Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1888-10-10
CURIOUS OLD TOWN. {

CURIOUS OLD TOWN.
Massachusetts Village Whore Every
Body Talks Fish and Uses Fish.
y Province town, down on Cape Cod, is
Q funny-looking little place built on a
reef OF sand stretching out into the
gray ocean. The low wooden build
ings are grouped around IN wild and
distorted manner, separated by narrow
and crawling lanes and alleys. The
people wear quaint and primevil CARDS,
and the whole town is begirt by fake
yards which ''sweeten" the air for
Leagues around. The mighty power
that gives life to every thing and
pushes the wheels Of industry along is
the fish. This great product of the
sea enters into every thing. It is bar
tered at the grocery stores, shoe-shops
and bread stores for all the commodi-
ties OF life. 1t is as potent as gold.
Take the fish away from Provincetown
and all trade would be paralyzed and
poverty would stalk abroad. The main
business street is paved with rock cod.
The women use the hind fin of the
great halibut for brooms; they are
secured t0a pole, and sweep as clean
as the best corn brooms in the market.
Awnings shading store fronts are made
from the skin of the sportive porpoise
skillfully tackled across light scantlings.
| have spent three days at Province.
town, and was awed away by the ever
lasting display of fish. Sunday sought
respite from my torments in the little
gray church on the village sand lot.
AS l entered the house I was struck by
the peculiar appearance of the bell
rope swinging in the entry. I ex-
amined it. 1t was made of cells, cum
'ningly knotted by some old sailor,
probably. Over the altar was the
picture of whale, under which was
the legend of Jonah's sea voyage, writ
ten in Indian ink. The preacher dis
coursed long and loud on the loyal and
Christian fishermen of Galilee. At the
close of the session a collection was
gathered, and the receptacle passed
around was the top shell of turtle
with whalebone handle. After the
choir had sung: 'Pull for the Shore"
and other sea glees, the church "crew"
passed down the port aisle into the
street.
ProvincetOwn ladies trim their hats
with the red gills of the mackerel and
confine their long tresses with small
sculpins. Minims are used in the place
OF clothes-pins. These dwarf fishers
are smoked and cured like red herring
and their mouths are snapped around
the clothes-line supporting the
weeks washing and secured
and held in place by the
sharp claw of a crab. Flying-fsh are
as plentiful around the village as En-
glish sparrows on Boston Common.
They roost in the branches of apple
trees and cav like crows. Dog-fshes
often lie around the shore at low tide
and bark and howl in a frightful man
ner. When neighbors meet on the
streets they say "Ahoy"' Young men
wear oiled suits of course, heavy
drilling to church when the weather
is heavy" One learns great MANY
nautical phrases in that paradise of
fishermen.
HOLSTERS make intermittent incur
sions through the lanes of the town.
Some of them are intelligent. and
learn to follow children along the
dusty roads to school. I asked an old
settler one day why the streets were
so narrow, and he told me when the
town was first settled the roads were
laid out narrow for the purpose of sup
porting herring-stic}ks which ran across
the street from the second-story win
dow to the window on the opposite
side. And so the custom has been
kept up, and during certain seasons
the place is darkened by strings of
red herring hanging over the thorough
fares, forming a dripping canopy,
which smells badly.-Cor. CHICAGO
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