The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-06
NO "PIL0r SALMON" ON THE PLACE
How n Brookline Man Was Taken In by n
PenobscOt Fishermnn

How a Brookline Man Was Taken In by n
Penobscot Fisherman.
BucKsPoRr. Me. Aug. St is not always the
people from the country who are purchasers OF
green goods or gold bricks. L. Leslie Leslie OF
Brooklnc Mass. is probably safe from the
attack Of confidence men and bunco steerers.
but the way he was sold" by Penobscot
fisherman is history down hero.
For some years Mr. Leslie has been what the
natives call "rusticator,' coming to quiet
little place on the Prospect ridge overlook ing
the Bucksport Narrows OF the Penobscot River.
and in the very heart Of the salmon region.
Mr.. Leslie early fell in low with the clear air.
the cool nights and the early vegetables OF this
section Then the passion came upon him to
buy place Of his own down here. He looked
at all the truck far ms along the Ridge. but
concluded that there was a little too much
labor in nursing the Strawberries and training
the peas and killing potato and squash bugs.
and in the hundred and one little duties which
devolvcd upon the manager OF a garden sass"
reservation.
Time and time again he had looked across
the river to the rocky farms and the little
weather beaten farmhouses OF Verona. and it
pleased him to watch the sturdy farmer fisher
men attending to their weirs which lined the
shores. These are the conventional traps
Ilult VI u IltuBe eAltIluluE Out W tIlo cIdnucl
and terminating in circular inclosure. with a
narrow opening through which the nsh were
likely to find their way in. but usually failed to
find their way out again-something on the
plan Of a balloon fly trap. This strip of shore
or the privilege as It Is called. Is as much
part of the Verona farm as the sheep pasture
or garden patch; in fact, the value Of a farm in
that town j. largely measured by the catch Of
the weir. The value of IA weir depends upon
its location in regard to the currents and eddies
OF the river aud to the facilities they present for
| Il natural and easy course for the big silver
sided salmon on their way up river.
Bro6kline determined to possess little Maine
eS Gomez ana 6rng his family and incidentay
catch lots of salmon for his own table and all
he argued that even Penobscot River sam on
would he apt TO pail as 4 steady diet,
bicycle rode to Prospect Ferry. crossed the
| river on the antique steam boat. then sped
4E9 10 so T"ES 9H5 o h
at the little Grange store just In time to hear
an animated dtIGasfG on the Drift Of which
,ryfne TO IS sell his Eace Mr. fe+lio prisEsd qp
and he Jumped TO the conclusion that such a
yery, useful adjunct had attached itself to the
Night here i might be well to let the. reader
into the knowledge OF the u m az pil2t sal
| mon, SO well Known 10 all HSltTlplk. W mem
ever a weir owner has a streak OF luck out Of
the ordinary he is said to have the pilot sal :;
ecoos and dps m o
to te cauGht-a pure myth. but ttme-hon-
Tie Hopkins place. although picturesque
in ts dilapidation. was one OF the least valuable
in Verona; 1t was rocky where it was not
slight indentntion or cove by which the ,eddics
| whrled UP or down river with the tide, and
into which the salmon and aIewiy"s and shad
| NpufnrpI at rare intervals, The HOPKINS
| weir caught about one quarter as many fish as
a' @ nf visit sn' hat ana nles
| dumping OF half a dozen dredge scows Just
above the cove had made temporary change in
Hopkins weir in considerable numbers. This
circumstance wa; the pilot salmon
| Hopkins the elder had died some years before.
ami the place was conducted 10y young kn9ch'
&c, away from The rocks and sand and buy
u farm oyer il Monroe NJ leslie locke
a "% n 59S Tne nf% nsk'd queS
Il SUPPOSE / thcr" is a pilot salmon about,
With ~ P hfy doe,n then sud
denly answered: "Sartin. sir; sartin.''
The trade was made and al right and title in
L"sri1 tcsIie. his heirs and assigns forever
IN" purchaser wanted to have s2mething sqid
that it was all right; that til" pilot salmon was
a part Of the appurtenanres of the privilege,
and that there was no need of any further
This Year, early in the season. Mr.. Leslie
and all the l"s,les came down ma took pos
Tned PH up G a"d GTSs leslie ara
doz.n natives 10 put in the weir Blu, salmon
wers above and below, and everywhere, else
were taking salmon AT tn" rate Of half dozen
into his weir. Whore was the pilot salmon
He had ceEtpinly bought pilot salmon will
tho other salmon; After waiting what he
thought might be reasonable time. he began
t%grrIw suspirG2uH tie Gonisd his trouble &c
the greatest ways in Verona.
They sold i'm. that's what they did-them
HOpkinscS They kept that pilot salmon out
jrst wait awhile an I'll locate him" said Xack
A day or TWO pltorward he came to vhe Les,
lie, place, and, drawing tho proprietor to one
u know where your salmon is The Sellers
bows over on the ocean shore have got I'm
They've been making Zig hauls, and youl
pilot salmon is Just what has been doing the
Forthwith Mr.. Leslie vent down to the long
Of the Srs HGyfb J4 nm %@m
guilty and shcepsf Hor 2 tine ana then sud
anything about i, had never had one eycep
one they raised tnemsslyeTT and that had run
SANDY Point. la his nsh Israel was getting
lots o! salmon and must have plot. i tool
GS OF Labor ana PAN" sbn aH9 CSfer 50 9T r
Indignant native who asserted that HI
wouldn't b" S" mean mTo as S to s buy =, anGtnS
lie had seen the HOPKINS pilot, and he was
| Zig fellow. with one red gill-would know hin
anywhere lie didn't know whore he was bu
he had snSpcions that the Treats, down, OF
Cane JelsOn, were getting more nsh than thel
could in any other way II cost Mr.. Leslie /:
to get down to Treats but il was money wei
spent Here he was told that he had been I'M
Inercifuly sold that there was no such thinL
as pilot salmon, and that Hopkins was liza
bio, Nc.
Finally. with blood in his eye. Leslie sough
out Hopkins, from whom he had purchased
tho place.
PILOT salmon p said Enoch g sold him Il
ye sure The pilot salmon was that little muC
bank which the dredRers dumped on me-.
spose the ice washed il all away ag'in, and TIL
salmon go whO0ping up by as they did nine
teen out Of the twenty years | lived there"
And Mr. Leslie went back TO Verona saddle
and considerably wiser man. II is said tina
the story reached Brookline and that 1t will h'
some time before his friends cease 10 concern
themselves about tthe ways and habits OF thu
pilot salmon Of the PenobscoI