Gilpin observer., 1907-01-24
TALE OF A
BIG CATCH

| They were telling fish stories and sew
eral accounts of remarkable catches
mad been given, when Capt. Kenny of
the auxiliary sloop Jennie r. spoke up.
The Jennie r. is a stanch little YES
sci that takes out fishing parties, and
these parties are mostly made up of
devoted fishermen who know what
kind OF fish are running at various sea-
sons and what sort of tackle to brins,
along with them. But once in a while
freak fisherman with freak tackle
turns up at the pier and goes along,
too.
Talking about big catches" said
Capt. Kenny, when he spoke up, "the
biggest catch | ever saw made on a
single line was 81 ling and skate 1t
was on a Thanksgiving day, two or
three years ago.
I'VE started out about eight o'clock
in the morning with some 60 fisher
men aboard, most of whom had been
with me often and knew how to catch
fish. 1t was but little past low water
and in going out we struck the bar.
While we were getting off there
was commotion on the float, and a
skiff put off with a man in it who was
waving his hands excitedly and shout
ing for me to wait. He got aboard, all
right, for 1t took us Is minutes or so
to get across the bar.
While we were going down to the
bell buoy the fishermen overhauled
stranger who had come out in the skiff
also got out his tackle. You should
have seen it.
With fathom of chain for lead
er it would have been just the thing to
catch sharks with. The line was a
small hawser, and the hook would
have anchored the sloop in blow.
We'll, we came to down by the bell
buoy. and before the boat had tailed
out on her chain with the tide the
fishermen were pulling in lines. The
bay was alive with them.
1T was cast and haul in all the time
for everybody but our friend who had
come aboard in the skiff. He had
taken for himself place in the midst
of the others, baited his hook and SOL
emnly lowered it overheard; but he
wasn't getting bite.
When it was getting to be time for
us to get up anchor and start for home,
because the fishermen had more fish
than they could carry, the stranger
got busy. Something was on his hook.
His line tore through the water
back and forth from stem to stern of
the sloop. 1t described circles along
the side of the boat and zigzagged
here and there. The lines of the fish
ermen were wound up in a skein and
some of them were snapped from the
rods.
THE stranger fisherman braced him.
self and the others began to cut their
lines to save their rods and reels. The
water fairly boiled.
AT length two or three Irishmen
went to the aid of the stranger and
helped him to bring up his line with a
on deck.
In the midst of it was a skate as
big as the top of cook stove, and
twisted about the line that held him
were all the other lines that he had
entaugled while skating through the
water.
On the way up from the bell buoy
the fishermen untangled some of their
lines, but most of them had to be cut.
Every line had ling on it, and every
line was tangled up with the line that
caught the skate, and the total num-
ber of fish hauled up on that one line
was 81 ling and skate-and I can
prove it.
1.-THE stranger said that his name
was Baxter, and he wasn't very used
to fishing. He was so gratified over
his big catch that he offered to pay
for all the damage his skate had done.
The fishermen good-naturedly re-
fused to be compensated. and insisted
that he should take the fifty-seven ling
and the skate home. He left the skate
and the last saw of him he was going
to Harway avenue with the ling on his
back in burlap bag. No. he never
came back"