Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1880-05-13
Chum ming for RluefiMll.

81 tell you, said Andrew Sammis, q
Long Island fisherman, sits no fun fishing
In the bay or outside in the winter. OF
course we fish all winter for cod. About
the first of November they begin to run,
and we regularly fish for them until May.
When the cod come the fishermen go down
to Wiginlet, over the beach, and build
huts. Then whenever the weather is at all
favorable they 90 outside. There are as
many as thirty boats ont at once sometimes.
They fish as the old smackers used to fish,
with hooks every six feet ON the line, let
ting the fish hook themselves. The smack
ers are those that 90 out in large smacks,
and stay days, and sometimes weeks. They
put their catch into wells, as they call them,
and take them to Fulton market alive.
There is much rivalry between them and
the yawl fishers The latter do not keep
their fish alive, and 80 when they take
them to market ii s necessary to sell the
dead fish first. This hurts the business of
the smackers, and last winter they tried 10
get q law passed that no dead cod fish
should be sold in Fulton market, but they
| couldn't get it through. tell you, yawl
fishing Is hard work. Sometimes we can't
go out il is perhaps 30 cold that ;your lines
freeze the minute thcys leave the water.
They have to be handled bare-handed, and
so frozen fingers follow. freeze my fin
gers regularly every winter"
BY this time the fishing grounds, about q
mile north of the Surf hotel, were reached
There were already several boats at anchor,
and Sammis's sloop was soon added to the
ha h.
''chumming," q method entirely new to
the writer. He watched the fisherman
and saw how it was done. First, Sammis
sharpened rusty hatchet and a rusty
butcher knife on piece of a brick. Wheth-
er all ''chummers' use brick or not is not
known Sammis did. Withthe knife he sliced
piece off of one of the bunkers, and cut this
piece into small chunks. This was for the
hooks, and the hooks were baited. Then,
drawing rude chopping board from the
hold, he placed it by the boats side, and,
placing bunker therein, he proceeded to
chop and mangle il until il was fine. Ii did
not make a pleasant looking mess This
was ''chum." A handful was thrown over
board often, and the tide carried 1t off. The
hooks were thrown in, and they, too, float
ed back with the chum.
''The main thing" Sammis said, hold
ing his line with one hand and cutting
'chum" with the other, 'e;s TO keep the
trail of chum unbroken. The fish are soon
attracted and follow 1t and feed on il,
There, you've got bite; pull him along,
don't give him any slack; that's right.
With immense pride the writer yanked
his fish, which was very gamy and made
all the fight possible, now jumping clean out
of the water, then coming head first for the
boat. The hook was baited and again
thrown out, Sammis meanwhile cutting
''chum" and holding his line in his teeth.
A savage bluefish jerked the line from his
teeth and made off with the bait unharmed.
The writerpulled In another and lost two.
Sammis, with cutting bait and pulling out
fish. had his hands full. In less than an
hour twenty-eight handsome fish were
struggling in the boat. Suddenly they stop
ped biting.
'It's slack water" Sammis said ''They
won't bite for ali hour or two, until the
tide sets out pretty strong. they're nice
fish, amt theyf But they are perfect gor-
mandizers. They'll eat just as long as there
is anything TO eat. I've seen lot of blue
fish get into school of bunkers, and the
water all around would be red with blood.
A bluefish would catch bunker and shake
him all TO pieces, as a dog shakes rats, and
they would bite and snap into the school
apparently out of pure deviltry. But we're
going TO have more nasty weather; the rain
amt over yet If you say so well run back.
Pity it's so stormy. Come down some
pleasant day and I'll give you all the sport
you want