The morning call., 1892-11-21
THE CORWIN HERE.
A Long Eventful Cruise in
the Arctic.
THE SEALS ARE VERY SCARCE
Sunday Fishing on the City Front.
Fun With the Sharks at
PoweiI-Street Wharf.

The United States revenue cruiser Cor
win. Captain Hooper, arrived at dawn
yesterday from the Arctic after an eventual
cruise OF eight months.
During the cruise the Corwin covered the
entire coast from San Francisco north to
Prince Williams Sound and west to Atka.
She traversed nearly this whole of Boring
Sea. the total distance steamed being 22.00o
miles.
She made two seizures during the summer,
namely, the British steamer Coquitlam OK
Vancouver and the British steamer Henri
eta OF Victoria. Both vessels were taken
to Sitka and turned over to the Collector Of
Customs. The charge was simply breach OF
the revenue laws and had no connection
with the modus yivendi.
The Corwiu left the Adams and Bear at
Oonalaska on the 10th inst. All was re-
ported well on both vessels. The Bear lost
an ancnor ana sixty fathoms Of chain in
gale of the Seal Islands ON October 10. No
scho0ners were seen.
The mail steamer Elsie, Captain Thomas,
arrived NJ Oonalaska from Sitka on the 9th
inst, three weeks overdue. The delay was
caused by an injury TO her crank off Cape
ST. Elias. Ii was temporarily repaired. but
broke down again on the return trip and
was securely repaired at the machine-shop
Of the Apollo mine on Unga Island. The
Elsie left OoOnalaska for Sitka on the 9th
inst.
On October % the Corwip found the
schooner Helen of Seattle ashore high and
dry near Cape Pankoif. She was dug out
and pulled OF TO az anchorage after nine
hours hard work. She left next day for
Sand Point, where she arrived safely
Seals are reported to be very scarce and
now making their way from the islands to
the coast.
The Corwin had a pleasant ten days trip
TO this port from Oonalaska. Her officers
are: Captain, c. l.. Hooper. commanding:
first lieutenant, &. f. Mcconnell, executive;
third lieuienants. f. G. Dodge and c.. E.
Johnston; chief engineer. j. T. Wayson;
first assistant engineer, 4. Is. Randall; Sec
ond assistant engineer. j. b. Brereton; sur
geon. J. T. Wayson Jr.
The new Powell-street wharf Is Just now
much patro nized by the city front anglers
and yesterday sitting accommodations were
at a reminm on the stringers. The special
attraction just now is shark-fshing, and
when the tide is running strongly, in or cut,
the fun Is great.
The sharks" so-called, are in reality
doghsh, but they belong to the shark family
and behave accordingly The outfit for
catching them consists Of a strong line,
nearly the thickness OF a rope, weighted
with feur-ounce sinker and furnished with
stout copper wire. The lower hook is with
in foot OF the sinker and the other eight
cen inches higher up. Each hook is baited
with lump OF meat or whole sRrdine or
herring. good-slzed: mouthful in either
case.
When shark takes the bait there is no
sort of mistake about the matter There is
no nibbing or sucking In the business The
sensation at the other end of the line is Just
such as would be produced when az irate col
lector jerks the bell-puil after satisfying
himself that the debtor is at home and does
not want to be interviewed
Ii the shark Is hooked there ensues a
rush OF anglers 10 the spot, and the lucky
fisherman gets a volume of good advice in
stentoriaH tones from half dozen eager
bystanders:
Hold on to himv
Don't let him get under the pilesp'
Mind he don't bite vou?''
Let me catch hold!'
When the shark is finally tugged hand
over hand to the top of the water and opens
his mouth the excitement is proportionately
great Sometimes he makes final effort.
# the line is slackened for an Instant
breaks the cord with blow of his tail or
nips 1t through above the copper leader on
the hook. In such case the blast of pro-
family above is something terrible, and the
mildest OF the EXPLANATIONS would not look
well IN print
When a shark is fairly caught and landed
Oh 1ne Whit tue uIsl thinG is 10 give him
slash over the tail or break the spine with
convenient rock--or anything hard and
heavy. The very next thing is to cut off
the head. Those who essay 10 get tie hooks
out before doing so will have TO get a doctor
to attend to their fingers pretty quick. The
sharks average from two TO four feet long
and their teeth are in proportion.
Forty OF them were caught by one
man on this wharf last Saturday after
noon, and he made good thing OF his job.
The Chinese Will buy sharks on sight, and
10 has been darkly whispered for wears that
the flesh. tough, undigestible. rank and
leathery as 1t is, often takes the place OF
sturgeon q the ''tenGerloin sole" served up
at cheap restaurants.
TO every man q business" is an old
saying, and the gathering and sale of spiral
worms is an example. Every Friday and
Saturday two men may be seen, each scuIl-
Ing boat under the sea wall a: low tide.
between Broadway and Lombard-sireet
wharf. There the sea wall overhangs
several feet. and the piles. laid bare by the
falling tide, are covered with mnssels. By
pulling off these mussels the spiral worms
are revealed crawling In and out of the
holes bored by the teTed0s in the piles. II
takes lot OF work to collect few hundred
spiral worms, but they are worth money,
for the men reckon their days earnings at
from So to $40 piece. One dealer at the
corner of East and Market street averages
from sl2 to SIS every Sunday from the sale
of spiral worms alone.
A small fire troke out In the branch cleo
trio light works at Davis and Broadway
AT 10 A NJ. yesterday. 1t caused quite a
scare for time. but was extinguished
without calling OH the Fire Department.
The accident TO Captain Erickson of the
schooner Benicia did not occur from a spark
from pipe, as was at first supposed, for
the captain does not smoke. Ii appears
that the captain stepped on tank contain
ing gasoline and turpentine and that as he
did so the explosion occurred. The captain
was thrown several feet In the air. and in
falling sustained fracture OF the right