did anybody
ever hear Of the like since the days Of
Scipio Africanus or any other man
We inquired the 'damages,' In the
language Of the country, and we're TOLD
by a gushing damsaI with bare white
head and bare black feet and no dress
to speak of-whose lImpld eyes OF q
bass tishy hue had seen the black ber-
ries Of some fourteen summers-thRt Il
was -four cents We paid our nIckles
and took our departure. The creek,
which was to be the scene OF our pIsca.
torial exploits, was reached AT last af.
ter every bone In our bodies had been
driven In like so many wooden pins
Into a new frame building, and the lirst
object OF our care was TO pay our de.
yours to the biscuit and chicken fxIns,
sitting for the purpose piCturesQuely In
q romantic spot on the bank OF the
stream, while the locusts In the trees
and the bull frogs In the neighboring
swamps accompanied our repRst with
strains OF sweet music. The pic mic
ended, we addressed ourselves at once
10 the real pleasures OF the trip. We
Overhauled two buckets full Of unoC.
Tending minnows by means OF a net,
and on the principle Of set a thief 10
catch y thief We hooked the little fish
to catch the big ones. II was murder.
GUS work, but we had come 10 fish, and
this was the way TO do 1t. The costume
o! Wheeling Creek fisherman Is pic
turesque In the extreme. It consists
generally OF three.iourths OF a shirt,
half q pair of pantaloons, one shoe and
part Of boot. and very little hat. Il
was the uniform Of the Light Brigade,
without doubt, and when we donned
1t, we felt very much as II we were
taking Mr.. Tennyson at his word and
going
Into the mouth Orwell.
sure enough. It's great fun and no
mistake; wadlng up to the waist In
tepid water; 1oundering over stones
and through mudholes; tripping every
now and then over a long root and
measuring your full length In the aque.
Gus element; scrambling about with
your shoes full OF sand and gravel,
doing involuntary penauce like a de-
voted Catholic, With occasionally n
belligerent crawfish lacking himself ON
your big toe; II all this 10 not SNORT
then we don't know what constitutes
It. Surely It is worth the Journey OF
sixteen miles by air line and thIrtV. five
by actual measurement 10 enjoy Izaak
Walton's Idea oflnexpressible pleasure,
Well we hsh0d hard and d0votedly
up stream and down, from the bank
and In The middle Of the channel, We
coquetted the fish with our lines and
made our POOR little mInnow "danco
jnber" for their especial attraction, bal
for all that they wouldn't bite al our
bate. Our more fortunate companions
were pulling them out on every side.
great big fellows too, but not solitary
inny scoundrel would swallow our
hook. Nevertheless we come TO fish
and determined 10 do II. Our perse.
verance was surely worthy OF better
reward. On the third day we hauled
out Bunhsh three and q half inches
long, by actual measurement. II was
doubtless an accident as It did not han.
pen again. although encouraged by our
success We stood all day long In the
boiling sun waiting for another bite,
Disguised at last weBet our rod against
q tree and devoted our talents from that
time forth to angling for black berries,
at which we were vastly more success.
iql, % the bosom Of our shirt can am.
ply testify.
Fortunately I'VE IdidJ not have to
camp out o fate which In that land OF
reptiles and 'varmlnp OF every kind,
would have been very undesirable,
we made headquarters Ut q farm house,
and the fish which our companions
caught and We didn't, were luxurious.
ly associated with mutton cooked In a
manner peculiar to Marshall county,
stewed clIrons, black berries, Ec., and
Of night we slept In beds Of the 81 Yle Of
those In which our great grandmother d
snoozed-so high that Il required q
special talent Tor climbing 70 enable
one 10 get In. On Saturday we packed
our traps and started, 'hbmewaTd
bound. Determining 10 see as much
OF the country rs possible, we Rtruc ok