The Centre reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1871-1940, 1877-02-08
FISHING THROUGH THE ICE.
tommHnits OF TishrrmrH IIViHK on the
Ice OF saginaw Has.

| visited BAY City few DAYS ago.
SAYS Detroit Free Press correspondent
and learned that the fishing season had
fairly commenced. aud that fishing par
ties were daily going out b. the bay with
their shuntieB and fishing apparatus to
commence their winters work. ! nt
nee applied 10 "a livery stable for on
ycyaucc tu the curious city. ] WAS lu-
formed that il WIS some six uT seven
miles 30 thc fishing grounds, and tuat
the only road by which : could reach
them was uu the ice OH the river. Was
assured that the river roam s.as perfectly
safe. that thc ice WAS about eighteen
inches IN thickness.
The first fishing shGuty / found about
IA mile above the mouth of the river, and
in tins urlEhburhood we've perhaps ii
dozen, being ali al about ule same
make und size, about siN feet square,
high enough for man tu stand up in,
covered with IA roof aud built ON run
ueTs 80 as t. be easily moved rom place
tu place, Hs the owner might desire d
small stove, and blankets for sleeping,
forms also an important part Of the
outfit The material mostly used IN the
construction of the hhautirs Is thin
strips Of, timber lined with thick build
ing palz.r. Near the first group of
shanti,s, and ou the hipn road o. the
bay, stands IA new, rough .uurd build
ing. about twelve feet hy sixteen Get,
built also on runners and labeled over
the door. saloon" Immediately after
passing this group and the saloon the
road leaves the river channel aul Iasses
for some distance over au oycrilOWed
marsh to the shores of Saginaw bay.
Here was low. narrow ridge of land,
and from u could be seen As far as the
eye could reach outward toward the lake,
these small abodes Of the fishermen.
coula ,er from this Iu.ut via' ppearel
% br quite "a large bUlMue about a
mile distant from the shore, and started
at brisk pace to reach il. ! found the
distance b. he much greater than It APP
pearvi When once there | discovered
IL 10 be "A hotel, which afilr,is entertain
meut i1I man, aud stahliug and hay for
horses.
The sight from tins point is astnuish-
ing. the ,hmtlrs duttlng the surface Of
tie bay in AN directions as far as / could
see. learned that the number uf these
shautlos ou the bay was about three hun
drcd. that about thirty Wcre arriving and
being put up daily. and that the aver.
age number ul occupants IN each shauty
Vas three men or boys, thus making, in
cludmg the larger buildings and their
occupants. uut less than ]. 600 persons
already living un the ice. Mr.. Fuller
thinks there Will be thrice that number
on the ic, ly the first 81 February, and
that they can remain there IN safety uu-
al the middle of March. Mr.. Fuller
cuuld not give any satisfactory estimate
81 the amount uf fish caught. but the
fact That teams are constantly engaged
IN gathering together and hauling the
fish "a Bay City. whence they are ship
ped to al parts - the State. and that all
these people find il sufficiently profitable
to induce them "a brave tac peril, alj
harlships attending tn, adventurous
life. n proof that the aggregate rryeuu,
uf tAc business must hc gu-c large.
This mode ui fishing Seems o. bee pc
culiAr a. Saginaw bay. Dul was prac ice,
hy the Indians many N.aEs .I.u. bat d
has been hut "a few N,.r, s.aca q hai
grown into such cuuruaa- dimensions