in these four weeks the
fishermen had become very bold in violating the law. When we passed
Point Pedro we noticed many signs of activity among the
shrimp-catchers, and, well into San Pablo Bay, we observed a widely
scattered fleet of Upper Bay fishing-boats hastily pulling in their
nets and getting up sail.

This was suspicious enough to warrant investigation, and the first and
only boat we succeeded in boarding proved to have an illegal net. The
law permitted no smaller mesh for catching shad than one that measured
seven and one-half inches inside the knots, while the mesh of this
particular net measured only three inches. It was a flagrant breach of
the rules, and the two fishermen were forthwith put under arrest.
Neil Partington took one of them with him to help manage the
_Reindeer_, while Charley and I went on ahead with the other in the
captured boat.

But the shad fleet had headed over toward the Petaluma shore in wild
flight, and for the rest of the run through San Pablo Bay we saw no
more fishermen at all. Our prisoner, a bronzed and bearded Greek, sat
sullenly on his net while we sailed his craft. It was a new Columbia
River salmon boat, evidently on its first trip, and it handled
splendidly. Even when Charley praised it, our prisoner refused to
speak or to notice us, and we soon gave him up as a most unsociable
fellow.

We ran up the Carquinez Straits and edged into the bight at Turner's
Shipyard for smoother water. Here were lying several English steel
sailing ships, waiting for the wheat harvest; and here, most
unexpectedly, in the precise place where we had captured Big Alec, we
came upon two Italians in a skiff that was loaded with a complete
"Chinese" sturgeon line. The surprise was mutual, and we were on top
of them before either they or we were aware. Charley had barely time
to luff into the wind and run up to them. I ran forward and tossed
them a line with orders to make it fast. One of the Italians took a
turn with it over a cleat, while I hastened to lower our big
spritsail. This accomplished, the salmon boat dropped astern, dragging
heavily on the skiff.

Charley came forward to board the prize, but when I proceeded to haul
alongside by means of the line, the Italians cast it off. We at once
began drifting to leeward, while they got out two pairs of oars and
rowed their light craft directly into the wind. This manoeuvre for the
moment disconcerted us, for in our large and heavily loaded boa