Where the river curves
A photo depicting Chief Lawrence Francis and bandmembers patrolling the St. Lawrence River, during the May 9th opening of fishing season, in Kahnawake. (Courtesy: Jackie Hall)
Story told by Dave Hall
I didn’t have a boat back then, so I had to borrow one and I had to bring it back at a certain time. This one man, old man Buckshot, that man had nets in the water. I brought the boat back the next day, and he was kind of mad; we went out on his boat and checked his net. He didn’t have anything. It took a long time to go check the nets because he only had a little nine horsepower engine.
We used to net walleye at the dam in Hogansburg, right by the curve. That’s where the fish go, where it curves.
We’d go fishing around the dam, and we would catch perch, bass, walleye, catfish too. We’d go when it was cold water; when it got warm, their meat would get soggy.
Since they took the dam out, there’s salmon again, swimming up the St. Regis River. They’re born in freshwater, then they swim out to sea, then they come back to lay their eggs. They just keep doing that over and over.
The sturgeon go back and forth, from fresh water to the sea. Long as the ships go through, the sturgeon go through at the locks over there.
If you want, when you get fish, you know the soft part here on the belly? Cut that off - just cut that away - because that’s where all that stuff collects on the fish. Just get rid of the fat.
KANIEN’KÉHA VERSION
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KANIEN’KÉHA VERSION ↓
Tsi nón:we teioteniatarà:kton
An article depicting the catch of a Chinook salmon in the St. Lawrence River. Circa 1975 (Courtesy: Jackie Hall)
Dave Hall ROKÁ:RATON
Iah tewakhonwaién:tahkwe' ne thó:ne, ó:nen'k káti' tsi wa'katáteni' énska tánon' ó:nen'k tsi kató:ken nikahá:wi' iensékhawe'. Kí:ken shaià:ta rokstén:ha, Buckshot tehohsennà:serehkwe', awèn:ke rota'aróhonhkwe’. Ionsákhawe' ne kahonwé:ia' tsi saióhrhen'ne', tánon' ostón:ha rona'khwa'èn:ne'; raohonweià:ke nia'ákwe' tánon' wa'akwátken'se' ne raò:'are', iah ki' thé:nen tehoienà:'on. Karì:wes na'akwátken'se' ne raò:'are' né: tsi ken' niwà:'a khok tióhton nikanáhskwake akohsá:tens ronontsistà:rahkwe'.
Skakahráksen shes iakwata'á:ros tsi kanià:to ne Tekahson'karó:rens nonkwá:, kwah ákta tsi teioteniatarà:kton. Tho iekonnéhtha' kéntson, tsi nón:we teioteniatarà:kton.
Eniakwahriohkawinéhsera' aktóntie' ne tsi kanià:to, tánon' eniakhiié:na' oiahè:ta', skakahráksen tánon' ò:ni' rabahbót. Tho ieniákwe' nó:nen iohné:kano, nó:nen eniononwataríhen' enio'nhétska'ne' aoti'wà:ron.
Tsi náhe' é:ren shotihawíhton ne tsi kanià:to, sakontinákere'ne' awé:kons, tánon' saiotihnawahra'onhátie' ne St. Regis tsi kaniatarátie'. Kontinákerats tsi nón:we iah tha'teiohnekahiò:tsis, sok kaniatara'kehkowáhne ienkón:ne', eh thó:ne tentkón:ne' ne aioti'nehtarón:ti'. Kwah nek tetkonterátstha' tsi tho nikontiiéhrha'.
Tekonterahtánions teiotién:taron, tsi nón:we iah tha'teiohnekahiò:tsis tsi niió:re' ne kaniatara'kehkowáhne. Kaní:io'k kahonweia'kó:wa tenkontóhetste' tsi kahnekahnhó:tons, tenkontóhetste' ni' nè:'e ne teiotién:taron tho nonkwá:.
Tóka' tesatonhontsó:ni, nó:nen ensá:nawe' kéntson, saterièn:tare' wáhi tsi nón:we io'nhétska kanekwen'tà:ke? Ítsa'k thí:ken—kwah nek ítsa'k— né: tsi tho nón:we iora'nén:taks akwé:kon thí:ken nahò:ten' wáhi. Kwah nek é:ren shá:wiht ne o'tónsera'.
Edited by: Jackie Hall, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Translated by: Sahawisó:ko' Arquette