The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1891-04-16
ponRING FOR nERRINa.

This is how it happenen: =
YOU'RE just the fellow I've been look
ing for"
Kees Spencer greeted his friend Geo.
Hallock thus as they met on the town
common. .f
"Why, what's up?"
"Herring!n Kees exclaimed, excitedly.
81 just met old Dan Stubbs and he says
the herring are so thick down at the
lake you can't see through them-says he
caught most 200 yesterday. Let's try
for them!"
"All rightln his chum returned unhes-
itatingly, and they started lakeward IN
high spirits.
I The afternoon was cloudy, thawing
one, and in the spring-just the time
when the greedy herring bite the best.
( LAS sure as fate" as Kees put 1T, they
would have great fun"
! They crossed the few fields which lay
between the little Ohio village, their
: home, and old Lake Ere, at an eager
pace, and stood for moment on the
bluff. They were some 10 feet above the
beach, and could look far out on the
lake.
/ Though the ice, month before, had
stretched out nearly as far as the eye
could reach, plenty of blue. water was
visible that day. Only rugged strip
about 300 feet-of ice skirtcd the shore.
Navigation would soon be open.
! A little boat house stood at the mouth
of the ravine on the boys left, through
which a small stream reached the lake
/ Kees' brothers.. 1t had sag of messy
roof and lean-to one side, which made it
picturesquely suited to its surroundings.
1 A steep path reached down to its door,
and this the two chums took; KEGS had
key.
Soon the boys were hunting for lines,
hooks and minnow net; pail, too, for
/ the bait. The pile of decOys in a corner
were unceremoniously scattered by them
this way and that at the risk of broken
bills and heaGs-the herring could not
be kept waiting. George ''barked" his
shin against the Pearls stem, but that
caused no delay, and shortly the boys
were out on the beach ice hunting for a
hole where bait could be caught. At
last they found 1t. At last they picked
their way among the hummocks to some
holes farther out, cut by other fishermen
to try their luck.
Each had two short poles, and each
was stationed at separate hole. They
measured the depth of the water, and,
with their hooks let down to within
foot or two of the bottom, began to bob
Bob it was, Ii orally. The little poles
had to be kept moving up and down up
and down, in way that one might think
would render it impossible for the most
hungry herring to seize the hook, yet
| that is the orthodox way TO fish for those
silvery-sided, lively little fellows.
They are odd fish-companionable to
the extreme. You never catch one by
itself. They swim in schools. and when
school comes under the hole where
fisherman is, he has his hands full at
tending to them.
1t looked that afternoon rs if the two
| 16-year old Isaak Waltons were to he dis
appointed it seemed that, in spite of
the apparently favorable weather, they
would have to return to the village with
out fish.
Looks as if old Dan Stubbs caught
! 'em all, sighed George, when the boys
had been on the ice for an hour or more,
and had not felt bite.
'Isn't quite as good fishing us | ex-
pected it would be-" acknowledged
KEGS. But you know what herring are
lilSe-they maynt come near you for
three hours, and then they do
A short silence.
Did you spit on your hook" ques-
toned George.
No. Did you?'
''No.m
They went through with that fisher
mans time hOnored custom. and, with
hope born OF the thought that its neglect
was the cause of thei" ill-luck, were
silent again.
Half an hour passed. Not nibble.
| al hn1 nl,t Hgh
there the day before He was noted for
drawing the long bow occasionally
what old sailor is not? Perhaps the her
ring were not biting along the south
shore that spring The chums were
commencing to
They're here!"
George whispered the good news cx-
citedly, breathlessly. Then flop! he
landed pound-and-a-half herring ON the
ice. KEGS gave low whistle of intense
satisfaction. Floop, Hoop! sounded two
silvcIy prizes pulled out by him.
Yes, the herring had come.
How busy they kept the boys. What
huge fun it was.
Rayenously the finny visitors flocked
for the bait. They would sieze the hook
long before the line was taut. They
acted as though they had not had any
thing to eat through the long winter.
They jostled each other in their rush for
the bait.
Some of them were big, some
small; but none were less than nine
inches long. The chums could spare no
time to throw them in any particular
place. Anywhere, safe distance from
the holes served.
: The boys used one handy little device
which saved time, and also cold fingers,
disagreeable task, that of chasing min.
nows round and round in the chilly
water in the bait pail. 1t was small
scoop net made by bending piece OF
wire in loop little larger than table
spoon and sewing bagging piece Of
mosquito-bar across it.
, Soon the chums were surrounded by 9
Hopping circle of shiny prizes. They
were doing splendidly,
The fish did not slow down in theil
biting 1t was bait and catch, bait anC
catch as fast as the chums could act
Only one pole could be attended to by
each. The other had to be discarded
when the herring school first came.
, Not another bite. The school had van
) ished.
,, "Well, said KEGS. philosophically
lliC bdlb ihOSb ROhC' an way
"And we've got a hundred at least,
lGeorge added. w
Near two"
l"Dohlt believe Stubbs ever got 200 a
one haul"
".Nor ~
Gwen count EN- as we string en-"
"All right"
At that KEGS drew long piece OF mar
lin from his pocket, the chums threy
the catch into pile, and TO work a
them.
"One hundred and thirty-scven," a
last gleefully announced both in th
same breath.
"HurIahw exclaimed George, sligh
quiver in his voice. "LOOkw
"Great WOodchuck ~ from his chum
in a startled tone.
The boys were in precariOus posi-
tion. The southwest wi d,wlich was al
most imperccptible when they CON
menced fishing, had nearly increased b
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