The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-10-06
DECOYINU FISH.
sx,lLFuL INDIANS OF THE NORTH
HAVE QUEER METHODS.

,r,.v c,, , Hole In the Ice. Build . Hut
o,ar tho Hole and Let Down a Decoy
Through the Tce-FOOlinG innocent Crea-
lures Of the peep Lakes.
..you have heard of shooting game by
means of decoy birds often enough no
aonbt.- said an old sportman the other
dav. ..but / doubt if You ever heard OF
fishing bv means of a decoy fish, where
tba decov was not used for bait. | never
saw it done myself till l visited Geor-
| pian bay, a part of Lake Huron, IN Can
| ada. one winter. There l found that the
| half breed Indians erected huts on the
| frozen bav and fished through holes cut
| in the ice by means of a queer decoy.
I'm order to facilitate matters, some OF
them had little stoves in their huts to
keen them warm while they fished. The
huts had only one opening, a door, ana
when the fisherman had entered and
closed the door no light entered the hu
excent what came up through the floor,
reflected through the ice outside and the
water underneath it. This made II pos
sible for the fisherman to see deep down
into the water and difficult for hsh 10
Gee him in his dark hut. The fisherman
has a chair or bench to sit upon, food
and drink to keep life in him during his
long watch and a little stove to prevent
chill, Now comes the decoy business.
! 1.-The half breed takes out of his kit a
queer looking stick, painted and shaped
roughly to look like a fish. he AYERS,
: though it would hardly be breaking the
second commandment to worship it, for
Il is the likeness of nothing in the heav-
ems above, or on the earth beneath, on IN
the water under the earth: but If the fish
, think it is the main object is accom-
nlished. This wooden counterfeit OF a
fish is loaded with lead, SO that 1t sinks
and lies in the water the right way when
snsnended from the middle of the back
nv a string attached to a short fishing
mole. The Indian lets this decoy down
70 into the water and by means OF the string
gives it a series of short, sharp jerks
al which make it a dart hither and thithe'
{! in a remarkably lifelike manner, al
d though, of course, its range Is exceeding
as " limited, about ayard in any direction
OF THE thing is provided with tin tn.
~ and tail and is weighted with lead mo
III heavily at the head. The strins l. ~
ey tached nearer the head than the tail
Oh upon the back, and the skill with which
'f these fishermen make the queer t.-t.
at shoot about in IA triangle under tat.
So feet, through "a hole in the ice, IS upi.
an remarkable. l did not succeed III ae
" auirlng the art myself. l should -.
up from trying it that it is rather mot. Ill
III 6cult to learn than fly casting.
We presently a few fish, noticing TIN
d. decoy darling about as if in active pun
Ich suit of his food. swim that way to see
there is not something there for thel
les also, They may be fresh water herring
!o salmon. trout, whitetish or less valuabl
mo game: but none of them, big or little,
ere refused by the half breed. Fine fish
sells: the coarse ones he or his dogs or h
eht children or his squaw eat readily.
Egg Pulling up his decoy, the fisherma
LET'S down a baited hook and tries h
am luck on the newcomers, seldom i'll vail
These men fish with all sorts of que'
tn halt. l saw one man MAKE a splend
haul one day, using for bait only "A b
" white bone button without any hoo
lies The fish swallowed it greedily. and
g u would jerk them out Of the water befo
ahS they could get it out of their Threats.
Ut and by a pike or dogtish, seeing t
shoal Of fish around the pole, darts aft
'ho them. They scatter IN a hurry, and t
'er, fisherman let's down his decoy again
attract the pike.
en- Now all the skill at his comma
oll- must be employed to make the dec
5 ne work well. for if it lags in the vat
ana long enough for the pike to suspect
penuineness he will turn away i'll d
the gust. If the decoy d~eceives the W
that pike he dashes at it, and the fsherm
r OF Jerks it away before the pike can grail
in his strong jaws. The pike turns
'sses pursue, and as he halts to turn the fish
w! man drives at him with a long forl
5 no spear. If his aim is accurate, the pike
'oz.' transixed and is brought bleeding to
50 IS surface in a jiffy.
These men are skilled hunters a
the know many curious habits Of the CT
axes lures they pursue. They say that mu
7c'" rats. for instance, are able to swim IL
g Oh distances under the ice in this mann
one Taking a long breath. the muskrat di
ou.' from his pursuer and swims as far as
hefs can. When he can go no longer with
10Y a fresh breath, he comes up under
'rous ice, and pressing his nose against
,ered hra.,has ONT all the air in his lur
anies This forms a big bubble under the
the .nd the Indians saw that the ice has
,rous ,o,yar ~ making that bubble of air fl
who a..;n oxvoapizes II in fact. and that
vivid ,;etlo fel.ry then breathes il in again
com. L. orca more This he can do ha
ao,on tine. tbe Indians saw. before
ct us .;r h. tool with him becomes SO
70 the ,b.t tbe ice cannot freshen il again,
d yet ..Wba,ber This property of the ic,
.thos, ,r,e ar no, I cannot saw. but the Ind,
ana firmly believe it, and l know that m
n old - cor travel a long wav nnder the