The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-10-23
How the Breton Follows a
Precarious Occupation.
CONGER AND DEVIL FISH.
Eeis Like serpents-Ihe Capture Of Turbot
and Red Mullet-Valus Of Mackersl
Women as Fishers.
written for The MORNING CALL

an uncomm on Iise of, tide on the shores OF
Normandy and Brittany. When the Ro-
mans were in occupation of this country
they must have been absolutely amazed at
the oscillations of the sea level. phe-
nomenon OF which they knew nothing
In inc Mediterranean. 1t must have
puzzled them exceedingly how TO account
Tor how and ebb, but they remained just as
ignorant OF the cause as savages. 1t was
not untli Newton's discovery of gravitation
that the tides could be explained. Before
his time their periodiciiy was accepted as
TACT OF practical character without ex-
PLANTATION, and at this moment vast numbers
Oh breton hsher-folk. women as we'll as
men, understand everything about their
local tides without having the remotest
conception OF the reasons. At full moon
ana new moon they know the tide is high;
at half moon they know it is low. The
periods are calculated for them, and that is
sufficient.
fisherman who has an open harbor for
the prosecution of his calling has anything
bht an easy life of it. He is up or out at all
nours, Just as the tide serves, and to get his
nsh 10 market he has to resort to much
stratagen. In the little coast villages Of
tue Cotes du Nord 1t is common TO hear the
saoots go clank-clanking down the narrow
streets at or o'clock in the morning
ne nsheimen have to take the tide as they
ma IL ana brave any weather or disagree
aole diIhcultles. IL Is an independent life,
and they gradually get braced I'D to it so as
TO be cheerful under all circumstances.
Sone years ago. during soj0urn in the
quaint and quiet village ri ST. Cast in Brit
tany, fisher friend. who bore the sobri-
Qnet OF jean Bert, woke me uD at an uncon-
sclonable hour in the morning for a distant
Trip alter conger. 1t promised adventure,
anu the pleasures of slunber were easily
loreg0ne Tor run to sea in an open boat.
Jean led the way down the cliff. pointing
Out what TO avoid in the dark, and We were
soon working out of the harbor-a party of
Tour, including the mousse or fisher-boy,
under apprenticeship, bright little fell
low who had keen eye and ready
hand for all his duties. Our boat,
about twenty feet long and equipped with
the usual lug sail and jlb of the
country, bumped over the waves at a good
rate Tor the first dozen miles, but as morn
ing broke the wind fell away and ere we
bad made halt the voyage we were wa!low-
ing in CLASSY calm. with the sun hot
enough to send one to sleep To reach the
fishing ground, an outlying group of rocks
in the Bay of st. Brieuc, there was nothing
for II but to take to the oars, and long
pull OF hours it proved. We arrived about
twenty minutes before low tide. and had
time Tor frugal meal, washed down with
cider, before beginning operations.
Jean Bert's primary Intention was to Sc
cure fresh bait for the eonger; his next was
to sink his lines for the capture of conger.
The mousse and the second man, with long
barbed hooks on staff, set ont on quest
for octopus or minard, as the local term
runs, while Jean Bert himself looked about
for conger among the weeds and for lobster.
The conger and octopus are found together
very intimately - In fact, so Intimately
that the conger makes n meal of the
octopus. Nimble as it is in evading cap
ture, and most ingeniousy equipped with
la raHa
the octopus is no match for the conger. The
devil fish can only hold on to the rocks and
weeds with its suckers, but the e0nger, six
or seven feet long and weighing sixty or
seventy pounds, converts its elongated body
into propeller reversed and draws the
tentaele- adorned cephalopod away piece
meal from anything to which it elngs. 1t
Is we'll there is some balance in nature.
Pierre, the mousse. jumped off the bow
on to the rocks with q great hunk OF
coarse bread and couple OF onions and an
apple In his hand, net over his shoulder
and the afore-deseribed hook for the min
ard. In an hour or so be gave a good ac-
count of his skill He was weighted with
writing gelatlnous creatures which had
been crotched up from the pools among the
rocks. There was bait enough when the
tide began to flow. Jean Berps groping
for conger among the weeds resulted in
few fish. He lost one fine fellow as big as
serpent by the hook not catching properly
In the back. How that conger did swim
when 1t felt the touch OF the barb drawn
across the Shiny weeds.
Bert was up to the middle In the water, and
was no match in swimming power for a
conger defending its life. He saw it dis
appear in the depths and then mathematical
itin mixture of Celtic and French, which the
eel no doubt estimated at its proper WORTH
There were few Holsters in the neighbor-
hood, and they pacifed Jean when be had
drawn them by finger and thumb out of
hafr foe A fokr a. 8
nate tendency TO send up air bubbles and
agitate weeds in its vicinity. and the OBJ
servant pecheur is on the Qui yiye for all
these signs.
The rising tide drove US to our boat, and
then began the real business of our expedi-
ton. About 1000 hooks had to be baited
along an interminable line with the still
squirming octopus tentacles. The boat was
kept on and off shore. all hands were busy,
and IN couple of hours the line was ready
TO pay out.
Carefully taking bearings, Bert let go a
great weight at one end Of the line, accom-
panied by loose end of cord and buoy
and flag attached. Then rowing against
the tide, The line disappeared astern, and
was marked at the other extremity by an
othef ouoy and Tag. SO wishing good luck
to the lshing sail was set for home
fisherman is always hopeful His are
the feelings OF the hunter. He has the ele-
ment OF sport in his vocation. Sometimes
lie has no success. AtoHer times he makes
great haul and lowers the prices he would
like TO earn. Next day we had another trip
TO the fishing ground and hooked in enough
OF conger TO ballast the boat trifle deeply
Over sixty Of the big fish lay wrggling
around In the bottom In the despair of
death throes, some Of them, perhaps.
seventy pounds IN weight, This was
great catch and Bert was in good humor.
Scuddlng homeward he sang merry songs
and told merry stories, and all had hard
task carrying the load Of eels up the cliff.
Marked as was the success. very likely the
financial product was much less than half
dozen tnrbct of good size would bring.
Turbot sells often at francs or more
pound.
1t must have been tbe small price of
ecnger, 3 OF sous a pound. which gave
Jean Bert feeling Of contempt for the fish.
lie talked lOftily about other deniZens OF
the deep worthy his attention-the turbot,
the red mullet, the skate and the lobster.
Along coast frpauented by seaside visit
ors the lobster Is a prize. 1t Is most in
dispensable crustacean for a pampered
palate preferred by the injudie'ons
so shrewd in the art of keep
ing up the value of lobster that when
they have too many in their dipping traps
they keep them in reservoir crates sunk in
the water. where they walk about more or
less In health I'M til required for the stomach
Of the epicure. But as Holsters cannot be
obtained all the year round, nor turbot,
mackerel or mullet, the conger is not TO be
despised.
One evening Bert had an experience with
red mullet which almost drove him to sui
eide. This fish comes in shore, like most
other fishes. TO deposit its eggs among the
weeds. and the usual method Of capturing
it Is by net in shallow waters. The net Is
anchored eff shore and when the tide is full
II Is hauled np. just as the sun was setting
we reached the net, and before the head
rope had been hauled In Bert began to curse
the minards in a torrent of choice exple-
tives. He continued the cursing until we
had crossed the Bay of Fresnay and were
home. And no wonder. As Francois re-
marked. the sea is full of these devil fish,
They made havoc of Berts net They broke
his corks, tore his meshes, ate his fish and