Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1882-10-25
SEIECT.
How Silad are Caught.


The working of the great net was de
cldedly interesting, and was witnessed
by some three hundred people Th,
first drift was made on the food tide
soon after twelve O'Clock. Forty stal
wart, big-armed fellows, nearly all o.
them darkies, wearing rubber boots
reaching to their hips, began, with
merry song and banter, to get the 460
fathom net on board a twenty-five.
cared barge about eleven o'clock The
boat, built especially for the purpose, is
broad of beam, and in the stern is a
wide platform, on which the net was
neatly coiled, with the floats and
sinkers on either side. A land line,
leading from the extreme upper part of
the net, was then made fast to capstan,
and the dusky crew were ready to
make the first venture. Captain Stew
art, veteran fisherman, who has entire
charge of the Howell fishery, took his
place at the tiller and gave the order to
go, and, as the rowers bent to their
work, they reminded one, with their
Cleopa tra's barge, with a good-natured.
wheather beaten Marc Anthony seated
in the place of honor
A stiff or-northwest breeze was
blowing, and the water was "choppy,"
but the strong arms sent the boat stead
lily forward to the northwest. As she
moved the net was paid out oyer
roller in the stem, the sinkers went to
the bottom of the river, and the floats
bobbed On the waves. Three hundred
yards out and the experienced tillerman
began gradually changing the barge's
course Her head was turned down
stream and then shoreward, describing
an irregular half circle AS she neared
the beach the man jumped into the
water and carried line, attached to
the other end of the net, ashore. A
stout draft horse was hitched to this,
the land line was unfastened from the
capstan and bitcbed to another horse,
and the hauling in began. AS the
floats approached the shore sixteen
men stood ready at each end of the net
to seize it, and as they did so the
horses were taken off; and the men
wading out, nearly waist deep, slowly
dragged the great multitude of meshes
toward the land
Eight men pulled in the bottom of
the net, and the same number attended
ed to the top. This part of the task
probably required the greatest exertion
for the fisherman, each with loop of
rope oyer his left shoulder with the
bottom of it pinned to the upper rope
of the net, bent back and pulled with
might and main. As the belly" Of |
the net grew smaller and came nearer
the interest Of the spectators increased.
They crowded close to the water, all
anxious to catch the first glimpse Of the
captives Then the market |
boat, deep hulled affair, used to re-
ceive the catch, was rowed in close to
shore, and the fishermen gradually |
brought the net nearer and nearer to
the shallow water. A sort of semicircle
was formed, and as the noundering
mass came into sight the darkies began
crying "Shad shad shad O!
shad o. O-o-o-o, shad, o! Whether
this peculiar cry, chanted in a solemn,
lugubrious tone, awed the fish or not,
is uncertain, but they certainly stopped
apparently in utter aston
After the ubiquitous small
boy had secured all the small fish he
could crowd into his collective pockets
the crowd slowly dispersed, apparently |
well satisfied that the Inauguration of
the season had been Gshy success. A
second drift was made on the young
ebb," the result being nearly two hun
dred shad The hauls will now go on
five times during every
twenty-four hours-PhiLa. Press.