Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1900-03-01
MIDWINTER FISHING.
Catching Pike, Bass and Smelt Through
the Ice of Lake Champlain.


cold zero weather the lake closed over
from shore to shore, and the more ven
tursome of the ice-nshermen began to
push their little fishing shanties out from
the land OFF Rock Point the lake was
dotted with them, like toy village, and
We concluded 1t was time to join the busy
settlement. 1t was something of "A task
TO drag and pry our shanty over mixed
sand ana snow to the edge of tho ice; but
once on that smooth. black, glary field
stretching away westward for eight miles
without a break, we two could have push
ed II along with a finger apiece.
We choose spot a little apart from the
other fishing huts, over reef where we
had had good sport fishing for pike dur
ing the summer. In fishing, If you nave
no other guide, 1t is always well to choose
a spot where the floor of the lake or
stream is broken by some inequality,
either a sand-bar. d reef or even n sunk
en- log or boat. Fish gather in such a spot
just as wild animals gather about hut
in the woods or a rock I'm the fields. There
is suggestion of shelter or protection in
anything large enough to attract attcn-
ton at little distance i'm the water; and
perhaps, too, the reef or sandbar is rec
ognizcd by fishes as n convenient place
to meet one another and pass the time OF
day Just as loafers choose corner in the
city, which breaks the long, indefinite
monotonY OF the street.
Tho ice was so thick and black. and the
water underneath so dark, that we could
not, Of course, see the reef over which
We wished to cut our fsh-hole. But we
knew from familiar landmarks exactly
Nherc ii was, so while one of us held the
shanty, to prevent its gliding away in the
brisk wind, the other took the hu chct and
chopped a hole in the ice about "A foot in
diameter. AT a depth Of seven or eight
inches, the last stroke OF the Ratchet
made a passage for the squirting. gurging
water, and we had Il round hole at our
service large enough to accommodate the
biggest muscallonge in the lake.
Tho next thing to do was to plant our
fishing hut so that the aperture We had
cut in the floor would come directly over
the hole in the ice. We then anchored the
hut by cutting smaller holes and driving
in four pegs, one on each side. and filing
tho holes around the pegs with water,
which sooon froze ana held them perfect
ly tight. TO make all secure we scored hal
low trenches along the edge Of the rum
ncrs, and filled these also with watev, which
hardened and held our house -sledgc like
a vice.
After building fire in the small sheet
iron stove inside. we were ready to begin
tho sport of the day. Can you aginc
anything more luxurious than fishing
through the ice, in temperature of n
degrees, seated in campchairs, sheltered
from the biting wind outside. and sur
rounded 10y all the little comforts Of n
modern sportsman, from pipes and tobac-
co to outing literature? We had baited our
hooks with strips of salt pork. and werc
now sitting. one on each side of the fish
hole. dangling our lines companionably in
ten feet of water. The wind whstled Owe
our little hut. and we could hear II swC ep-
ing away across the ice with A dry. rust
ling sound, but not a Whit of it disturb
ed The .azily floating smoke of our pipes.
We were as snug and cosy as the proven
bal bug in rug" and yet wide awake
ana kconly alive to the Joys of a midwin-
ter day.
For five minutes, perhaps, We sat COM
plaCcntly smoking and "bobbing" our
lines up and down, to attract the atten-
ton of any passing fish. Then my com
panion threw his hand up sharply. test ed
the pull of the line for an instant. and
began to haul it in hand over hand He
had felt n bite, and had struck just in
the nick of time to hook lis fish.
Now, there is a peculiar flavor of cX-
element in pulling "a struggling fish out
of big lake through hole in the floor
into very small house-particularly the
first fish of the season. So there was II
simultaneous flying of pipes and scat
tering of tobacco, as there suddenly flash
ed up out of the darkness into our very
faces the writing. Tapping body of tw o
pound pckere his sharp-toothed Jaws
me. Down he came on the pine floor with
zap and drummcd upon it Till 1t rat
tied to the farthest corner. My fellow
fisherman bounced upon his prize with
both hands, while ! quickly slid box
across the hole, lest the pickerel should
loosen the hook from his jaws and flop
back into the water. But there was little
danger OF that. as we had to cut the hook
from his throat before We could dislodgo
it, so ravenously had he seized the strip
of bobbing pork
This goodly pickerel was the royal
catch of the day Two small pike and a
perch followed to my companions credit
before | had so much AS a bite. Then my
luck began. and l distanced him by three
fish, two OF my catch being black bass.
fish rarely captured through the ice l
also got couple of sme.t, the first OF a
travelling school evidently, for from that
time on We caught scarcely anything else.
Pork as bait was promptly discarded for
smelt's eyes, which are tidbit that can
not be resisted even by the relatives of
the victim.
At noon We quit fishing for an hour and
cooked a most savory meal of fried smells
and fried potatoes over our little stove,
to which We're added by the way OF
trimmings" hot coffee bread and butter
douGhnu;s, and pie. Commend me to Il
fsherman's appetite on midwinter day,
for full disclosure of the delights of the
palate
We smoked for while after dinner
with our lines tied to "tip-upS'-smal|
crosses of wood, the horizontal arms rest
ing across the fish hole the line being
attached to the short vertical, while the
long vertical tips up when a fish tugs at
the bait. This was partly experimental
with us. for we had heard that a fisher
man may tend" a dozen holes or more
on the open ice in tins fashion. and wish
ed to test it. On the whole. it worked
satisfactorily, though We lost some fish
We might have caught. had We neid the
line i'm orr fingers.
Al four o'clock we concluded that We
had fish enough and sport enough for the
day and starred homeward across the ice
in the gathering dusk, each with a string
of about forty pike, pickerel, bass. and
smelt.-James Buckham in the New York
Post.
A WOMAN'S SOLILOQUY IN 1850.
know my husband really tries
a pleasant home to make
Blu; ne can't seem to make such pies
As father used to bake.
He keeps the parors very neat;
Cares for the bd"y, toe
But oh, he doesn't roast the meat
As papa used 10 do
He has good taste in cutting out.
And sewing his own clothes
That means economy, no doubt
But fathers cooking goes,
| | really mus, insist that Jake
81. l..