The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1911-05-04
JACK GOES FISHING
And He Runs Up Against the Usual
Fisherman's Luck.


vice people out here will have yer.
easy job for the next seven or eigh
months. Just about now they pos
their weather cards - Fair ant
warm'-and the same old card hold
good till about next December. Blu
we have had fine weather since bein,
here. the mercury on one or two day
going to 81. In the morning heav,
fog usually hangs about the tops Of
the mountains for an hour or two
then clears away, and the day Is per
feet. One light rain Thursday morn
ing is the extent of the precipitation
since our arrival.
/ told you I'm my second letter that
Doc and were going to Long Beach
to get fish. Well, we went, and right
here am going to tell you one true
fish story. We were walking along
the street soon after reaching the
city, and who should run into but
our old friend AID Wright, who ran
the Quaker Livery on South Market
for so many years. But back to the
fish. There were about 200 people
on the pier at the time we were there.
This pier runs out into the Pacific
for about three.quarters of mile.
Fishing tackle and bait are furnished
for a small fee, and all one has to
do is to cut bait and throw your hook
into the ocean. ! believe | have al
ready told you i'm my last letter about
taking an S00-mile ride on this ocean
years ago-thirty-five years at least
well, you may not believe it, but
recognized it the moment | got my
eyes on it. The same old water that
| saw in T5---no more, no less-tear-
ing away just as it did then, and
might almost say the same old sea
gulls that | saw at that time, soaring
above the pier and ready to pounce
upon anything they can gulp down.
But back to the fish again. | cast
my hook in, and fshed, but for some
reason or other they were pulling
them out on all sides of me, but |
actually couldn't get a bite, not the
slightest nibble, and have been try
ing to figure out ever since why | had
such miserable luck. and the only
reasonable conclusion | can reach is
it was because | spit on my bait.
| Please see that Bill Lafollett gets
his copy of the Herald this EVENING".
But the McCarty ranch had fish for
supper that evening just the same.
We had about a half hour between
cars at Los Angeles and | bought a
large mackerel for %, cents-you peo-
and we had fine feast. But GER
tainly had a time trying to convince
the sisters that | made the catch,
how | pulled and squirmed. and twist
ed, and bent every effort and also
the pole, and finally landed him. And
would you believe it. they did at last
swallow the whole thing, and also a
good part of the mackerel.
But | had a very nice time, never
theless, in the five hours we were
there. Long Beach is the prettiest
place | have seen so far. 1t has a
population of about 10000, and made
the largest per cent of gain in the
late census of any city on the coast.
Mr.. Wright showed me about the
place and had a nice visit with he
and his good wife. They have a
handsome little home and say they
are contented. also had short but
pleasant visit with Mrs. Margaret
Baker. The lady still owns her home
On South First street and may return
70 it some day.
| have become quite chummy with
a fine old gentleman here by the
name of Cullen, Virginian, sab, one
Of the old typical southern school OF
men, whose hospitality is unbounded,
and whose fiuency of speech has
never been impaired, at least not so
you can notice it. In fact, he is one
Of the finest, most continuous, single
handed speakers | have ever met, and
the beauty of it is-as is not always
the case with this class of men-he
says something All the time, some
thing interesting and instructive. and
absorbed more information from
him about California, oranges, lemons,
gold mining, etc, than | could gather
from any other source in years
time. 1t is a hard matter to get
word in, even edgewise, as the saying
Is, but yesterday when he had gotten
oiled up good | watched my chance,
and when he struck match to light
his pipe, | said "uh-huh," and he i'm
hit his gait again. OF
course, that wasn't saying much, but
It showed at least that | was In on
the talk. Mr.. Cullen left his right
arm on one of the southern battle
fields, but Notwithstanding this terri
bic handicap he has managed to pile
up a snug fortune out here, and it
takes six big figures to represent his
bank account. He came here, OF
course, long time ago, SO years. and
be had all kinds of chances to get
rich, and has certainly improved his
He owns sixty acres
of orange and lemon groves, which
surround two sides OF our ranch, and
which alone mean a cash value oil
s125,000. He showed me through the
packing house the other day, where
u,a snent an antira forenoon and