The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1896-06-13
A QUEER TRADE.
vessels Engaged in Searching a,-
Lost Anchors
ne Method Employed In Fishing In tb.
e!antcd siud l.oo!ss-h comrorsa.
pae Gcvenue n the Odd
Eusincee

n Business.
Many strange ways of making 1iv
!lnood are to be found in and nonr
great city, and one of the stranroaf
lnese hereabouts is fahiur uo lost =,
, chors and anchor chains from tbo 10
.Slns OF the bays md of the sea alou
tne coast 1t Is not what raieht 4
eaIed fourishing industry, says tn
NeW York Evening Pest, but is, il
oeea' q precarious dependence fer tb
necessarles OF life: yet it yielIs euste
nance enough to have crcatcl o-1ita
number CT followers. Several soboo,
eTs and sloops oro engaged almost on
/ cIuslvcly In this 'strade." and eool
carries a crew OF from three to +o-
men. w 'el
These odd fishermen seek tbe;r in,,.
mate prey whenever the weather nor:
nits, and, of course, are nno,t oof;-,,
tI uIiag tne long summer days. Like
tne takers OF living spoils from the
water, they know the field Of their en-
erations thoroughly, and expend their
energies mostly where the Fishing" is
pest Perhaps, of oil tho grounds" in
this vicinity, they regard the stretch
OF sea Off the Delaware brcakwater as
the most profitable. 1t is widely known
among shippers and all seafaring men
who visit these parts as u great ccme-
terry for anchors. They are being con.
stantly planted" there, to use the
nautical phrase. The perpetual invol.
untary sowing" of anchors there is
due to the large number cf vessels that
are compelled by conditions of busi-
ness or Of wind and tide to ride OF the
breakwater, and to their getting fire.
quently caught in gale while doing
sc. Then, the floor Of the eea at that
point appears to have a paculiar-facil-
ity for fouling anchors, aai vessels are
not seldom colnpellcl-or prefer. as the
less of two evils-to abandon them.
Territory up and down the coast
ranks next, III the anchor nshcruau:s
esteem, as fruitful anchor bed. Tho
Interior waters Of the harbor are more
barren, yet repay search. Even the
North and East rivers, for some dis
tance up, are occasionally harvested,
and usually not wholly in vain.
The method Of anchor fshinT is sim
pie to primitiveness. 1t consists in let.
ting down chain in q loop from the
sides of the vessel until the loop trails
along the bottom. Then the boat sails
along with all hands on board alert for
a bite" Flain Us this tackle is, tits
effective as any that could be devised.
PLANTED" anchors almost invariably
lie with one hulle buried il the mad |
and the other sticking straight up If
the angling chain is dragging in the
direction of the inner curve Of the up ]
standing huke, 1t is almost o sure
'cotch." Then the line wi h the anchor |
attached is carefully hoistcd, some times
by hand, or if the anchor is very heavy,
by means of capstans. If the spoil is |
q very weighty one--say four, i've or
six thousand pounds, @ driving engine
Is frequently employed. The instances
are few, however, where the fishermen
fail to secure their booty. When nee
sssary the crew of one anchor smack
will lend hand to another. Boats |.
often work in pairs. a cable is
stretched between the vessels, and
dragged on the bottom. When an an
,hor is caught one Of the vessels takes
! position above It and both crews
assist in raising 1t. This method IN
'ures wide sweep of the bottom.
There are two purposes for which the.
catch" is disposed Of. : Usually the
Lnchorsr are sold to be used as an
hors again, for o moderate, or oven
) considerable, degree of rust in
10 way impairs their efficiency as
uch.. If they are too much eaten up
" rust, which seldom happens, they
re-seld- as old irens- Aa shey e.., oss
wrought iron the price brought Is often
considerable. There ure also two ways
" which the fiohernen find a market
alue for their wares They either
ell them directly by hawking
hem about among the vessels in the
!arbor or they sell them to the ship
handlers. Sometimes they have per-
Mission from wharf-owncrs or lescces
o stick the anchors up there with O
office that they are. for sale, with the
rice stated. AS rule they get very
ood prices. New anchors are sold for
We cents q pound now, and the re-
overcd old ones seldom suffer great
r depreciation in value than one cent
pound. Therefore, for every one.
housnnd pounds of anchor they cap
ure the fishermen make about ferry.
ollars, and II the anchor is one Of the
cry heaviest-a eix tlloucand poundcr
their haul nets them about two hun
red and forty dollars. They seldom fake
monster Of that size, however; their
sual capture is between fifteen hun
,-el f,r,a IL I
here ere several rcceono fer this. In
be first place the lighter anchors cre
1ore generally uocd; in the second
lace it is the calling vessels which
lost often lose their anchors, end, ns
rule, they carry lighter archcrs thca
and, in tho third place, most
,rge vessels-whcthcr steam or cell
carry both light end
heavy anchor, and seldom drop the
alter in the hcrbor or Immediately
f. the coast, using it for deeper and
ougher eeas. The fact that steam
essels lose their anchors less frequent
= than sailing vessels is due to their
eing able to use their steam, when
ecessary, to check the strain upon the
nchor chain.
The captured anchor chains often
lalle substantial addition To the gain
( the fishermen, fetching about three
hrec cents pound. Somctir,es they
re very long aud weigh hundreds Of
ounds-
One Of the divers of LEGAL wreck
,g company makes business Of keep
~ On eye open fer lest anchors
rhilc examining or working a~-und
lnl-cn vessels. he is eaid to have To-