The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-05-10
FlSHERMAN'S LUCK.

Sometimes q Trip to tho Grand Banks
Yields q Small Fortune.
That the element of luck has much
to do with the results of trip to the
banks after the voracious but often
elusive cod, and his cousin, the had
dock, is an accepted fact. Izaak Wal
ton never knew the danger of nights
spent on the little chip of a schooner
on the choppy, "crosscut" waves, and
amid the bowling gales, varied by fogs
almost as thick as cream cheese, which
are the normal conditions of life on
the ocean wave" as seen by those who
for the honor of being high line on a
successful cruise. "a bare living and a
dogs life" aptly describes the average
lot of man who takes the chances of
IN of-shore fishing trip. and even this
is made worse by the knowledge that
there are lots of dogs. who live far
easier life, have more comfortable
homes, have plenty to eat and dry
bunk in which to sleep.
Generally the fishing schooners are
worked on shares. The captain, mate
and steward each receive certain
percentage of the catch, another por-
ton is divided among the crew. and
the owners who pay the expenses OF
the trip, get the rest.
The extent of the business may be
judged from the returns of the Glouces-
ter (Masa) feet for the last season,
when liz. $50. 600 pounds of fish were
landed. realizing $3,667.625 on the
wharves, or nearly double that sum
when sailed. There were 455 vessels
engaged, aggregating $4,000 tons, and
employing $500 men. OF foreign salt,
81. 000. 900 pounds were used in curing
this CATCH which fell below that of the
previous season
The business is full of risk, both for
gland town is filed with the widows
and orphans of men who will never re-
turn from the wild waste of the At
lantic over which they sailed in search
of wealth. While the loss of money is
often great, there are at times good
profits made. In the last five years
three Gloucester schooners, which cost
originally about $50. 900, have together
stocked over $500, 900, or paid for them
selves ten times over. One of these,
the Edwin B. Holmes, of only seventy
one tens, which was launched in 1855
at Essex, Mass, has stocked s105, $50
for fishing on the George bank since
she began operations Another, the
Horace B. Parker, of ninety-eight tons.
and built at the same place in the
same year as the Holmes, has since
banked nearly s14o. 900 as the result Of
the vigorous pursuit of the paddock,
while the Edward A. Perkins which
is only three years old and measures
ninety tons, has already cleared $o7. 900
in the halibut fishery.
The famous old schooner-yacht AM
bassadress, which was built by David
CARL for the Astors and sold to Nathan
iel Thayer, of Boston, and was dis
posed of by him and turned into fish
ing boat, recently landed at that port
the largest and finest cargo of New
foundland herring recorded there. She
is, however, too large TO be worked at
a profit in the trade, her gross tonnage
being 232 81. and she will probably, it
is announced, be sent to the West In
dies as trader. Following the Am
bassadress came the Elsie NJ. Smith,
trim little 100-tonner, which landed
126, oSs pounds of fish as the proceeds of
one cruise.
That there is dark side TO the fish
erman's life is shown BY the story
brought home by the survivors of the
crew of the E p. Boynton, which was
wrecked on the Newfoundland coast
last winter. These men, whose suffer
ings and privations were extreme, lost
two of their comrades, who escaped
the perils of the wreck only TO be froz-
en- to death soon after reaching shore.
Another example of fsherman's luck
is shown by the record of the Loring
r Haskell, eo-tonner, which sailed
away in October last, and returned To
port in February empty, with tale of
storm and disaster, and large bill %
expense for provisions and re-equip-
ment-N. Y. Tribune