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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 24, 1902)
THE " 0UrG02? DAILY JOITirN'AIi ' rOItTLAyPr WEDNESDAY ' XVJIN1IG.V DUCEMBJER 24, 1902. FORTUNES MADE IN THE BED OF RIVER A. : Interesting History of the Toilers of the Mississippi Who Reap Rich Re wards Though Only Gammers. (Continual -.tfM Kakea and tons havs been abandoned How In favor of what la called a row foot dredge. Each mn baa a nat-bot-tamed rowboat to hlmaelf. At each end of each aide la an upright aupport On the two support of the aame aide reeta long bar made of 5- Inch pip. - Hang ing from thl bar at Interval of alx Inches are chains from U to 14 Inches long. Each of these chalna has from two te four "crowfoot" hooka. A crowfoot book haa four curved, but not sharp prongs. , When the clammer reaches the bed ha turna his boat across the current, put ting out a aort or rudder to keep It la position. Then he llfta the two bare, with their string of hooka, from the supports and lowers them over the side so that they wiU trail the hooka over the bed aa the boat drifts down stream. As one boat often haa 240 books, and each hook haa four prongs, and each prong may catch a dam, it may be seen that the possibilities are abundant. Clams when feeding and that aeema to be their chief occupation always He on the bottom of the river, with the shell opened upward. Whenever anything touchea the shell they shut up, as may be Inferred, quite like a clam, than which there ia no tighter ahutting up. Consequently, when they close on the prong of a crowfoot there they hang until they are forcibly removed. After trailing the crowfoot for a cer tain distance, the fisherman hauls one up ,.to thajuipnorte. .jjulla of the clamsand throws them into the bottom or the boat where they lie as tightly shut as they can possibly be. Then he lowers that iredge, hauls in the other and cleara that. So it goes. Sometimes, when 150 or 200 boatH are out on a bed lesa than a mile long and a few rods wide, there Is wonderful plsturesqueness and charm In the scene. When the clammer brings hia catch shore he first puts them Into a sort of tank with a sheet-iron bottom. This Is alx feet long and a foot or two In depth. He tills thin half full of water and builds a fire, which draws through under the whole lenRth of the tank. The ordinary elnmmer builds this little furnace of stones right on the river bank. The clams are boiled 16 or 20 minutes. Just enough to open the shells. This la variously , known as boiling,, cleaning, husking or afielllng. Next they are thrown out on the cleaning board. When the fishermen foen elftmmln- ,hy used to get the water out of the tank as quickly as they could, but somebody hap pened, to and a pearl In It one day and - fit,. :;JL. .. r'jliiofii 11 v atrain -l'. thrnilffh A box with a bottom of fine mosquito-wire net. A good many pearls have rewarded this extra carefulness. Once on the cleaning board, the shells are taken off the meats and thrown into bins, while the meats are picked over for pearls or slugs. Some idea of the frequency with which these slugs or ba roques are found may be had from the fact that one man took 150 pounds of them to New York a few weeks ago. Much of It. however, is what they call chicken feed; , so small and poor that It Is worth less than a cent a grain. Im mense quantities of these slugs are sent to Europe and one buyer ia convinced that the British traders take them down to the African savages for barter. FRESH WATER CLAM 8. One of the' largest beds, if not the largest bed. of fresh water clams worked in. this country, is the Albany, about three miles below Clinton. It Is over two miles long, is 160 feet wide and was five feet deep in places. This bed con tinues, with a few breaks, three miles farther down the river, and has yielded millions of shells. Undoubtedly a great many pearls were thrown away at the beginning of the clam fishing, when only the shells were thought of. "The, price paid for shells vary ac cording to the specie. The beat variety .for making buttons is perhaps the deer -horn, a long shell from which as many as 28 buttons have been cut. These ' Shells- -bring -aboet30 a t&atout atast it would take a long time to get a ton of them. The best variety, counting Its fit ness and its plentifulness. Is the nigger head, a shell In which , also cemes the finest of the perfect white pearls. These shells bring S10 to 20 a ton. Stacked op at one time at Leclaire, Iowa, were ?50 tons of these niggerhead sheila. The, clammers have their own names for the varieties of shells hatchet-backs, muckets, pocketbooka, blue elephants' ears, butterflies, plmple-backa and so on. There is one season of the year when the rake comes back into use. That la winter, when the clammers cut holes In the thick ice and "fish" through them. Those rakes have a sort of pouch or basket of netting above the teeth, so that the clams fall into that as the rake la puehed forward, not pulled -backward, along the river bed. - They are boiled In the same riverside furnaces which are used In summer. Almost every fine day a group of gossiping villagers can be seen loafing in the warm aura of the stream arising from one of these tanks. Clamming along the Mississippi seems to enjoy a distinction which ia some what usunual in these days. It is a pur suit as yet unlnvaded by almost omni present women. The clammers' wives often boll the shells . and look over the meats, but there are no actual clammers among them. The work is hard and, in addition, the effects of being so con stantly in and on the water are bad, so bad that the fishermen have a theory -that - Mississippi River water .la poison ous. The notion is not to be wondered at when one sees strong men hobbling about, their feet so swollen and inflamed that they can hardly walk. Going barefoot over sharp shells Is doubtless responsible for thia, not the "poison" in the water. Pearls have one trait which la quite unknown to the uninitiated, but la full of fascination to the man who handle them and adds Immensely to the gamb ling phase of the occupation. Pearl are formed in layers as onions are and, llko onions, they can be peeled OU', layer by layer, to any desired depth. The fas cinating chance attached to this quality is the chance of peeling several layers off a rough or dull pearl and finding a perfect and brilliant one under that un inviting surface. Pearls which reward this sort of treatment are called "peel ers." . ' A country buyer near Albany, 111., tells how he .made 1690 by peeling one pearL That was half a dozen years ago. thongh. Was- Xrcjfi-waUr pearl were looked at dubiously and. the finder wer glad to sell them at the first crossroad. ' Da Rexford waa then a farmer and tender of a Government light on the bank near one of the big elam bed. On bla way to light up one evening ha waa stopped by a clammer who offered him a shell which contained a pearly aubstance ahapeu llko a potato and weighing about lit grains. The clammer wanted an offer and Rexford. with oonscleuoua lack of enthusiasm, said he'd giro him IB lor It. The clammer stood out for more; ao Rexford raised hia offer to 17. but do-, dined to -go higher. . The next evening the clammer again stopped the Govern ment lighter. " He had evidently grown skeptical of the value of his) find, for b besought Rexford to tax tt for tie and the latter Anally consented. Ha found that the fisherman had bored Into the lump from two aides, so that about 7S graina of the pearl had been rendered useless. With hia knife bo, be gan peeling off the layers until, after reducing the weight to about it graina, ha found a fine though not perfect peart, which be took to New Tork and aold for S700. The clammer waa inclined to think hlmaelf an injured individual, but he finally admitted that he had got all ho asked, and even brought hia sub sequent finds to Rexford with the re mark: "Here, pan! I bought yon a farm with one pearl, now I want to build you a house with thia." PEELING A PEARL. Peeling, however, la by no means al ways successful. Ben nowes, another buyer, peeled one pearl, for which he had pHtl $125. and after getting it down to II sistwbvav nturfir, yyu"Ca'r'eets before that he had made ISO on two pearla by lucky peeling. But It ia beyond a doubt that the clammers have ruined thousands of dollars' worth of material by an Ignorant and clumsy attempt to better their find. There la no guarantee, from the outward appearance or an ir regular or imperfect pearl, whether it contains something better or worse. The only Indications whicn can be counted ! upon at all are that a pimply aurfaca ia likely to improve In the lower layers, while a pitted surface .becomes worse. With elammers, aa with- miners, there la - always a stampede toward a apot where a lucky find is reported. But In clamming, nobody can claim any. section. Everybody la free of-tbo river and of It banks, - A year or two' ago the clammers at Savannah attempted to form a union and pre-empt the privileges of the beds in that neighborhood. To do this they leased from the farmers the rights to the banks for several miles on both sides ot the river and warned "trespassers" to keep off. The bluff worked for a time but was only a bluff. The riven and a strip of the bank IS feet wide, belongs to the government and is open to all. 80 the anion was forced to admit all com ers. , There was no trouble. In fact.' the whole history of clamming: along ; the Upper Mississippi is a really remarkable tribute to the law-abiding character of the people . of that section. In spite ef th fact that the -finding -of " valuable pearl almost Immediately becomes widely known and that the buyers constantly travel from camp to camp, one often sleeping In a clammer' hut and making no secret of the fact that ho haa per haps a. good many dollars in money and possibly more In pearls about him, no robberies or acts of violence have ever been reported. The elammera are generally farmers or villagers, honest and industrious, but hitherto unlucky. Among them are soma rtvor-rats and roustabouts, but they are In too great a minority to make an 'Im pression. . :." It Is hard to calculate the number of persons whom the clam beda of the Mis sissippi. If protected and preserved, would be capable of supporting. It is estimated that In 1900 at least 20.000 persona were supported by the clam shell and clam, peart industry along only a part of the section referred to. This Includes the em ployes ef the button factories and, of course, their families. If something ia not done, however, the dirge of the clam will have to be aung. Rot only on the Upper Mississippi, but on all the streams of the United States. In Europe the mussel beds are carefully pre served and unless this precaution Is Imi tated in this country, clammer and clam alike will become things of the past. CLEVELAND DRAWS THE LINE. (Cleveland Plain Dealer.) , One feature of Mr. Cleveland's latest public deliverance, which probably wllj cause him more trouble than any other was his reading the Hon. William R. KearsTouf Nf the Democratic' "party, and his reading the Hon. Joseph Pulltxor Into the Democratic party. In the open ing sentence of his letter, written espe cially for Mr. Pulitzer's newspaper, the ex-President says: "I should hesitate to make any further statement were It not for the urgent solicitation of the 'World,' which Is pursuing an editorial policy that must, In my judgment, tell IMPORNT ANNOUNCEMENT :;-V.':i'5-; - 'i ;'"V . ?' ' "'" ; ". .., . .' . .:'. '-:Yy,:x, ..v;-: We haye acquired a number of residential, busin ss ind investment properties, also a large number of farms, situated in tb.,' various parts of the" t6unt and state. It is our intention to aisp se f thesi properties as so n as possible. .J ' ," To those contemplating; the prtrileg of - home or desiring invest -aent properties, we tre'bt a position td offer'propositionf ' well worth considering'. '. " - If you will call or write, stating location and kind of property, we will frankly tell you if our list contains what you desire. These prop erties can lie purchased with part cash and balance on bond mortgage. Address all communications to the,, Western Investment Co., 291 1-2 Morrison street, Portland, Oregon. ' Below is a partial list of Farms, Rooming Houses, and Lots and Business Chances : " 1' " FARMS. sa to so so " SH IM us 49 49 100 MO SO S so S40 S. 80 S3 TS 4 10 soc 40 1S9 ere CJaekamaa Coaaty acres, is suitmted acres, to steered, oreaasd , . aeres, 40 no timber soreeV npt at aaV ' aaa a ores, s Sandy Biros gas dairy farm -rat farm. Moot seres,. IS beaverdam, IS a law . . asrea, SO proved. Wastes-1 .... seres, Jackson County, aUalngs acre. 30 beaveraasa. Bear eity . . . acres, SO snl-rated, stakes- ssrssV.s improved sores, stock rng goo tannings, aeres, Saely improve. Basts-1 acres, Bsotton Una road, frai aeres, Washington Oewsty . . Orsshasa ......... aotssj, garden, kerns ........ aeres, la Woodstock i ssi as, Klamath Coaaty aerso, X U m Connty, natssr aeres, Walts Bahasm B1vm awe tea ..t ljoo ..1.SOS .. 18 Moe ..MO ..i,soa . . asos aso S.40O .. sxsoe 4,500 ' ta!t l!f MM ..9 SB0 .. Mo .. , oe , . . 440 . . SOfl ,.S so 40 .. Woo ROOMING HOUSES-. IS rooms, eentr&l corner ..St-SOs 44 rooms, finely fornlsfts- SVOOO IS roes a, aass resldeass SBO 14 rooms, good furniture, asaS -ST .SOS It rooms, elegaatly furnishes. S1.SM 43 rooms, Sae saUdlag, loaf lease S3 ,00 10 rooms, near 9. , good fan-tore ......$ 7 SO . msM, Wasdur, glass te S SBO SB rooms, oentnU iooa-tto ........ .......S 00 19 rooms, good looattom, tanas) ....a too S3 rooms, paying well SI .too SS rooms, ia a ashless sester S3.300 TP rooms, fias talldingr , S1JMW ST rooms, hotel full ot hoarders $109 It rooms, eern sr. fat S 980 IS rooms, rpU did transient so rasa $1,100 SS tanais, go fnrattnrs $1,999 IS fooaav aeat, leas' lease $ 809 So. rooms, paying well 909 IS rooms, all new taraltors $ 79S 19 rooms, sat llta s, sheep rant S- SO IS rooms, also sorasv 'iufiding 9 880 19 rooms, sa Washington st $ too SO rooms. Best toastum In city $3,300 19 rooms, ss-tnO, tra-atea. lease $ 909 HOUSES AISO LOTS. S-roem noose, 8 lots, frrnit . $3,900 t-roem hoase, 1 tov sa at Una .$ T09 lt-roeta hows, 1 lot. Wast aids $3,909 Mem koass, 1 lot, ISoaUe-la $ 7S9 T-xoom koass, S loss, new, modern $,000 4- sosm keritos, 1 lot. T aafcourer are .....$ 809 9-soom ho ss, eerae lot, Orand era $1,398 8 room henss, 1 lot, Wsodlawa $ 899 9-coom hsnas, 8 lots, B. SOtk, bargain SlTS 5- room ho to, I lot, meat ear lias $ BOO 9-rsom hease, S lets, new, rratt $1,100 S-room house, S lots, fralt. Bargain $1,889 S-room hoass, 1 1st, ales nlaos $1,709 9-rsom hoass, 4 lota, an to fralt 91,878 T-room hoass, S lota, new, cheap 81,800 S-room hoass, 1 lot, choice fruit' $1,100 5- reom house, modern, never eecupled. . . . 11,909 8- roem house, 3 lots, Weos twa $1,199 7- room honae, 1 lot, on car lias $1,909. 9- roem house, a lots, Brooklyn. .......... .92fiOO 8- room hoaae, 3 lots, sleely situated $1,780 6- roem house, 3 lots, nice hems $ 859 3-room house, 1 lot, Woodlawn $ 909 a-room house, a lots. West are , ....$ 889 S-reom house, 1 lot, KantarUla $ 909 BUSINESS CHANCES. Bastaaraat, old-established place 9lJtSO Saloon, good location 9 9SO Cigars aad eoafsctio ery, good $ 8S0 Balooa sa good street $ 70 Streeery, eeatrany located , $ 900 Oroeery, doing big ha siaeas .$3,199 Saloon la business center $1909 Oroeery, nles resident portion of city $ SOS eVrooery, wholesale and retail $7,89 Kent market, Sns for the money $ 4S9 B acii'y, gosd bustaees, eerae $3,009 Blaoksmltli shop, esntral $ 499 Oyster house, wholesale and retaU $1.B99 Cigars aad fmlts, downtown $9,19 Best aura Tit on mala street ....$3,99 Meat aaarkst, eentral, business eemer $3,89 Cigars and fruit, large stock, fine trade . . .92JOO Oiocery, nsw stoek, Uriag rooms $ 899 Oroeery aad deU oatessen, borgala $ T89 Bsstaarant. aolar as bustnsss $M09 Bleat market la Has suburb $ 969 Oroeery aad bakery on good comer $ 099 Slaanfactnrtag, bargain S3JW Cigars and sonfeeoasry, good stoek $1499 Cigar store, 3 years' lease $ 809 WESTERN INVESTMENT COMPANY, MORRISON STREET. ffor Dethorratie - success an the 1 public "welfare." Ndw. it so happens that Editor Pulltser Rnd Editor Hearst, while displaying many similar Journalistic methods; are widely at variance in their political preachments, even though each claims to preach the only true Democratic doc trine. In their divergent political policies SECURITY COMPANY 266 Morrison Street, PORTLAND, OREGON. 5 j? 3 STATEMENT At the Close of Business, October 1st, 1902. s7 J& RESOURCES: Tr:z:ziiy.zzi BONDS $820,463.59 PREMIUMS 16,630.62 .! 837,094.21 CASH AND DUE FROM CORRESPONDENTS 396,759.81 REAL ESTATE 13,191.79 $2,769,225.44 LIABILITIES: CAPITAL :Z:Z...m. $ 250,000.00 SURPLUS AND UNDIVIDED PROFITS 69,63.20 D2P0SITS .J 2,449,588.24 $2,769,225.44 J& J& J& Thia bank Invites accounts from Individuals, firm, ban lea, merchants and corporations, and will extend to Its customerg every aceornmodatlon consistent with good banking. Interest paid on savings accounts and on time certificates of deposit. H. W. C0RBETT, President L. A. LEWIS, Vice-President J& J& J& OFFICICRS A. L. MILLS. Second Vice-President C. F. ADAMS, Secretary R. Q. JUBITZ, "Assistant Secretary DIRECTORS H. W. CORBETT L. A. LEWIS C. A. DOLPH JAS. F. FAILING A. L. MILLS JOSEPH SIMON C. F. ADAMS Editor Pulitxpr nas stuck to tbe old Democratic paths tene rally, whlls Editor Hearst has foilowad th road cleared by Bryan. ' As a Bryanite. h was racently tlratsrf to Conaresa, and the belief la srowlna; that h hopes to succeed the Nflbraskan as th Democratic leader in 1H. As If be were ImpresHed with thl. belief, Mr. Cleveland seems to desire to build up Editor Fulitxer'a paper at th xsens of Editor Hearst's, and may be he even would Join a moVemeW to rn alee Editor Pulttser the leader of the reorganised and rejuvenated Democracy, If It were not for the fact that Mr. Piilltaer ia debarred from the presidency by the accident of birth, he belnf a na tive of Austria. Anyhow, It la certain that one of the most Interesting; results ot the ex-President's latest public state. merit will be to pit these two Demoeratle tdftrtor --ts!WB-- sach other 1 8ree . rivalry than ever. J t - nwtxwxsn qttbt. I am a candidate for the Leaislnture t and wouia inte 10 your aupvon, , Hayrlx What's the matter; has yewr '; wife got lire 'of ausportln' yerf" . &&&&&&&&&&&&& .W f" " 1 1 11 ' " 1 iii ! -rf CABINET PATENT OVEN '-.si im iW -rnimi, FORi mm , ii r ,-"' 1 -M Bakers, Hotels, Steamships, Restaurants, Confectionary Asylums..-. BBSMaBBSBBVBsaM--S--ajBsnBSB AJUSO Enameling, Japanning and Baling-Gbres: 99 The "ERIE OIL HEATER WltK Smokeless Attachment The 66 99 to designed sne! conitructed in every way to fill the wants of high grads stove. The principal parts are of cast iron ef very light design, yet making the stove firm and strong and ftrevent bvg any part being bent out of shape. The drama are made of poBsbed steel, handsomely perforated, the lower row feeing packed Witt mica. 'The drum b Strongly hinged to the base and easily opened to remove the fount. The fount is made of heavy brass, embossed. The burner is equipped with a cast draft ring; giving perfect combustion. FiNISH Plain, Nickel Trimmings. Antique Copper Plate. Pull Nickel Plate. Full Brass Plate. fir. . .,"-.:lf ISO. 40 Height. JO inches 10-Inch Wick Diameter of Drum, S Inches Capacity, 4 quarts ' IE Most Popular Sixe for Every Us f4 FOR SALB BY LOEWENBERO & GOIISO CO. PORTUAIND, OREGON fl r