The times., 1901-05-05

Captors-AthIetic Feats of "a Pfscs-
torinI King of Northern wnteru.
When the Royal Chinook. the greatest OF
all food fish, enters the Columbia River
| from the Pacific Ocean at the end Of the
month of March the myriad gin nets and
traps stretched from the Oregon 20 the
Washington shore are not the only dan
/ gers he has to encounter
| on the Washington side. where the CO.
lumbia and the Pacific meet. there is a
sharp spur Of rock hanked ~ a beautiful
/ grove OF pine trees. This IS Fort Canbv
| where the United States Government has
/ made a beautiful army post mt Of a vii
derness and where several batteries OF ar
/ ttllery are constantly on duty. The Gifts,
/ falling abruptly to the level OF the water
/ shelve of at the surface and run out
/ level with II for hundred feet. washed
/ and left bare alternately hv the tide
In this floor Of rock are numerous cir
I eular holes, many of them four feet deep
ard the same distance across. With every
receding tide salmon are left hounderina,
and stranded in these holes. and il vou
happen to be sufficiently IN the good
graces of the commanding officer Of th..
post you can Chamber down the steep
sides OF the cliffs when the base Of rock
I is awash and enjoy sport as exciting and
novel as any hunter might desire
The Royal Chinook often comes into the
Columbia weighing from forty to fifty
pounds, while some of the species reach
twenty pounds more. A strong gamy fish
at all times, he is at his best when he
first strikes fresh water from the sea.
Even after a swim Of hundreds OF miles
Up the river he is still able to leap straight
into the air and jump several feet spr-
SWfFifnU nd rtIrt
up cataractS as if his fms were wings
w hen he finds himself stranded in one OF
the FoTt Canoy water holes he has the
strength OF horse and is no mean op-
ponent even when his enemy is armed
with gan hook and stands az a poiut of
vantage above him
Stripped down TO a bathing suit vo,1 sca,
tne hoies ftom the top of the cliff as the
tlde goes out. watching eagerly for the
com cornmotion and impotent tail Tapping that
NLi give notice or a stranded salmon
soon the signs appear. and. cager for the
oattie, Tor II IS a battle and no. q sIaueh.
ter; you scramble down the side OF the hsH
ana pick your way carefully over the SIM
perry rock tIil you stand beside your fish
By TINS time he is lashing himself ii.to a
Iury- he sees your shadow and. wIiilIng
round, faces the new and unknown dam
ger. qulvertng along his whole Iergtb
Ihen ne dives, using every inch OF his
swimming room and seeking safety in con-
slant and incredibly swift motion The
sandy deposit in the bottom of fhe hole
AIDS his purpose. and soon vqu have to lie
nat on the rock and hang 0Var the .s1,ye ~
irE Tis prison TO get a glimpse Of him at ALL
Ihen ne curls along the bottom a. quietly
dS ne can, ana as the water RAPIDLY clears
You see him in full view for the first time
II 1! you are out Tor outchery 5Sl may hack
MN 10 pieces with your glm and bring Rim
70 the surface. poor substitute sOr the
DeditiIul and symmetrical creature ef half
an hour before
But if you care for real snort vor1 viii
lay your gan aside within easy reach Of
your hand. plunge into the water hole and
give him a fair fight. To you there are
TWO clements of danger. his fins and syiIIs
that can rasp the body like saws and biS
TAU a blow from which. if delivered with
the full sweep OF his body, can knock
any man off his feet
The moment he feels BY the disrlara
ment OF water that some other body has
entered the trap ne leaps straight up in
the AR. rising sometimes fully a foot
ABOVE the hole. Once in great while he
fallS on the slippery rock. and before YOU
can scramble out and get 10 him with
your gaff has beaten and wriggled his
way along to another hole But generally
he VIII come straight back to you again
and when he does you must be ready for
anything. For the next ten minutes Your
experience Is exciting enough. for he is
never stili a moment He does not vOlun-
tdrny attack, but the confined space
makes every struggle for freedom an on
slduSht. Your hands may grasp him fifty
times. but II you are not expert enough
to grip his tail as he slips through your
palms you cannot hope TO kill him
Uncle Sam's artilierymen are for the
most part athletes. pretty well able to
ride with and serve their guns for many
hours at stretch L have seen more than
one OF them so exhausted after a ten
minute tight with "A salmon in these wa
ter holes that they were pulled out by
their comrades painting and trembling
ike children.
The Royal Chinook at bay is a wrestler
and boxer combined. His strength is mar
velous and he is as rapid in his move
ments as an eel IT, before exhaustion
comes to you, you can clutch and hold
aim long enough TO run his head against
he side of the rocky basin and stun him
You have cOmpasSed his end in what is
considered at Fort Candy the true sport
nS manner. All that remains to be done
5 to throw him out onto the rock above
Jump after him, and give him the coup
ie grace with the gaff through his giIis.-
rhe Chicago Record Herald.