The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1879-03-01
| Copyrighted in 1878. by George Johnsto.
Historical Researches that Quilp
made rs a Bohemian.
General History Of the County from tie
Middle Of the Last Century till the
Revolutionary War.
CHAPTER XNXVI.
CHAPTER XXXVI.

VERY IMPORTANT SOURCE OF WEALTH
TIMEs-sIGNITIcANT sTATIsTICS-AN
EXPERIMENT WITH FISH As \ FER
TILIZER, AC.
The fisheries Of this county have long
been one of its most important sources
of wealth. There can he no doubt that
the Indian tribes that Captain Smith
found residing at the head of the bay
when he explored it in 1908, were at
tracted there, as their ancestors bad NJ
doubt also been, from time immemorial
by the large quantities of fish they
found in the waters of the bay and it-
tributaries, and the facilities ;hst the
numerous branches of the streams emp
tving into it afforded for the easy cap,
ture of the members of the iinnv tribe
The reader Of these sketches will rec.
olcct that when the warlike Susquc-
hannocks (who, there is reason TO he.
lieve, were in the habit of trading with
the French. on the great lakes, before
they were visited bv Smith, and who
probably spent much Of their time far
north of the bay) made the treaty with
the English on the Severn river, in
1902, the. reserved the country between
the North East and Susquehsnna rivers.
Their reason for doing SO was no doubt
to secure the right Of way TO the rich
fishing grounds at the head Of the bav.
and along the northern side of the
North East river In those DAYS and
until their passage was prevented BIZ
the erection of mill dams. the migratory
fish were accustomed to ascend the
streams as far as they found a sufli-
cient depth of water to enable them ,c
swine. The writer distinctly remem-
bers seeing a herring killed hv blow
from stick in the hands of n negro
child, at the bridge across Perch creek.
on the road between Elktsn and Chesa.
peake City, in the Spring of lS41, while
the herring were ascending that stream
in the spawning season. From the
best information that we have been able
to obtain, we are Of the opinion that
the fisheries Of the county, owing 10
the difficulty and expense of procuring
proper selnes, were Of comparatively
little value till some years after the dis
covery and use of the cotton gin. in
1898, had made il practicable to con-
struct seines from cotton Irvine The
writer has been informed by an old
lady, residing in llavre de Grace. who
has reached the great age of ninety
years, that she helped her father twist
the hemp Irvine from which he made
his nets, when she was child of ten
year. of age, and that the seines then
in Use were almost invariably made of
hemp Irvine. They were usually not
more than twenty-five or thirty wards
long. This hemp Irvine was spun on
the old-fashioned spinning wheels. which
were in common use in some parts of
the county, thirty Years ago The
Irvine, after being spun upon them was
doubled and twisted upon larger
wheel of different construction. This
was the common mode Of expression
but, lest some Of our readers should
get the impression that the Irvine was
spun on a WHEEL, we will state that
the wheel was used 10 give a rotary
melton 10 a spool that revolved inside
Of a contrivance called the FLYERS. bv
means OF which the thread was twisted
and afterwards wound upon the spool
Owing 10 the abundance of fish. three
fourths of century ago, the demand
for them could easily he supplied by
seines Of moderate length Longer
senes were not used till some time
early in the present century when the
increased population and facilities for
transportation produced greater de-
mand for fish than could be supplied bv
the short seines formerly iii use. The
work Of constructing seine of the
length Of those now used, would have
zen work Of great magnitude a CEN
tdrv ago, but after the invention of the
cotton gin aad the improved machinery
for spinning cotton had been intro
duced. the work of constructing a seine
many hundreds of ia,homs long was
more easily accomplished than the con
struction Of seiues a. many inches in
length would have been, half century
before
From the best information accessible
We are led to believe that the prosecu,
ton of this branch OF business in our
county was attended with the highest
success during the first twenty-five or
thirty years of the present century /,
probably reached the height Of it, sue
cess during the decade between the
years 1870 and 1880 During this
period, as well As before and afterwards
many Of the residents of Lancaster and
Chester counties were in the habit oI
annually visiting the fisheries along III.
Susquehgnna aud North East rivers
during the fishing season, to obtain
their supply of fish which they took
home and sailed away for use during
the intervening time between one fish
ing season and the next. The Dutch
farmers of Lancaster county came in
their large Conesioga wagons, many ot
them for long distances along nserabI,