The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-09-09

st-rEso- Co-e Ne More, sAs They C--s
Catch the Wall-eyed rike.

~ HANN ~ uANs WhNh Nlt EhUltu huu
retted sturgeon was wont to wander from the
waters Of Delaware Ray, essaying 20 escape,
probably, from the caviarc hunters Of New
Castle and adjncents parts, and push Its way 80
the riffs and rocky shadows into the rivnss
puriing upper waters. where It's coming was
watched by men with guns and men with clubs
and men with spears and men with rope
hslters and men with eel-roeks. have the peo-
pie OF that part Of the valley Who love 10 fish
or. more properly. who love u get nsh-been 90
so:ely put 20 as they are Just now.
The surgeon doesn't visit the upper Delaware
any more. Perhaps one reason for this Is that
the fishermen Of the bav andsa its head having
discovered long ago the value Of this queer and
simple set formidable-lOoking water-dweiler as
a pruyider OF merchantable stuff. have devised
ways and means to connnc IL within the bound
aries OF their own bailtwick. Another reason
may be that there is no longer water enough in
the Delaware River during The season when the
sturgeon would wander up stream to AFFORD the
big and ungainly fish material for his convenicnt
navigation. The sturgeon IL tenacious. and
alapts himself gopl naturally To circum.
stances, 81 that " Il misht 50 chance that he
found himself within the bcleaguerinent OF small
and shallow land.lorked waters he would with
contcntmpnt hide there. letting tho sun smIte
his cU-~1 .atei back. and the storm pelt II, the
while he rooted and walluwed in the half-dis-
closed bed Of his mischanced environment, until
such time as the plying flood might come and
let him forth into the unrestricted reaches Of
tho flowing river. In the days when thI. fish
was no rare sight In the upper Delaware I have
known sturgeon, having run a joust with some
challenging eel rack and been endorsed, 10 lie
in ;hc nav OF that same eel rack, with the ag-
gravating sound about him OF water, water
everywhere, but not a drop for him, for a good
twenty -four hours, calmly and uncomplaingly
waiting for the eel rack man TO come
and do the rest. TIT man having come
and tumhlcl the patient fish into his
boat and taken IL ashore. I have known
that same sturgeon TO BE- hailed with ropes .
mile over rough and stony ground. then dumped
into n pound not any too big for him TO turn
around In. aud with no more water in u than ne
could drink at a irauEht or two. II It wero the
surgeons habit to drink water, and no sooner
than released therein. to turr, with no trace OF
malice or resentment in his eye, though with
abrasions many in evidence on his domes and
turrets, and accept from his captor. or any one
else. peanuts, tobacco. apple cores. or shingle
nails, seeming equally grateful for each offering.
l have known such n sturgeon. after perhaps .
fortnight OF durance, To be liberated through the
mercy Of some man offender heart and returned
TO the river. to at olce renew his attack on tho
eel rack and be found next day again van
quished and waiting sor events.
l sometimes think that Il was the eel racks
that 'ticcd the sturgeon 20 upper Delaware
waters. Tha: he loved to assaii them and try
their mettle. Tho law abolished the eel racks
years ago. Il was about the time the racks be-
gan To disappear that the surgeons visits up
the river became fewer and further between.
until now they are no more. Il might be. after
all, that the sturgeon went thither to fight the
eel racks. and. with The passing OF the eel rack.
that occupation of his being gone. he saw no
further attraction In those waters.
But while the sturgeon can get along first rate
in little water. and hide his time to escape TO
larger. he is not a land travelling Ash. so that II
he should undertake to journey from tide up
ward in the Delaware in these latter days he
would be stalled before he had gone many miles.
He would have to do some heroic work II he
got even as far a. Easton. Above that he could
not pass. There are n score OF places between
Easton and the Water Gap where people may
cross the Delaware dry shod. The historic spot
where Washington crossed the Delaware on
that fierce winter night, against n deep and ice
choked tide, is now a chain of shallow pools. d.
vided by dry and glistening stones. whore epco
the wide channel ran. Where there were once
islands between Easton and the upper waters
there arc Islands no more. one cham
mel being entirely dry-ns dry rs bono.
So IL Is all the way up the river. A man might
walk for miles and not wet his shoes. II IL we'll
for him IL no sturgeon has set his heart on re-
visiting old scenes in the upper Delaware this
fall. He can't ge: within 100 miles OF them
But the thing that is worrying the people Of
the upper Delaware now is the wall-eyei rike.
The wall-eyed pike "a the fish for which the sus-
Quehanna River IL famous. In that river IL 10
called salmon, but II has no characteristics OF the
salmon. In the great lakes. which are It's nAtu-
was introduced into the sasqucRsnns in 1855.
and il was found in no other running water east
OF the Allegheny Mountains until il was placed
In the DelAWAFa n few NpAFa AGO from atDrk
taken from the Susquehsnna; In the, latter
s svsn d afts 4sh h6 sr9ss n to q !. % a rsadv % s,t sTs,v q. and IND
spoon troll or young lamprey; and a game and
lasty fighter when hooked l. proyides great
ing capricio9sness, though. Is the wall,eyed pike
elsewhere. Years ago the state OF New York
fish. 1t thriyec, grew, increased, and multiplied
in Lake keuka. but no angler, by any vile or
kill this sulky alien fish; have spent many sea-
sons on Lake Keuka and only one wall-eyed pike
hook and line. That was caught while the 6shsr-
man was trolling for salmon trout in 200 fees
years, Lake Keuka was frozen over. Some nsb-
Ing through the ice for piGkerel was done. and
live live I SaiiI set for %picEeErsI. Zach one o. the pie
weighed twelve pounds Il y argued from this
would bite and give ine sport. In Oneida Lsfs
as readily as they do in the susquehAnns River.
and the fshinS Is always good; But in onsid5
habitat, having reached the lake from Lake
Ontario by way OF the Oswego River.
so IL seems that the wall-eyed pike in the Della
ware have taken into their heads TO DO the sulky
kind, at least 20 the native fishermen. Says
the Cduicn0H DsmOcTdt: " II Is very aggrayatin9
10 our local fishermen 10 sit in a boat on q nice,
calm day and see almost numberless hocks OF
big wal!-eyed pike calmly lying in the water
below which refuse % touch the most tempt
ing bait that Is rubbed against their noses.
Every style OF fishing that Is known 70
the NinrOds in this section and all man
ner Of bait. dead and alive, artificial and
natural. have been used but 40 no avail
One Of our local fishermen has even gone 30 far
as TO hire a man from up the river. who has
somewhat OF a reputation as a wall-eyed pike
fisherman. 10 come here at a heavy expense and
remain a week, "a teach our local lLaak Walton
the art, but after this schooling he hnds IL Inn
possible To inyeigle one OF these kings OF the
FLYER % even smell OF his bait. The way Of Cap
turing wall-eyed piksts AN unknown art in thls
lpcslity, although the river Is alive with them