The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-12-09


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 At druggists. Ten cents for a trial bottle.
 Write to the Shakers, 30 Reade Street, New York, for an interesting book. while to what are known as the rock codders-small boats that go out for days fishing, and buy only few bush els-it is almost uniform at $1.50. At these prices it may be seen that boat which takes eighteen or twenty barrels of herring in night, as any boat will which takes any at all, will make a very good thing out of it; but the trouble is that the supply exceeds the demand to such an extent that very often the fish cannot be sold at all and the fisherman has his nights work for nothing The demand at Gloucester, which port takes about all the bait, is only three hundred barrels a day on the average, and this much is taken by a Newburyport steamer. The question of selling the fish therefore, often resolves itself into get ting them to market before any compet- itors and the race for the market Is to the full as exciting as the taking of the fish itself.
 The sport Is an exceeding dangerous one as 1t Is pursued by the North Shore fishermen, and the only wonder is that numbers of men are not drowned at it every year. The reason of this is, not that it is necessarily dangerous to the fishermen, but that it is made so by the ;,, ;o1, +l,o hpD Ee | They can practical take all the fish they want, and the temptation to put In two or three more barrels than the boat will safely hold, and make dollar or two in addition to what they would otherwise get, is generally too strong for most of them.
 The fishing is done almost entirely in dories and the men will put eighteen or twenty barrels into one of these little craft, loading it down to the waters edge. If it comes up rough, and the men are not quick enough about throwing the fish overboard there is good chance that the dory will fill and sink; and as the fisherman almost al- ways carry sail in their hurry to get to market, the chances which they take
 
 1 have been but few accidents, although that is due more to good luck than to any caution on the part of the fisher men themselves, About three years ago ! three Gloucester men were drowned near Newburyport by the filling of 1 their dory and about ten years ago l three Ipswich men met the same fate Numerous boats, moreover gone down | in comparatively shallow water every year, and the men have reached the shore with a good deal of difficulty. If it had not been that the fishing is al most always conducted close in to the shore, the number of fatalities un- doubtedly would have been large
 The scene at night in the midst of the l herring fleet when the fish are running l strong is one which is indescribably full of life and color. The brilliant glare of the torches in the different boats lights up the whole surface of the water for some distance, and the boats dash rapidly here and there, following the trend of the fish, the figures of the men in them as they toll at the oars or lift the great masses of fish into the | boats looking like demons in the fierce, { lidi lIlB ilSills Y Oi lGiil tli ilOuI UT Sb bu a good night, the catching goes on, and l then. as the boats are filled up, the | lights one by one are snuffed out, and the race for the market begins.
 Though the courtesy of Captain Will liam Sargent of Annsquam, d Tran script reporter took a trip with the her ring fleet last week and found it an in Eerestng and exciting experience. Cap | tain Sergent does his herring fishing in a twenty-five foot launch fitted with a | naphtha engine, which is much safer and also much more effectual than the 1 dories ordinarily used. As soon as it l was dark the start from Annisquam was made, the crew of the ship consist | ing of Captain Sargent and two Volun- l teers, who were rock-codders by pro- 1 fession, but were glad to go along for the fun and possible profit the trip. The | engine was started up.- and with Cap | tain Sargent at the helm the little craft swung down the river and headed out 1 across the bar. As soon as the point on the western side of the harbor was passed it was realized that the fleet was already at work, for out on the water on the other side of Bald Rocks | lights darting rapidly about. As soon as the rocks were passed the two volunteers took their stations, one for ward and one aft, and the torch was made ready. This is in reality large i iron cage run out from the bow of the boat at slight angle, so as to bring it a little on one side of the brow, and far enough one to preclude all danger of fire. A great wad of cotton batting was 1 then fished up from 8 covered tank in | the bow, where 1t was soaking in kerosene oil, and throw into the cage. and the whole was touched off with match. In an instant a brilliant glare spread out over the surface of the water and the boat was made ready for business. Them an in the bow ad- l justed a huge dip net, three feet across and about four feet deep, while the other two placed blanks across the waist of the boat, leaving small space in the bow for the man with the net to stand. All the rest of the boat back ot | the engine-rOom was covered with l blanks for the other man to stand on. | leaving only single hole to dump the | fish down through