The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1946-01-10

working in small and inexpensive
craft. But when the shrimpers
working out of Morgan City, La,
and nearby ports, found the
grounds for an almost initless
supply of shrimp. or prawn, in
the middle of the Cult of Mexico,
the boys around Southport found
they, too, had to 90 in for mass
production.
That's how Piggott and Wells,
and few others, happened to in
vest in the larger boats. These
boats presage the extinction of the
small shrimper, just, in a way. as
the tractors have just about put
the 40-acres-and-a-mule farmer out
Of business.
These bigger boats can work off
shore and stay out for a week at
the time. The smaller boats had
to work close to the shore and
come in every night. They also
couldn't cross the bar if there was
hatful of breeze making from
the north'ard or south ard.
Piggott has four of these boats,
three SO feet long and the other
about SIS feet. They are powered
with 100-horse power caterpillar
diesels. The smaller boats settle
for worn out automobile engines.
q once used the motor out of a
hearse to power small craft I
oWned.)
Piggott's four boats-the Daug-
las Macarthur, skippered by Romy
Smith, Southport; the Dorothy and
Leila. skippered by Stanley O'Neill,
Morehead City; the Roseina, skip
pered by Sandy Simmons, South
port, and the Miss America, skip
pered by Homer McKeithan, South
port now are beam trawling
for croakers, trout, porgies, floun-
ders, and butterfish off Hatteras.
Wiley Wells boats-the Otis,
with Walter Aldridge, Southport;
the Bella, with Frank Jackson
Southport; and the Howard, with
Colon Eagles, Southport-are tied
up at their Southport docks now.
DR.. L. c. Fergus, Southport,
also has gone in for shrimping.
His boat, the Mary Clark with
Clarence Simmons as master. also
works from Southport but is now
IN hatteras waters beam TRAVELLING.
And how do the fishermen come
out financially aboard these big.
ger craft? Well, Clarence Sim
mons came in with the biggest
catch during the past season at
Southport. His haul for one trim
was liz bushels. These averaged
ABOUT "a per bushel. That's s448
tor one trip. The money usually is
divided into shares with the skin
per and crew getting about one
ma. and the other halt going to
the boat and to the owner.
incidentally, these larger boats
nave made it possible for the
snrimpers to work a wide range
from off Charleston to the south
a, as TAR north as the waters off
W!lgntsville Beach. The catches
.us year were about the best in
quality brought into Southport in
years. They ran as good az Il
shrimp to the pound. These are
classed as jumbos and comnete
Iavoranly with the large pravn
taken .r from the Gull Of Mexico.
Inc regular spring season at
southport begins about the first Of
May but Wiley Wells told ma ves
terday he was planning to sen n ' h;s
noats offshore about 40 to so r,; i..s
IN search of new shr ~ r,I.es
g grounds 2 a: With the optimism Of
the fishermen, he hopes to f;n u
another shrimping ground like IN 't thu
one found in the GUT 4 few vssrs
Besides Piggot and Wells South.
port mas at least a couple Of other
Wen known shrimp dealers. Thev
are Paul Fodale and Capt. JIMMY
Arnold. The dealers, incidentally.