Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-12-16
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- s. y - oiuSrSu taDle 10 ENJOY
DS2ilsa shad or bluefish in the early
sprins has but little knowledge of the
trouble and patience expended by
some ''toiier at the nets" to furnish him
WITH these delicacies of the season.
sI 'll cook or housewife who does the
/ marketing has q clearer conception of
tale anaount OF work involved in pro-
Z vluing the market with thousands of
!. hsh, but the ma ority of city people
knowsno thing or the habits or homes
OF these fish. or of the various me-
sthods Of catching them. while those
who 1--we far inland, whether in city or
country, understand but little of the
great fishing industry that is carried
on all along our coasts.
MOST of the fish supplied to the great
cities in spring and early summer are
shipped from Norfolk or Old Point
Comfort and when one realizes that
the government pier at the latter place
is the largest on the Atlantic coast,
ana furnishes accommodations for the
landing of seven large steamers at one
4 Time, it is difficult to imagine the pos
I slpllltiess OF such a shipping port adj
SJacent TO important fishing grounds
5 like those OF Chesapeake Bay, Hamp-
ton Roads, and the Atlantic ocean off
Eatteras in the vicinity of the Gulf
stream. When one remembers further
that these vessels give direct and rapid
transportation to Richmond, baltimore,
Washington, Philadelphia, New York,
s Boston. and other cities. he cannot
Deny the commercial Importance of the
fishing industry OF the Chesapeake.
early in March the bluenSh fleet
starts out from New Yorl1-from thir
ty-two to fifty schooners or 'smacks."
or from twenty-five to one hundred
tons burden. A few, more hardy OF
daring than the rest, lead the way.
They stop at. Old Point to try the tenn
peratHre of the water. for bluefsh can
not live in water colder than forty
eight degrees, Fahrenheit, and then
after taking on ice and twenty or
thirty thousand mephaden or bunk
ers" for bait, the smacks proceed to
cruise off Hattera;.
Fortunate indeed is the skipper who
Immediately finds a warm spot where
the fish will bite, for the first bluefish
an New York markets fetch n dollar
apiece, and an expert fisherman has
been known to catch n thousand six
pound fish in seven hours. good aver
age catch being three hundred in five
hours. When a warm spot is found
from fifty to hundre feet in diane
ter and the fish are seen to be plenti-
full. the dories, of which every smack
carries seven or eight, are sent out
each manned by two men. Some bunk
ers are thrown into the bait-mill and
ground into small pieces These the
men throw into the water. making a
greasy place called a slick" and
tempting the fish within reach of the
hooks which are baited with larger
pieces of bunker. AS soon as Il fish
fastens himself to hook, the fisher
yrae1 a ictr Of
throws the line over an unhooker IAN |
arrangement like a boot-jaclS fastened |
60 the seaO, and the fish falls into the |
boat. The captain of the smack, who |
is watching his dores through a glass, |
sends boat to relieve them of their |
lr-ds. SO that the busy fishers need |
$ II stop work. The fish are immedi- |
ateiy dressed and stored with shaved |
ice in boxes prepared for them in the |
lower hold. When three or four thou
sand are obtained, the smack weighs |
anchor and sails for Norfolk or Old |
Point where the fish are repacked in |
barrels and shipped to their destina- |
lion by fast freight, thus avoiding the |
long sail to New York. The wholesale |
price of biuefish varies from four to |
ten cents a pound according to season |
and abundance.
The bluefish travel north as the |
warm weather approaches, at the rate |
of about three miles day. and the
Rmacks follow them to the New Eng |
land coast, fishing along the way and |
shipping from the nearest port. They |
return with the fish in the fall, the sea- |
son ending about the middle of De-
,cember. Many of the bluefish on their |
way north detect fresh water between |
Cape Henry and Cape Charles, and fol- |
low their noses, SO to speak into Ches-
lapeake Bay and Hampton Roads, |
where they are caught with other fish |
in the pounds or weirs that every
where extend out from the shores.
pound is most ingenious. The fish
are directed into the bays" by |
the long straight hedging, and |
when once in the pounds are unable to |
get out. The pound is enclosed by n |
net from thirty TO fifty feet in diane
ter. The weirs are. nshed" between |
,2sand 3 O'Clock in the morning by col |
ored men in oilskins who go out with
lanterns to the various pounds and |
after Stacking up the lines pull UP the |
net which has rope fastened TO it's |
bottom passing over kringles at the |
base of each post. They then bail out
the fish, finding sometimes much va |
lriety. though fish usually run in
Schools" and there is likely to be q
large number of one sort. A pound |
Yields upwards of nifty barrels a day
and In March and April. shad are very
abundant These well known and |
highly esteemed fish bring, at the be-
ginning OF the season, dollar and a
half a pair, but the price soon falls to
forty-five cents. the roe shad remain
ing twice as high as the buck. Trout.
and the little menhaden.
or bunkers are also abundant through
out the season, and sheepshead also |
come to the nets Chesapeake Bay is
especially noted for hog-hsh and spots.
Nf ryta rfl