WITH FISH-LINES AND NETS. Ql 



neighborhood as "snappers." Once a week I 

 sail my boat down to the neighborhood of Fire 

 Island, where from June to November we get 

 some good bluefishing, thanks to our "chum- 

 ming " machines, a device for chopping up 

 bony-fish in appetizing shape. The boat is 

 brought to anchor, the sails furled, and this 

 chopped fish is thrown overboard in small 

 quantities. The bluefish, running in or out 

 with the tide, are attracted by the " chum," 

 and come to feed. The hooks are baited, and 

 thrown overboard along with the chum. If fish 

 are plenty, the piece of chum which hides a 

 hook is sure to be snapped up. When bluefish- 

 ing is fair in the Great South Bay we can count 

 upon a catch of from twenty to thirty fish, 

 ranging from one to five pounds. But blue- 

 fishing is an uncertain sport. I find from my 

 diary that out of twenty trips to Fire Island, 

 eleven produced nothing, except that each trip 

 gave us ten or twelve hours of glorious sailing. 

 An advantage of this bay for sailing over any 

 other that I know of, is that if rough weather 

 comes on the little craft can take shelter at any 

 of the many villages skirting the bay, and the 

 fishermen can get home by train if it is neces- 



