The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-05-30

An Old Fisherman on Fishing.


Yes" said an old fisherman at Glou-
ceslcr, I'm an old shaddcr or lwouldn't
be here awaitin for shad flies. The
seasons commencin' and we're git
tin 'em from Caroliny now. t11.50 a
piece and SO ON up and down. accordin'
TO size. Shad don't Git up here af0ro
the last OF April You'll know it by
the shsd flies. just "a soon rs you see
them buzzin' around you'll smell the
fried roe. Yes, used to be regular
professional shaddcr. Why, bless you,
Eve been a-shaddin' UP the Amazon
River. but the regular shad business is
on our coast. and if you'll git on the
old Dominion steamers bound for Flor
ida in the Fall you'll find the steerage
full of shadders goin' down for the
season--rough lookin' men to see. but
the solid grit of Jersey, Philadelphy
and CONNECTICUT, and, though they go
half rates. they often have a thousand
dollars worth of seins and shad nets
aboard. They divides up generally,
some goin To the St. Marys and the
rest to the st. Johns. This is about as
far South rs they git, rs just below
there is no regular way of shippin'
North. Shad fishin' in the St. Johns
commences about December |, and |
can tell you it's lively there for few
months.
''Shad are curious fish and hard to
git at but I've seen 'em rise to'a fly
just like trout. The Government has
spent good many thousand dollars in
trying to introduce 'em into Connecti-
ont NJ Tor xuh Of
found to some extent, but mills and
factories OF various kinds drive 'cm
out. There's one kind of shad called
the Gizzard, that the first ever caught
nearly scairt the life out of me. got
little seine round about 200, and the
minute l got 'em above water there
commenced the durndest whirrin' and
whizzin' YOU ever heard. First L
thought somethin' was aflyin' over
head, but it was them fish. every one
of 'em talkin' away for dear life. |
felt more like chuckn' of EN- back.
You can tell 'cm by the spine on their
backs. But the finest shad in the
world, continued the old man, getting
up and opening n box, sis the Jew
fish. There is one of the scales,' he
added, handing out magnificent scale
as large as the open palm and gloam-
ing like new silver dollar. "There
amt one man out of ten but what
reckons that the silver is poured on to
it; but it amt, and is as natural as
life. But the iSh--why just imagine
a fish six to eight feet long, shaped like
a shad and .blazin' all over with them
silver scales. When they Jump out of
q I, "a L
light coming through - keyhole.
They're so powerful that there's only
one man in the United States that has
ever shown the spirit TO catch one with
a rod and line. His name is Jones and
he lives in Philadelphia In the st.
Johns, when Il jew fish takes hold,
why. you want TO haul in the anchor
and let go. and he'll haul YOU for all
he's worth. I've seen one tip over q
small boat. And jump! Why, they
Jump into the air twenty feet. No,
they amt up TO shad in " of taste,
the flesh bein' little coarser. but YOU
wouldn't call Jew flesh bad, | can tell
you.
South American shad were II shad
The natives call 'em Picunras and they
shoot them with bow and arrows. The
first time | ever saw EN- | was up the
Amazon on tradin' schooner and
when we worked up into narrow
branch OF river we came to sort of
village of fishermen. Secin' one of
the boats goin' out asked if couldn't
60 along. They didn't have sign Of
a hook-nothin' but bow and arrows.
They pulled or padded for about AN
hour, bringin' the boat into large
shallow lake, and it wasn't long aforc
they sighted q fish by the ripple on the
water. In another minute one of the
men had put an arrow into it, and
fish that I'll take my aflidavy was
twelve foot long lept into the air and
came down with such crash you'd
thought the waves would have tipped
the canoe over, but off it went, we af-
ter it, and the chap in the bow send
in in arrows whenever hegot chance,
Until four or five was stickin' out of
the water. After while we got along
side and they put spear into it and
held on by the rope, and the way that
fish towed us was caution. / thought
the cuss never would give up, but at
last they got him into shoal water.
And how do you suppose they got him
into the boat? Why, all hands tum-
bled out, got overheard. and the canoe
was sunk and the fish floated in and
then she was baled out. That beat
all the labor saving machines / ever
see. Them yellor chaps was actually
too lazy to lift the fish. 1t was a rouser,
though, and weighed nigh on to 500
pounds, with scales like steel armor.
They never git up this way-it's too
far-but United States shad Is good
enough for me- he added, in con-
clusion. Philadelphia Times.