The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1886-11-24
The Gloucester Fishing Fleet.


From an article by Franklin D. North,
in the Century, we quote this incident:
There is always great rivalry among
the vessels of the fishing feet, for the
skipper who catches the most fish is
nighttime, title of no little consequence
on the Banks MS well as Cape Ann. The
attributes of a 'high-line' man are iron
nerve, fearlessness ay, recklessness or
perfect contempt for danger or death it.
self No doubt there is such a factcr os
luck that goes to make up that sum of
qualities which, taken together, produce
this specimen of manhood but it is not
counted upon, and is that description of
luck that attends the hero of a hundred
hotly contested fields, in all of which he
recklessly exposes himself. 1t is said that
the greatest 'high-line' of the haddocking
fleet between January and May landed
500, 600 fish of all kinds, valued at SEA
800. Each of his crew of fourteen men
received nearly eighty dollars per month
after all expenses were paid.
''The struggle for the honor Of high
line, besides encouraging the Banker
to battle with the tempest, sometimes
necessitates a resort to subterfuge in or
der to prevent another from dividing a
school of fish with him. Thus a 6 eorges
skipper who has struck fish, if seen, will
be beset by others passing to and fro on
the Banks, and, unless he misleads tho
newcomer, his success will be greatly
interfered with. Therefore, the crew of
vessel that is being rapidly filed with
fish will sometimes be ordered to pull in
their lines and desist when a sail is made
out coming up. The fish are quickly
thrown into the hold and the crew or
| dered to man the windlass, as if prepar-
ing to leavS their anchorage in disgust.
" Are you getting any fishp comes
from the skipper of the stranger as he
brings his vessel up into the wind. MOP
gruffiy and sarcastically shouts back the
other skipper, Tin getting my anchorr p
At this the stranger generally sheers off
and squares away for pastures new and
less sterile.
1.-THE crew of the anchored vessel heave
away at the windass as if they intended
to leave, and thus keep up the delusion.
But the anchori is not disturbed, for their
shrewd skipper is paying out the cable
as fast as they heave it through the
hawse-hole.
"When the mackerel fleet fished with
hand-lines the pursuit of this industry
was often attended with much excite
ment. Occasionally, when massed to.
gether in great fleets, the vessels carried
away their main-booms, bowsprits, lib
booms, and sails by collision in what
might not inappropriately be called a
hand-t hand encounter, and when the
manpuvre of 1ee-bowing was the order
of the day. A fleet of sixty odd sail de-
scry a schooner whose crew are heavine
and pulling their lines. The glistening
scales of the fish sparkle in the sunlight.
The fleet as one vessel turns quickly on
its heel, and there is a neck and neck
race for the school, The first that ar
rives rounds 10 under the lee of the for
tunate craft, the crew heaving the toll
bait with no niggard hands. The new
arrival now shakes up into the wind
close under the lee-bow of the fish
catching vessel. The fish forsake the
latter and fly at the lines of the new
conner. Now comes up the balance of
the feet, and each vessel on its arrival
performs the same maneuvre and lee
bows its predecessor. Those to wind
ward, forsaken by the fish, push their
way through their neighbors, fill away,
and round to under the bows of those to
lecward. The hoarse bawling of the
shippers to their crews, the imprecat;ons
of those who have been run down snd
left h0rs d. combat, rend the air, while the
crews setting and lowering sail and haul
i ing fish freely exchange with each other
language not to be found in any current
religious work"