Bad Little Falls on the Machias River in Machias
“As if the banks were lined by spiders
tossing long, shimmering filaments
the river crawls along like prey.”
….Some have caught a fish. Four crescent tails
are nailed to my woodshed door.
For summers to come
they will draw the iridescent flies.’’
— From “Bluefish run, Machias, Maine,’’ by Paul Nelson
Atlantic menhaden.
"Trolling for Bluefish,'' lithograph by Currier & Ives, 1866.
As if the banks were lined by spiders
Tossing long, shimmering filaments
The river crawls along like prey.
I’ve come, parked with rest,
All our radios on to the local station
For news of ourselves, in between the music
Hard people are soft on. Cut-bait, treble-hook plugs,
Wobbling spoons, plop among the frantic menhaden.
-- From "Bluefish Run, Machias, Maine,'' by Paul Nelson
