Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-02-21
THREE LARGE HAULS BRING S13,.
500 TO FISHERMEN LIVING
At M'GREGOR.
WEIGH 10000 POUNDS
Tasks is Enormous in Preparing Them
For Shipment to New York Mar
kets Where They Sell For
Good Price.

/ l 'lSSOI, Il GU. IL IS QuSo'loh AAe'o
recently been much discussed in this
city as to the value Of an acre OF MISS
issippi river water. The estimate has
been made that an acre of Mississippi
river valley land near here is worth
heralding far and near when 1t pro-
duces $4,000 in three years. If such
| is the case then the question here is
how much is an acre of the Father of
Waters worth? 1t has produced about
! $4,000 or ten times as much as the
land and in the same length of time
! too
| In February, 1911, two McGregor
fishermen, Adolph Larson and Fred
Worth, caught in a single haul under
the ice $4,000 pound of buffalo fish
which they sold for $4,000. February
20, 1918, they made a haul Of $1,000
pounds of buffalo in the same acre of
water and sold it for $4,000. Today
they are sitting in their canvas cover
ed boat guarding night and day So
900 pounds more of the big wrigglers
which they captured under the ice Sun
day. The lot will sell for nine to
ten cents pound live weight or about
$4,000. For the three, hauls this gives
an aggregate Of 10000 pounds of fish
which brought the two fishermen $13,-
900.
Manner of Shipment.
AS soon as the final word about the
selling price comes from the commits
sion firm at New York, Fishermen Lar
son and Worth will saw a square hole
in the ice and begin the enormous task
of dipping out the fish and preparing
them for shipment The work will &C.
cupy the better part of a week. Dur
ing the whole time the fishermen will
stand waist deep in the ice water lift
! ing the fish in hand seines. AS the
buffaloes average about five pounds
each, some 10000 fish will be lifted out
before the great seine will-~foat free
of its precious burden. Last year the
haul was taken by team down the ice
| to Prairie du Chen for shipment Eight
teams were on the ice for five days
hauling the fish by the wagon load
| This year the buffaloes will probably
be boxed on the ice ready for shipping
and then be teamed across to WaukOn
Junction. Iowa and shipped from there
in carload lots to. New York city In
time for the Lenten season.
A Fish Paradise.
| Larson's and Worth's ''haul" as such
SEEMING places are called, is what is
known in fishermen lore as natural
hold.up for fish. Opposite Worth's
Landing seven miles north of McGreg-
or, long sand bar projects from an
island in the center of the river west
into the main channel. Behind this
the waters back up and quiet shell
tered place is afforded fish. There
are good many such natural holdups
on the Mississippi and frequent large
catches of channel fish are made in
them No hauls, however have equal
ed in size the three which Mr. Larson
and Mr.. Worth have made, nor have
the fish ever congregated in any other
| hodup with the same annual regular
ity.
1t is the nature of the buffaloes, the
| fishermen say, to bunch together in the
fall and remain inert in great masses
in the deep waters of the main channel
through the winter months. Along the
! last of February they begin ITO move"
swimming slowly about in great
circle. Leaving the channel they in
variably seek a sheltered place above
a sand Der, there to remain until the
ice mels. The fisherman knowing
this buffalo characteristic and learn
ing the sand bars which they favor an
nually watch for their coming in Feb
ruary. Let them once crowd into the
shallow enclosures and the SEEMING of
them becomes comparatively simple
matter.
These natural fishing places are not
purcha sable nor can they ever be legal,
ly owned. Yet among the fisher folk
they are always recognized as the def
mite property Of one of their number
and no trespassing ever occurs. The
purchase price Of such proprietary
recognition is "cleaning out" The
waters above the bars are usually full
of snags. 1t is impossible to seine
where there are snags. Let the fisher
man go in and clean out such place
and then he may hold it as his own
special preserve for as long as he
wants it. Fisherman Larson and
Worth have been in undispured pos
session of their haul" for five years.