The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1902-08-08
JONES ISLAND FISHERMEN
Sketch of a Big Industry in Mil
waukee, Wis.
LIVELIHOOD FOR MANY.
Between 10000 and 10000 Pounds Of Fish
are Shipped Daily-Scenes on
Jones Island.

or the Eastern states. milwaukee, nSn.
as they are called. are in demand. Time
was when fish caught in Lake Michigan
in this vicinity brought two and tire"
cents more a pound than fish caught in
the other Great Lakes. Why this was
so is not explained except that the fish
ermen who ply their trade in this lake
in this neighborhood are skilled in their
craft, know how to handle the fish after
they are caught. and, above all, know
where to find the best varieties.
Bright Side of the Work.
To catch and prepare five or ten tons
of fish for the market involves a great
deal Of labor, for fishing as a business !
is as different from the sport Of the
angler as foot ball is from ping-pong. |
1t is true there are times when the lot
Of the hardy fisherman is far from be-
morning when the lake is rufi1ed only by |
a light breeze, when the sky is blue and
made beautiful by great snowy clouds
that promise only fair weather., when
fishing is good and the world seems hap
py, then the fisherman embarks i'll his
a light heart and directs his way out
into the lake whore he knows the fish
are most plentiful. Those are times
when the men in the fishing business are
happy. They think Of the toilers in the |
mills and factories and the glad that
they are permitted to breathe the in
vigorating air of the lake instead Of the
atmosphere Of the mills.
Fishermen Endure Hardships.
in the spring and late in the fall, life on
the bounding billow IS far from being
q summer holiday. It becomes Il grim
t"ht with the elements and their work
becomes toll of the hardest kind. Rails
ing icy nets from the cold waters of the
and laboring with the management of
the boat is bitter work. The hardships
endured by the tisherfolk during the cold, |
raw days are severe beyond the under
standing Of most people whose daily
routine embraces nothing more rigorous
in the way of physical endurance than
a walk and from a cOzy office or other
place Of employment equally as COM
Portable.
But for all that the fishermen cling to
their vocation. Some quit after a time,
some who have accumulated a cempeten-
cy, others who have found more attract
i've employment, but for the greater part
Il fisherman born is a fisherman until he
is too old to sink a net or handle a line.
A Community of Fishermen.
Jones island is the seat of Milwaukee's
fishing industry. This fact proclaims
itself in a variety Of ways. \ glance
across the river from the mainland near
the harbor inlet indicate the nature of
the principal occupation of the inhabi- |
tants Of his peculiar little island. How
ever, if one is in doubt, let him analyze
the Odors that are waited across to him
and he will find that although there is a
trace Of "something burning in the air.
the most pronounced smell is that of fish.
The garbage crematory which is situated
~, 1orn, island Dpri&c on nInr that
mingles with the fshy smells and it
might be said that the latter have lost
some Of their individuality as a conse-
Quence
A Visit to Jones Island.
Filled with a desire to know
something of the fishing industry of the
island one stands on the pier opposite the
life saving station and whistles for Il
ferry. Presently a roughly made boat
the garbage plant wharf. A diminutive
Jones Islander is in charge. He is a
boy of hardly more than 10 years, yet
he handles the unwieldly oars like a vet
eran. An understanding as to ferry
charges is quickly reached and he is
island and in and out Of the little bayous
into which the fishermen direct their
craft when the days work is done. The
odor becomes pronounced. The fish
smell is in the ascendency IND soon that
something burning odor is lost in the
however, in the impressions that are
quickly received of the signs of activity
manifested everywhere. A fishing tug
has just arrived and her crew is dis
charging her cargo. Four brawny men
are engaged in carrying the result Of the
days work from the hold into the fish
houses; Heavy wooden boxes that taper
toward the hOttOm are 11SpH sc rQaontH.
cles for the fish and in these they are car
ried into the shanties. The tug seems
overloaded with these tubs. Some con-
tain nets. wet and Shiny, but the most
lake. Trout seem to predominant, al
though here and there are tubs filled
with herring. A few perch are there.
Now and then, on rare occasions an
eel is numbered among the mass. but
eel are more often caught by the little
fellows the men who fish near the shore
in small dories Or crude sail boats.
The fish have been dressed. which
mean that they have been shorn of
whatever exterior protection they had.
One wonders how these men could find
time to clean SO many fish, when one has
in mind visions of the botchy work the
amateur fisherman makes Of the work Of
cleaning his CATCH. But these fish are
cleaned and are ready for shipment. The
fish are placed in barrels and before night
they are to be transported across the
river. where they are carted to the fish
dealers who send them to all parts of
the country. The catch weight perhaps
700 pounds. This is rather larger than
is usually made at this season Of the
year. Fishermen say business is slack,
but they look for good results during
the fall.
Fishing with Steam Boats.
Another steam tug puffs busily into the
harbor and her cargo is unloaded. AL
together there are eleven large tugs in
the trade and several gasoline boats in
the Jones Island fleet. They start out
between 6 and I o'clock in the morning
and make haste to reach the spot where
they placed nets the day before. Each
tug carries from two to four miles Of
nets. Some carry more. On reaching
the fishing grounds, places that look for
all the world like n other part of the
lake, the boats come to a stop. A buoy
marks the end of the nets. The end is
caught and drawn into the boat over a
large wooden spool, which saves the
threads from injury. and relieves the
strain. Yard after yard is hauled in.
The fish come up with the net, fastened
securely by the gills, and one by one they
arc rolea Sq6 and thrown into tho ho~e.