Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-01-03
ADax With the Snoncers.

Having a curiosity to learn something o.
the mod'ls operdHdj of sponging, says a cor
respondent of Forest and Stream. | started
one bright morning for the mouth Of the
Anclote The air was soft and balmy, the
surroundings were ali that an enthusiastic
lover Of Florida could wish, the canoe
sped merrily along on the strong ebb tide,
the air vocal with the songs of birds, the
water fretted with the leaping fish. Near
ing the mouth of the river | caught sight
of the spongers' fleet, some forty odd sail
in all, and all haiiing from Key West
Trim, iaunty craft they were, too, all
schooner rugged and varying in size from
five TO twenty tons. Some we're painted
black, some green, but the prevailing color
was white with q marrow red stripe.
Singing out the tautest one of the
feet. the General Hancock, | laid
course to bring ME alongside. 1t was evil
deEt the crew had never seen a canoe and
double blade before but | found their hos
pitality even greater than their curiosity.
/ was soon alongside. and accepting the
hearty invitation of genial Captain Sawyer,
[ stepped on board. the canoe was hauled
on deck and critically examined, Captain
Sawyer propounding the question, DO
you take that thing to bed with you ?'
" No. replied, but ! make my bed in
that thing quite often"
found the General Hancock very tidy
craft, and well adapted to the work she
was engaged in. The crew, all told, con
sisted of nine men, and she was ntted out
for three months cruise. Sponging has
been Il lucrative business, but OF late years
competition has been high and conse-
quently not 50 many chances for a good
strike The vessels lit out on shares, half
to the ship hal, to the men. OF the An
clote Keys is considered the best sponging
ground on the coast, although il is good
anywhere between here and the Suwanee
river.
The work is done in calm weather, when
the water is comparatively smooth. The
small boats leach vessel has from two to
four supplied with poles, grapnels and
water glass, and manned with two and
sometimes three men, drift along with
wind and tide all the time keeping a
bright lookout on the bottom. The water
glass is simply bucket with piece of
common windoT glass set in the bottom.
BY setting this contriyance in the water
with the glass Just below the surface, one
can see quite plainly TO depth Of thirty
or forty feet, the vibrations from ripples,
swell, etc, being entirely overcome, and
nothing to obstruct the vision save the
density or color OF the water. When sponge
is discovered the grapnel is brought IN use,
the sponge torn from its hold and deposited
in the boat.
The grapnel is simply bunch Of strong
hooks al the end Of a long pole let the
reader half close his hand with the fingers
slightly separated, and he Will have a fair
idea of a sponge grapuel. The boat, when
full, is pulled to the vessel, the sponge Is
then thrown on the deck where it is left to
die. At this stage Of the proceedings the
sponge looks like lump Of semi-trans-
parent Jelly; ii IS left on the deck of the
vessel from four to eight hours; then taken
70 the rendezvous and thrown into the
crawl Kraal, from the Dutch. The
crawl consists of palisade of ten or
twelve wards in diameter and is made in
shoal water. After the sponge has lain in
the crawl for some 1--WE days, the men get
| in with bare feet, and tread and squeeze
the sponge until it is comparatively clean,
when it is taken to the ship and slowed
below