The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-09-06

jaw and look at his feet, which encased IN an
open pair Of carpet slippers but had stockings TO
shroud them from view
81 want to ask you something about the bay men
and their lives and habits-cant you tell me something
about them 2" asked.
''Why, certain Put me In tho witness box and III
tell you everything know; but, you see, you must
crossquestion Inc kind hard AS to get it all out
am something OF doctor myself There's n bottle
wos got fourteen kinds Of roots in and that's my kind
OF n.edicne-dye seer There's fourteen kinds OF roots
in IT, What dye think OF thatp Would you believe IL
nowY You wouldn't would your"
ayes really would l answered. Shut how about
the bay menf"
"oh yes, sir, yes. About the bay men, Is itS Yes
of course Well Pm part OF the story, 'spose Ny
name is Lewis Gordon; from Brookhaven Suffolk
county, | be. I'm bay man, be. We come from
Brookhavcn, Centre Moriches, Sayye Beleport IsliP
Amtyville, Patchogue, Quogue and all over this bay
and IL clear to Rockaway. Seel There's blu
fishing here sometimes in the bay and there's cod fish
ing in winter tmc-very good cod fishing, too, tel
you Then all these smacks that you see around here
they go ahshing for oysters musses sheepshead they
are a little around now. caught one
OF IT,"
FISHING FOR FACTS
"Are there many boats smashed in this bay lshing7"
wen, yes, sure. There's nigh on to ], 200 smacks
and large sloops In the bay in the business See Well
now there's many ~ 600 men and bows that's got
TO man them and make their living that way Some Of
the small and old boats amt worth than 800 to
$500 apiece Now this ERE one that we sit in look
ing around with glance of PRIDE sis worth about $500
although amt got the bill OF sale yet; but III GIT It.
and she's got to have name TO have bill of sale for
her Oh, bless your soul Tll give you all the facts
that you want, only cross-examine me close Think
you are in a coort, We you Ever bin in coort, nowf
Shaugh Yosy So hev / bin there, too You
rght-anybody wants law have all they want OF It.
That's so But when Pm in II stick to It like bull
dog rm in now, and If win get nice little bit Of
property. tell you
Here the old man pulled out very mysterious
looking objects IN the shape of small solid india rub
Der balls with wooden tunnels attached, and also num-
Der of barometers the piece of wood to which
a very decent kind of thermometer fastened
gaZed with awe upon all this preparation and between
the rocking Of the boat the heat of the in the close
cribbed space and his mysterious production OF the
above named articles was not little puzzled.
''PuRsE NETTING"
"Them's for curing near-sightedness and them's for
blindness They $6 SO pair, and the barometer ia
81 so I'm agent for thcm proudly, and sell them
everywhere kin. Yes, sir; I'm now curing Mr.. Rob
nson down to our place, and tell you I'll fetch him
after twenty seven years. (exultantlyl
"But, said l. chow is it about the bay menu The
old salt, whom began 10 think by this time must BIO
sort OF floating eye and ear infrmary, put away his
'eye cups" as he called them into bag, and re-
sumed-
eyes, sir; the bay men. Open your book again and
question me hard Jest as you had me in coort-thats
what like, and can't tell you any lies dye Well,
now of these boats is worth high 5000 apiece,
and dye see those two sloops over there with top.
masts-thcm black boats well they what call
purse netters; they worth in the neighborhood Of
49, apiece-leasways that's what they cost about,
believe You don't know what purse netting s dc
you? Nor Well I'll tell you. They go out fishing fol
inenhaden or bunkers. Some people down to Keypori
calls them bunkcrs. spose menhaden Is the Indian
name; don't know if 1t Is though. There's four tsh
factories around here for boiling menhaden down into
oil mean. there's four around Fire Island and there's
lots OF them bordering the bay After they git
the oil out they sell the bones to the farmers tor
guano, to fertilize the ground with and IT'S good
fertilizer. All this seaweed that you in and
around the bay Is good fertilizer too They take u
from the water and spread IT, dump 1t the land and
if was not for the seaweed tell you, sir, that the
farmers around here would be in a pretty fight III
sometimes And they dry good deal OF 1t and bleach
1t white on the meadows and make mattresses OF it.
The seaweed sells for from fifty cents 70 dollar load
and they take in dump carts and pull the spray OUT
and them you see, you have OF it load the farm in
a twinkng good many OF the sloops go outside
catching fish in the Atlantic when 1t amt too rough
You laugh at the shape OF this boat. She is tho
only Keel boat know OF all over the bay because there
is shallow water in the bay that they have got
To have centre boards and when boats going aground
they jst up centre board and there she all right But
this ere boat will live anywhere that seagull lives,
she Is IN old one"
GETTING OIL.
'How do the purse meters divide their profltsf"
"We you see, here is the fish factories Do you see
that white soop there alongside of the black purse
netterr Yesg She is what they call u 'carraway;'
the purse Meter catches the fish and the carraway
takes en of to the factory. There's two men to each
carraway' The men that catch tho fish don't own
bit OF their boats The fish factories furnish the boat
and tackle and canvas, and when there is catch the
get two-thirds of it. and the fish factory keeps the
other third of 1t for furnishing tackle and boat They
fish all over, and there's factories at Shelter Island
Greenport and other places the north shore There's
factories down to the other end OF the island, and al
Barren Island. The boats come In every night afteI
their cruise, and have them getting Inc nhaden
down New York Bay around Staten Island. was former
~ of the sloop yacht Bonita and she fast
and won many that they had to rule her out
have catch of 300 900 menhaden in one haul by
one soop, and they fetch from 81 to So thousand
purse Is generally about 100 fathoms length,
600 feet and is about so feet in depth That will cost
$780, and it is made OF the best knit twine. They
make the twnc down in Baltimore and they called
purse acts because they are made like purses, spose
ished with the first purse net that ever hshed
with in the State of New York down to Jamesport L. L.
in the year 1882, and 1t was made by futile Petty
I'm telling you the truth. Why long time ago. When
Mr.. Matsell, who used to be Chief of Police in your
city came down TO Centre Moriches TO hunt and he
used to board at Centre Morches at Mr. Pattersons
he used to send Tor me always TO go with him.
SHELL PIsH QUESTION.
"When they catch mussels here the bay they gen.
orally sell them to iertiliZe farms at live cents bshel
They amt much good for anything else that know OF
although spose people likes TO eat them picked
billed The hard clans they get in the bay are sold
by the that dredge for them In small boats at 81 to
So thousand. They are first class for chowder and
the like but OF they bigger and different cat
ing from the Little Neck clans. But we've got the
finest oysters IN the world in this bay slr the real
Blue Point and all other oysters are away behind old
Blue Point tell you. Here the old fellow became
quite enthusiastic and his eye glcamed The time for
planting the Blue Point oysters Is any time
between the 10Th Of June and the 10Th OF
September Why, sir in my town of Brookhaven every
family Is allowed four of oyster bed for every
show Whoever sends fish oysters to market has to
pay the freight himself These boats that have two
men claiming or fishing or oystering generally make
So to $40 day good many of the fishermen have
small farms and thoy raise garden truck and vegeta
blcs when they amt out fishing have farm myself
in Suffolk county and raise vegetables aud spuds do.
| have got good deal of caulihowcr, and one big
year raised $500 out OF one acre OF cauiilOwer when
1t What do you think OF thatY ! sent II
to Mr. Duryea in the New York market There
has been high 1920 got for
OF cau1ower An of tomatoes
among the fishermen feches maybe $500 $500 for
the acre; mean early tomatoes of Then the
fishermen sometimes get 100 to $50 bushels of potatoes
out of an Then consider myself pretty big on
cabbagcs have raised g. 600 head OF cabbage on an
acre, and spose they fetched about cents heal
So you that between fishing and farming bay man
isn't likely to starvc anyway"
II have heard" said 10 the old man, who was now
nearly at the end of his story of the bay men, that
fishermen alike all the world over no matter what
language they speak and that they marry among them
selves and have local supersons, and that they eat
and drink alike everywhere. How do you account foi
TINT ~ asked