The Forrest City times., 1895-08-02
CATCHING LIVELY suRGALLS.
They Are Not Very Big. hut Will Furnish
 Lots of Amusement.


 Lots of Amusement.
 The busgalls, or cunners, as the Con- necticut fishermen call them. are com monly considered a nuisance. They steal the bait from the hooks of bass and blackfish anglers, and. some claim. drive away the larger fish. But of late certain knowing anglers have dis covered that, properly handled, the burgalls will furnish great fun They are plump, active little fish, seldom attaining a weight of more than a pound and half and averaging about half a pound. Their coloring is very beautiful. showing in different lights all the rainbow tints. They are gre garious, and where one bites you may know that a whole shoal is feeding. Rocky bottom, with plenty of rock weed and sea moss growth. is their natural habitat, and they feed greedi- ly on hard or soft clans, crab meat, bits of sinner and killie, cut up, and sand worms
 Of course. heavy tackle destroys all the pleasure of catching these plucky little fish. You want light trout rod, a fine silk line, and snelled sporat hooks, size No. 4 or 5. about the size used to take mountain brook trout A split buckshot will be a heavy enough sinker to answer every purpose. Bait as carelessly as you may, you will not alarm or disgust the burgall. He is fish of no epicurean tastes. and quantity stands before quality in his eyes. Put bit of bait <y, inc fa,.- -1. ( L of the hook. and let one end hang of to tempt the rascals. Fish from a boat, or from ledge of rocks, or from a pier. and select spot where the tide does not set too sharply, for these fel- lows are too lazy to battle with very strong tides.
 Soon quick mincing nibble will an- nounce the first arrived guest. and a sharp. strong pull is necessary to hook him. These fish have hard, tough jaws and lips. and gentle pulls will never strike the barb home. Some times the bigger ones. by running un- der strongly-rooted clump of rock weed or sea kale, or under powder on the bottom. will give you great trouble. At no time will they surren- der without very considerable tussle for freedom.
 Just before storm is the very best time to catch burgalls. When the sky is black, and the heavy clouds hang low over the water, and the sea gulls skim wildly over the bay, the sturdy rockdwellers begin to revel. At such time, with two hooks on your line, you can land two at time until your arm aches from the effort The dead. low water and rising tide are best for catching burgalls, for. by the time the ebb sets out. these little gluttons have so surfeited themselves on the food that they have no appetite left.
 They are easy to catch, and can be found all around New York harbor and adjacent water. Barstow -on-the- sound is convenient station on the Harlem river branch of the New Haven railroad, and there you can take lit tie bobtail car to City Island. Here you catch burgalls ~unnumbered in rocky Pelham bay and it's many inlets. So. too, you can along the Staten island shore and on the Jersey side. What is more, after you have had the fun of catching them there still re- mains no inconsiderable treat, for the burgalls. when fresh caught, are the finest pan fish that swim. The man who can not put at least three of them. crisp and hot, under his vest at break fast has failed properly to appreciate his opportunities. Y. Journal.