The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1921-03-07
Poor MI am S
Rock


tN'ess anu w uhantityE
buy them" MacRae put m
softly.
'ot COURSE seubs,y asr~ed -Bu,
buying direct means collecting. I
have the carriers true. But where
am ! going TO find men TO whom I
can turn over a So. 900 boat and a
couple of thousand dollars In cash
and ay 10 HIM Go buy me
sa,lmon'r'
MacRae runde the plunge he hAd
bccn coming to while Stubby talked
TN gct them for yon WAS going
TO buy huet~cks around saultty any.
way for the frceh. fish market In
town N I can make a SURE delivery
connection. l know thoae grounds
| know a hot of fishermen IL YOU
give me 20 per cent over Cover
prices for htuehacks delivered at
Crow Harcor III yet them
This grows interesting stuhby
Strengthened in hts chair. Have you
suitable boat.-
no" MaeRae admitted. '1sus I
have been looking around. nnd
that can charter one cheaper than
can build-untl such time As
make enough TO build fart able car.
rier"
I'm charter ycu one stuoby Of.
fered- That's where part of cur
money Is uselessiy tied up. I'm going
to sell two my foot-rs and a srino
boat. There's one called the Black.
bird. fast. s~aworthy rig you can
have At a nominal rata
"Aii right MacRae nodded
And now" stnbby rose snd
stretched his one good arm and the
other that was vtsihiy twisted and
scarr~d between wrist and elbow.
above his head. Tets 10 downstairs
and prattie. ] sce q car m front.
and ] hear twftter,nx volocsA-
CHATTER v.
- Boots md SaAussA
TIE biuehack. q lively and eocfh-
some fish. IN the first 10 show IN
great schools. the spring salmon n
always In the gulf. but the spring
IL finny mystery with no known
rule for his comsngs and xvtngx nor
his numbers An the otherr. the blue
back. tho sccksy- the hump. the
coho and the dos salmon run IN the
order named They can he rcckoned
ON as a man reckons On Changes OF
the moon. These are the mainssay
Of the salmon canners
In the spring. when ME tnAss On
q new prompting. the blue b . X
salmon shows fsrst in the gulf. Al
rrst the schools pass into the Straits
of San Juan. Here thu joint fleets
Of British Columbia and Of Puget
Sound begin to harry them. A vsek
or 10 days later the vanguard WIN
BE- of NAnaimo. And In another
week they Win b breakinR vAtw iiks
trout around tfs rocky ha9 q
squissy island
by the time dbsy vUsU charA n
late Aprn. tfsars v~rs - local pUwcs
boats 10 b~gfn taxing tfun. for Tact
MAcRas made the rounds OF Squttty
10 ten the fishermcn that he w2s
putting on . carrier b take the ffrsf
run OF biueksck - Vancouver mar.
lkesa
They vrs . trffs psu2mtsfie.
Other buyers hsd tried n. men
gambling on . shoe-trsng for q stake
in the fish trade. buyers unable TO
make regular trips. whereby there
was a tale Of many simon rotsed In
waiting fish holds thru deprnding on
n carrier that did not come.
But since the Folly bay csnnry
never opened until the fish ran 20
men. ohafing against inaction after
an idle winter. took = chance and
troiied for Jack MacRaa
To the trpilers' surprise th~y found
themselves dealing with a n~v type
OF independent buyer--a man who
made hia market trips with clock
like precision. He managed II by
grace Of an able sra boat. engsned 70
drive thru SEA and wind. and by the
nerve and endurance TO drive her n
any weather.
II was work. strain Of mind and
body. long hours fflled with discom-
fort. But Macrae had never shrunk
from things like that He was aware
that few things worth while come
easy. The world. 10 far az he knew,
seldom handed a man fortune done
up in tissue paper merely because he
happened to crave its possession.
He made a hundred dollars his
first trip. paid the trolicrs s cents a
fish more on the second trip. and
| cleared hundred and fifty. In the
second week OF his venture he struck
n market almost bare OF fresh sal
mon. with s.Too shining biuebacks in
his hold. He made $500 on that ain
gle cargo.
/ A Greek buyer followed the Black.
bird out thru the Narrows that trip.
MacRae beat him two hours to the
itrolltng feet at squitty. fleet that
was growing in numbers.
''Bluebacks arc IS cent..- he ssid
20 the first man who ranged along.
side to deliver. And I want 10 tell
you something that you can talk
over with the rest Of the crowd. I
have market for every fish this
bunch can catch. II I can't handle
them with the Blackbird, I'll put on
another boat I'm not here to buy
| fish Just TIL the Folly Bay cannery
| opens. I'll be making regular trips
| To the end Of the salmon season. Ny
price win be as good as snybody's.
better than some. II Cover gets
| your bluebacks this season for rs
cents. IL will be because you want
| 70 make him a present. Meantime.
| there's another buyer an hour behind
me. 7 don't know what he'll pay.
But whatever he pays. there aren't