The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-09-02

BARNECAT TALES
"reminiscences Of a Trip to
the Big South Jersey
Bay.
THE HOOP SNAKE STORY
Fishing, Shooting and the
Catboat-Captain Asa and
the Fleet Officers.

DdtntEdt Day III <1b5hct - 81
Of a place for those who enjoy sailing on
salt water in safe and speedy yachts, with
the added attraction Of excellent fishing.
shooting and grabbing, says the Newark
Sunday cali, The broad, shallow
are alive with snipe. Anybody who can
shoot can yet fifty or sixty yellow leg
snipe in a day with a s%prinkling of small
Ter birds, such as ~graybacks, breakers
and oxeyes. Occasionally a bunch OF
plover will come to the decoys or a stray
wiIlet or curley may drop in. The shoot
ing is done chiefly on the moved mea-
dows from screens or bough houses, but
there is good shooting, also. On the sand
bars and the outer beach. Harvey's Ce-
dars is the favorite place for gunners ana
Forked River is the mecca OF the anglers.
although It's meadows are we'll known
shoot on one day and fish the next. y is
all right to shoot over the meadows II q
stiff breeze is blowing. but none but case
hardened natives can stay two hours IN
the grass during a calm, because OF the
torture indicted by the millions OF mos
~quitoes. a Barnegat mosquito is diherent
from the fresh wafer insects we nave "
the valley Of the Passaic. The -sKeeter
ON the bay shore is full of salt and per-
haps cayenne pepper, too, for she -
hotter thar a wild turnip, and when she
stings a man or woman from up STATE
a hillock the size of a cent IS raiseu
around the puncture. The mosquitoes
| cannot endure a brisk wind, however,
and the wind is almost always "
at Barnegat a.
The weakfish form the chief attraction
at the bay, the only question askea
is whether you want them Dig or
| plenty, If you want them large the cap
| tain OF your boat win take you to one on
| the channels IN which the tide runners
| are to be found. and you may get twenty
| or thirty fish averaging over one one
| half pounds each. If you are out TOT
| quantity he will put you upon the FEEDING
| grounds of the school fish, and your
| Marty may catch 200 or 800 weakfish aver
| aging three-quarfers of a pound each.
| Then there are bluefish, drumhsh ana
| striped bass TO be caught in the bay or
ii the inlet.
Going hshing on Barnegat Bay is m
| thing of a picnic. Big. roomy catboats
| are used. ana all of them have a half
| cabin over the cockpit. The captain OF
| the boat handles it all alone, and It IS
generally a big handful when a stlir
| breeze IS Blowing. He likewise cuts bait
and takes the fish from the hook and says
nothing unless spoken to.
One day last year three Newarkers
went to Forked River, and one of them
| made a bet that the captain would not
| speak during the day unless speken to.
| Ii was agreed that they should take the
| first captain who presented himself and
| that nobody should speak to him after
| the boat was under way. They happened
to engage Dave Chamberlain, who can
etalk a streak when ashore, but on this
| occasion he was as mum as an oyster.
| The two who ad been induced to bet ac-
| cused the other fellow of having entered
| into a compact with the captain, but he
| Indignantly denied it. As the boat was
| drawing up TO the landing one Of the trio
| dropped hot cigar ashes on the back OF
| Dawes hand as it rested OF the tiiler.
Dave exclaimed Gee and the two
claimed the bet, but the third fellow de-
INJURED, saying that they had taken on
unfair advantage.
Another Newarker said that he had
been out several times with George Har-
| ring and tina George had not spoken a
| word during the trips, and he IS not In
the least degree suIky, but is voluble and
| cheerful if encouraged to talk.
The lunches which accompany the Bar
| negat Boats from Forked River are re-
markable for both quantity and quality.
An ordinary h for two anglers and
| the captain viii consist of sixteen slices
| OF buttered bread, a broiled chicken cut
in pieces, a plate of boiled ham, six hard
boiled eggs, half d dozen pickles and as
many soda crackers, a box Of sardines
and a lemon, three liberal cuts of pie.
with cheese, and apples, bananas OF
peaches. The angler is expected to be
| hungry enough to eat his share of this
layout when the call is given to stop.
fishing at about one o'clock and sit down
In front Of the little shelf which IS
hinged to the port side OF the centre-
board trunk. Perhaps there is q box OF
| beer on ice just forward OF the table
| Some fishermen do provide that beverage
| and the hotelkeeper furnishes the Ice
free OF cost. There is always iceWater
| aboard. anyhow, and Barnegat anglers
| have been known to get along with that
| One man who was down there last week
| took out a bottle Of iced tea and one OF
| his companions was genuinely grieved
| when he sampled 1t. He was repeatedly
| told that it was cold tea and winked
4 knowingly at two of the other members.
Finally when he was asked TO try the
| cold tea he poured two fingers OF it into
| a glass and drank it. He spat it over
the side and shouted:-FWhat are you try
ing to do, poison me? What is that
stuffgs
.Cold tea" said the owner of the bot