The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1873-08-09
ELKTON FROM CHICAGO.

The correspondent of the Chicago 1ri-
June, George Alfred Townsend, who fire.
quently pays Elkton visit, has recently
been here, looking up items about the Post
master General, who tells his Western
readers is the coming man for the next
President Townsend, like most Bohem-
ians, has large fund of imagination, but
some times tells the truth, or predicts what
comes true. His description of Elkton is
rather jolly, and we give it below.
The town, known in early American his
tory as the
"HEAD OF ELK"
has population of about 1900 inhabit-
ants, and is the shire town or capital of
Cecil County, the extreme northern end of
the eastern shore of Maryland,-a locality
familiar to gourmands on account of its
being the habitat of the oyster, the terra
pin, and the canvas-back duck. Although
the town is said to have improved vastly
during the past twenty years, it is as slow
and sleepy place as one could well find to
spend a broiling July day in; and a strang
er, taking as an index Of its average enter
prise the dozen or more liquor-saloons that
ornament its streets, and their numerous
patrons, jumps to the conclusion that its
principal article of traffic is tanglefoot
whisky. Being the county seat, it of
course has Jail and courthouse. The
former has been recently built, and is de-
cidedly the finest building in the town;
while the latter, which was erected in 1891,
if the inscription Oh the vane that orna-
mems its cupoa is not apocryphal, is an
uncomfortable, inconvenient barn-likc sort
IF ,r,ln ifan how
been 4 wooden-headed fellow, who enter
tanned very unique ideas of the temple in
which justice was to be administered
This vane, by the way, which is a huge
wooden fish, was a symbol of the great sta
pie of the country at that time; for the old
inhabitants will tell you, with 4 sigh, that
the
sHAD AND HERRING
that used to be caught in immense quanti-
ties in the Susquehanna, Elk, and North
East rivers, were the largest, fattest, and
sweetest caught in any of the rivers of
America. Forty years ago, the people
hereabouts all say, fish were so abundant
at the numerous fisheries on these rivers
that shad sold at 50. 50 hundred, and her
ring at % cents a barrel; and, when the
carts and wagons that thronged there dur
ing the fishing season had obtained and
paid for the quantity they wanted, the
fishermen were so anxious to get rid of
their surplus stock that they would keep
pilng on 10 the overloaded teams as long
as a fish would stick; and thousands Of fine
shad and herring were every spring scat
tered over the lands of those living near
the fisheries, as a cheap and good manure.
Such wanton waste is, however, always
followed by its legitimate punishment, and
fish are now SO scarce in all these rivers,
that, unless they are artificially stocked,
and protected by legislative enactments,
the waters of Maryland will be completely
exhausted of fish in few years. Even
now, shad sell readily on the fishing shores
at $25 hundred, and herring at 81 hum
dred, while the alewives, or I" old wives"
as the natives call a species of shad that
used to be considered too poor and bony
for good manure, sell rapidly at five and
ten cen. S each; and such refuse as mullets,
catfish, perch, yellow ncds, &c, are in
brisk demand at fine prices.