The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-02-19
FISHING WAS EASY
TIE OLD KNlcKERBOcKERS HAD THE
SPORT AT THEIR DOORS.

The olden Times When Manhattan Island
Had Its Ponds Filled With the shining
Beauties of the Finny Tribe-How Thew
Captured Swapping Turtles.
A well to do fisherman who was satu-
rated with the angling craze built few
years ago on a lake not many miles from
appointments that wealth could devise or
support, but his hobby of fishing cropped
out when building the rear end of his
house, which was placed on piles and pro-
jected some so feet over the lake Here.
on his back porch, this old angler fshed
from morn 90 night until his lines were
cast on the waters Of Lethe. Had this man
lived IN the city of New York so years ago
he would have found more than one dwell
ing built to his liking and so constructed
that his hobby of fishing could have had
fuIl sway without spending a penny Cor
its indulgence. The old knickerbookers
had daily fishing bouts az their back gates,
and fruitful ones they always turned out
10 De.
A section OF this city which is now q
great manufacturing and distributing CEN
ter was in 1915 covered by a large pond,
extending from Pearl street on the south
TO Canal street on the north and the pres
ent Center street passes from north 70
south through the center of the old site OF
this pond. 1t was called Collect pond, and
its outlet ran into the North river by way
OF what Is now known sS Canal street
Near its mouth and running southwest a
branch OF the outlet made its way into the
North river, forming the eastern boundary
of large Tract OF salt meadows The river
side Of these meadows gave, on the incc.n-
ing tide, great sport TO the old timers who
went a-fshing Tor weakfish, striped bass
and white perch as they camein 20 feed on
the low lying fats when covered by the
flood tide, which. in the spring. overlooked
the meadows and came nearly up to Broad
way.
The water of Collect pond was fresh, IL
being fed from springs. Perch, sunfish,
cells and catfish, all of large size and OF
delicious flavor, lived in its waters, and
prolific were the catches made by the old
knickerbockers with their primitive tao
kle, which usually consisted of a reed pole
about ten feet long, homemade line OF
brown linen thread, Limerick hooks-no
others were used in America at that time
"a small piece OF lead as sinker aud a box
OF garden worms. With such tackle and
the muscular overhead jerk OF the victim
it was not unusual To make a score of 10
TO so fish IN few hours.
There was another large pond, called
Sunfish pond, existing some 75 years ago
on site now embraced in the area covered
by Twenty-fifth and Twenty sixth streets
and Fourth and Fifth avenues. 1t covered
about three acres and had neither outlet
nor inlet, being fed from bottom springs
of very cold water. II contained the same
species OF fish as lived in Collect pond,
with the addition of great numbers OF
swapping turtles, which were greedily
fished for by the old timers. As their
method Of catching snappers was unique
and doubtless would be found today TO be-
alluring to these delicious fresh water tur-
ties, it is worth while TO make a note OF
the manner in which they were captured.
The old KnickCrbockeY would smell. with
linen thread TO the end of a piece of COP
per wire, 10 to Il inches long, a medium
sized hook, being careful to wax the thread
with shoemaker'S way The other end OF