Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-09-24
Maine MaCkerel.

AuAduAcLOu " d. lupEoSSeu w tuc Sill
gular procession moving up the Allan
tic coast every year, and speculated
about it from High Head as if from a
peculiarly advantageous point for OBJ.
serving pageant passing wholly under
his eye. 1t could be made fine dec,
orative frieze or" he said, "full of
moral lessons BESIDES" 1t could be a
kind of natural history Odyssey or
Nibelungen, or hemicycle of import
ant submarine deeds, for another Della
re che the allegory of the Mackerel on
his way through life, his hopes and his
fears, his virtues and vices, his friends
and his enemies, his triumphs and dis
asters.
The mackerel began their migrate II,
he learned, or at least the first were
taken ty the fleet, which went south
after them, in deep water, about sixty
miles below the capes of Delaware,
cary in March. They arrived on the
Maine coast about the first of June,
followed closely by the vessels, which
were presently strung all along from
Cape Ann to Cape Sable. Late in Sep
TENDER they began to work to the south
ward, not schooling on their return, and
by the middle Of November hardly one
would be found to the northward of
Boston Bay. This, at least, was the
habit Of our American mackerel, which
were looked upon as distinct nation,
with no utilization with that which
comes in over the Grand Banks, spawns
on the Magdalcn Islands, and remains
in Canadian waters all winter. They
seemed to come up along the coast, and
strike inshore all about the same time,
and the first notice of their arrival was
often their az pearance in the weirs on
the bays and inlets.
An advance qua d preceded the main
body often by week or ten days. A
mysterious live seed, of which Middle
ton could only hear that it was red, ex-
cessively hot, like pepper, and foated
in the water, was thought to be the
mackerel's principal inducement to
come into the bays. He was passion
ately fond of it, and when it was ripe
he was there, though it was most
reckless dissipation, for it was said that
it was so hot that it would burn its way
out of fish in few hours, and it
burned the hands OF the fishermen in
dressing such as had eaten it.
A multitude of smaller marine Great
ures were fond of the red seed also.
The tiny pilot.fish, perhaps kind Of
fugleman for the mackerel, but more
likely his prey, like the rest, came first;
.hsn shoals of herring, shrimp, squid,
menhaden. The round, limpid jelly
fish called the sun.squall, occurring
ati al arnno1x, ri,
to stop the way Of a boat, sought it.
Woe to them all. They can snatch but
furtive Joy; the fierce mackerel fol.
lows them up, devouring them as they
fly. TIE only visible bits Of solidity in
the organism OF the limpid sun.squall
are the few red seeds, which it seems
not even to have the pleasure of digest
ing. The mackerel ruthlessly tears
him in pieces for them, and the sea is
strewn with the remains CT unhappy
sun-squalls.
did the picture stop here, how lit
tie deserving would the mackerel be of
sympathy" unused Middleton. "And
indeed, after all this, no is not one to
call forth too much sympathy in any
event; but the Nemesis tina. pursues
him is terrible. The procession con-
eists OF the mackerel, his prey, and is
enemies. Now here he is, as one might
say, wild young prodigal, in his laced
coat of green and silver, pursuing
every mad whim and selfish pleasure,
and blinded by his folly to the yawning
pitfalls and omens of danger all about
him. Or he may be looked upon as q
Belshazzar sort of person, drunk with
insolent pride, while at the very mo-
ment the Mede and the Persian are bat
tering at the gate. Meme, meme, tekel,
uphG'sia! Thou art found palatable
article by many tastes, and thou shalt
be weighed in the balance. The sinis-
ter shark is on thy track; the porpoise
lunges from the right; dog. fish, blue
fish, black-fsh, from the left; the
msckerel.gull swoops down from over
head; the solemn whale cruises in thy
wake, ready to dive below a school and
blow it into the air, and though pre-
vented by an unfortunate arrangement
Of the jaws from taking in the splendid
gulps that might be imagined, does it
very liberal justice; and lastly comes
the great schooner OF memorable man,
the merchant, to who m all the other
enemies are as nothing, and mares thee
in lots of five hundred barrels in q
day."
A quaint apparent exception, and the
only one, to the universal rule of ra-
pine in the great procession was little
bird somewhat larger than sand piper
the sea- goo SO, so called. 1t sits over
mackerel school, and accompanies it
in its course, whether out of an AMIGA
BILE sentiment of companionship, or as
rival for the mysterious peppery seed,
is not quite certain.-W. II. BISHOP, in
Harper's Magazine.
ALMOND PUDDING.-Taket two ounces
of bread crumbs, one pint cream, one.
half pound pounded almonds. six bit
ter almonds, the yolks of seven eggs,
whites of three, six ounces sugar, four
ounces butter. one glass of wine-if
liked. Bring the cream to boiling
point, pour it over the bread crumbs
and let them stand until nearly cold,
khay univ on1 htkfoN a l..