The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-05-14
will then pounce on the vacated place. drop In

~AaNNeN AAoo kWVhN1 Hllbb vi
waterfront and plenty OF piers. which, so far
as observation extends. are never used for any,
thlng except to fish from. and from the lake
the spectacle OF 10000 men and boys with
poles held rlgidly is interesting, No man
knows why all OF these piers were built. No
nody knows why they are maintained at the
clty's expense. Occasionally-very OCCASION
aliy-h painting tug happens along and moors
to one OF them for q little while, then puffs
away. not having discharged any freight or
taken on any. Apparently it stopped merely
TO catch its second wind. Readers OF Chicago
newspapers are told a great deal about
Chlcagos tremendous shipping interest. and
no doubt 1t Is large. 1t Is barge shipping, or
shipping that might as we'll be barges for all
OF the grace or speed there Is in II, and It hangs
always about the mouth and foul length OF tho
unspeakable river. At any and every season
OF the year the lake front OF Chicago. the vast
body OF water which. twenty miles long. runs
to the eastward horizon. is almost tenantless
OF sails. A visitor reads OF the gross ton
mage OF Chicago. a lake port. and OF New
York. n world port. He learns that there Is no
remarkable disparity between them. Ho goes
to New York and he sees the crowded miles Of
the East River with its forest OF tall masts. He
hears always the sullen booms OF the whistles
on the North River. He sees the impudent
tugs In scores rounding the bowed end
vi w DhtteEy. he sees the racing SOUND
steamers going In or out. Then he goes to Chi
cago and he sees a magnificent blue body OF
water-much more water than he saw In New
York-and on 1t two small tugs and. possibly.
i've small schooners. loafinR lazily to the north
ward and half hull down. The statistics which
gave him the gross tonnage did not tell him
that Chicago's shipping was to be found, near
ly all OF 1t. In the river. which winds about in
the town. and did not tell him also that the
tonnage was taken up almost wholly by iron
ore. lumber and grain. Vessels do not bring
bales OF silks and spices from far Cathay to
Chicago. The railroads attend to that. Also a
man. II he could stand It. might sit at the
mouth OF the Chicago River for three months
and keep count Of the vessels and at the end OF
the period he would be even more puzzled by
the stated amount OF the gross tonnage. be-
cause comparatively few ships go in and out.
II the fish are biting when the man throws
In his line from the pier. he will be kept busy
hauling them out and stringing them. There Is
no monkey business about the Michigan perch,
herring or bullhead when he is hungry. He
goes straight for the minnow and swallows 1t
and is jerked eight feet up in the air and lands
Tapping upon the planks. all in the space OF
five seconds. The water along the piers Is not
often more than six feet deep. and on clear
days. when the surface is still. the swimmers
may be seen in schools four feet below the
surface. When they can be seen. however.
they will not bite. A rough day. with the wind
from the mainland. appears to excite them to
frenzy. Simultaneously reaching the conclu-
sion that this Is their last time to eat, they will
seize anything that looks like food and hang
on with the ~tenacity OF death. A half
hour Of this kind Of thing is apt to pail upon
any one save the most enthusiastic pier fisher
man. and after he has had all the fun he wants
he haheS Ia zilv and amanda tina TINA IN talkIp1
to his neighbors. The chances are that he will
know a half dozen mon within sound OF his
voice-staid. respectable men enough, engaged
ostensibly In the various occupations and pro-
~fessions and all stealing time from their Of
fees. Because OF this universal Chicago de-
sire to hustle by hanging about the piers and
catching small fish, the May mornings along
the lake front are times Of social reunion.
Bankers. merchants. physicians and engineers
meet there who never see one another at
all in the city. Men who were boys together
at one OF the public schools and have
not set eyes on each other for nve
years. happen together and let the perch go
while they tell OF the things they have done
and are going to do. Chicago is a tremendous
city In territory. II In nothing else. aud 1t may
easily happen that a grocer who lives "a the
North Side may not see a former crony who
lives near Jackson Park on the South Side
o"ce IL zen years inueeu' .hete are many
peopioo h II Nor'h olae. WHEN 1t tne us
,'hct'veiy GERMAN paf1 y 'he OWL VINO nave
g y ."euI a ~ q he'ei eI'
.neir leel sou'hoi Tue river wnich ruhs'"roush
lux alp1oN e', u ny.
The pier fishing in method and result Is
iuVhti.ai "i'h ~ eiees ha"'n nv D nv
uenH"' Uu many 'housauu' VI nihsfiuah smal
poys' lhe po'eS useu are =" inc same
cheapuoss anu iraEni'y. the INES are the
same inc hooks are the same ana the
manner AZ "hich 'he perch arc y"hkeu
vlolehtly iorth Is tne same. Inc only ai-
ierehce ivs IL II 'acI tha, 'ho ooy eApHoI-
INK sma,i poor III some creeA ~ pretty upt'o
nave Feu anu green noa' oopoihs upcu tne
wafer. "heh thls noat goes uhuer ne puiIs.
IN 'he iake no hoa's are useu. pecauso mo
water ordinarily ID 30 roueh tna1 the noa'
"ouio oe uhoeri 1t more 'nan nan inc tHe any
way: ihe hsner 'elS wheh 10 d pi'e u
Inc ieei Oh IT, put ne makes .he o'o oespera,e
yank. tne perch oleeh describing d senlciIc,e
twenty ieet across anu iahaihe upon soihe iel-
10" PACK VINO slts on the other s'oeo Oh the pier.