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Assignment, Portuguese Fisherman
Name* Alice D. Kelly
Sub jeet. interview with Captain Joseph Captive,
'We had a little trouble to -day. Nothint much* The
boy he started talk about peeg, antthe men don' like* They
say talk of peeg briggsh bad luck* Canthave a black oat
aboard.. some don' want no woman go over boat.. I ttink ts
a lotta nonsense, but I seen some strange tbeengs happen
ails. same,
"You ever hear hew 1 got name Captiva? Lishen,* My
great grant fatbe he
by the Moorsh. After
Portugual ant shettlo
Lisbon, He was young
he had soars cm. the
was Spanish ant he was took prisoner
two-ttree montt he escape, come to
in little village twenty miles auto_
feller, very handsome, good fisherman,
Moors' prison. He was brave ant tolt
beef stories about how he escape ant kill Maros ant evert
thlz4 $c evert body they call him tCaptiv00, That means
prisoner.* So that's the name we had since then,
totto ma'am, I don' know what the name wash firsht.
got no recordsh much in tht oil country. They didnt
use even keep .records for babies or marriage or nothint.
But now wetre Captvas.. the Captivas got to be brave, he
cause of my great grant father, see? Ant hoo he exeaDed an'
all.
'Sire
"When I tells, dhildren that they won' believe me.
But now they do. First they laugh ant say, some more
storiesh4 The oil country shets far away, see? for them.
Don' seem real. Ant they ttink they know more th the ol
man.
"It'sh thet schoolth does it. They kept sendint
word home.. Muss have so much milk.* so much orange juicsh.
Must brush teett I never Yrush my *beett in of oountry. No-
body did, ant Igot fine teett Now I brush tem. But never
usbed to. I sent word back to a teachersh. I says, Tell
4m 1 knew ten when they wash little, their fathers was
fishermen just like me. They never had no orange juice, an
no quarts ot milk. But they laugh..
Say times have change'.
1 guess sot Yes„ sure, the schools is better over here.
When I was boy there wasn't no public schoolsh in the oil
country,' You pay fifty cents a month for teachersh ant they
teach evert thin. The young people over here, they have a
goo& time,
'Back hote tht ell folks was strict. Too stric41
A peoole ails time runninl sway. My kids they bring their
friends home.. That yOungest girl of mine she's always after
me dente WOeth her, go out: places. Kids arent afraid of th'
olt folks ho more, I teehk thattsh a good thing. But you
an be too so.," too.
"'You mind that priest we had here,. Father Terra?
-Evert body salt-, he was so strict an) he seal' everlbody
alla time. 3t the same if he was here now you wouldnt see
no such goins on like what the young people theytre doint
to -day. No sir. Father Terratd a gone into the harsh,
sem any young people there held send tem homey give their
mothersh a good talkint to. That's what they need. Some-
body they cant talk back to, The priests arev good now$
but theyere too soft*
"But Its a good place to lives Good money ant chances
fof the young people. They say it's bad times now, but we
ainI never seen had times here like in olt country**
"Anytting particular you wanna know? Oh, you heard
about that shark I caught? Geezel I laugh evert time
think ot that* It come out in all tht papers n' everethine.
It was thees way. We go out one XLIorninly start draggint
an before we got no atch the nets catch on rocks ant tore all
to Piece:, I was mad 4 The fish was good ant nothint to do
but put in ant take all day mend tloso nets.
°Welly we put in an' onna dock a reporter ea' comes upy
asks 411 kin's Vitiations. Why was I come back? What happened?
All that. It seeMed like to me he oughter to 74 Able to see
I show him: tilt net ant I says, Jteo that?"‘
what happen?
save. n Man eatint shark done thaty‘l says.
ahatts I
do with him? Why, I kill him and throw him overboard.' It
'Was a jokey see? The men they laugh like anything, but the
reporter he believe me an' that's how the story got printed.
"No ma
I wouldnt tell you no stories like that.
That was for a joke see? An' because T was mad."
Assignment: Portuguese Fisherman.
Name: Alice D.
Subject: Interview with. Captain Joseph Captive..
"Sure I had fine ChrisAmus. Night ot the little
2
?.cv
Jesus..what you call Christmus Eve..went all over town.
Lights on alla Portuguese houses..wine ant cakets..the best
ot ever' thing. Everlbody singint. My son, Frankie he
come in weeth big crowd. Some Americans..some writers,
artists an like that. Some PortugueOsh..W4 go ever' where's,
ant Geese," I was surprist. Some those American kids, they
sing the Portuguese songs 's good's I do,
"We make a lotta ChrisitMus. But not so much al
in the old country. Over there. .right now is from the Lit-
tle Jesus to twelve thirteen January is singint evert night,
driakint an' dancing. We enjoy ourselves harder 'n the Ian-
kees. Work hard when we work) play hard when we play. .Yes,
mataw. I'd sure like to be over there right now.
"I tolt you I was figgerint taking tnis excursion.
nineteen forty? The Portugal minister, he fix' it U. He
says, must have two ttousand people. So what's he got now
onna listsi He's got twenty five t'ousand ant more comint.
They'll be ttree boats, maybe four. Sail from Providence.
Sing and. drink ant dance alla way..
2.
"'But my wife don) wanna go. She was too young
she come over here. She don' hardly remember nothint.
Ant the boy he don' wanna go. I can't unneretant that.
When I wash his age ant got a chance like that Itd,be crazy
with joy. But he ttinks it's foolish. He ttinks ths olt
country's slow.
°Ant tnqt s right, too. But it's pretty there.
Ever' body very gay.,very happy. ,411, I been fishins
again. An' thish time the hants didn't swole up. This is
a good season for a feesh. Sure, I know 'Wily. It's warm,
that's why. When it comesh colt, ice inna bay aat like
that, the fish. they make for warmer waters. Have to chase
'em all over a place. But now they most jump inna boati
"Yes, atam, it's draggint I'm doint now. Used
to have a trawler, but this boat we drag. Weeth big nets.
you see? Pon' go out much nights now but I got accompda-
tions so's eight men can sleep on board. Yes mAtam. Bight
men. She's a sloop. One mass, but they flint no sallint
now, Os course. Ant my new motor shets beautiful..raises
my profits..used to cost ten twelve dollarsh a day take
the boat out. now costs only two -three. Much better en-
gine.
got good crew, too. Me, Itm captn, then
got engineer, cook, my boy he fishes ant cleans..But we
stay out only day or two at a time. Used to go to the
3,
Banks evert year. I dunno gnat for. It's just a habit
some fishermen got. They got to go the Banks evert year..
"That trip to th/ Banks, she was awful! Stay
away six montle4 work night ant day and then after all that
you make three ..four huadted dollars. Taint worth it.
Theyts just as good fish near home ant not so hard work.
"Of course, scallopint thats difftunt. That's
terrible work, too. Out weeks an draggint wleth big,
heavy tel nets. But theresh big money into it. Beeg
money..but it's awful work. Have to be strong like a
horse to stant it
"Igo ma'am, I don' never get scared. I don'
know nothint else, onty fishint ant the sea. I never
ttink about drownint anymore tn you ttink about danger
in tht city streetsh. Sure, the women worriesh. You
ctn remember the wailints maybe when the boats was late
out ant there wash storms? But the women's always worry
In' 'bout somethint k &flyways. Ittsh their nature, I
guess. My wife now she worriesh about the boy. I tell
her hetsb better off to sea than runnint round weeth all
thees young crowd. Aim' drowned yet, has he, nor I aint
drowned yet, I says to her. Makes her mad. But she don'
really want me to come ashore. Al?. her people they feesh„
too. She knowsh I'd never do nothint on land..
4.
"Itm goint out to -morrow, yes ma'am. About tiree
or four. No, I don go to bed partickler early, Itm used to
not get much shleep. breeng you some ttose filets a
sole to-morrer night. Yee matam flounderint, that's right,
that's what were doint now. Oh Geeze I get more n I ktn
sell. It's a beautiful season.. No I don't guess a strike
t11 do much harm. We can sail 'em up to Boston, nn a fast
freight she takes/ em right in to New York.
Lis ten, theyts goint to be big fisherman's ball
next montt down to Town Hall. No one can't go weethaut a
invitation but if you like go weeth my wife I can fix it.
411 right, I/11 fix. Game dance Oharmeritas, evert thin/.
"Next time I'll tell you zone more about excur-
sion to Portugal, nineteen forty."
Name Alice Kelley
Title- Living Folklore
Assignment Portuguese Fishermen
Topic Interview with Captain
Joseph CaptivA
Number of paper 7
"Well we sure had a good week. Fine catch, fine
weather.. evert thint. Bow many fish my boat can holt?
Boys he kin holt twenty fit ttousand pound. Yes, ma'am
twenty fit ttousand pound. No, I guess not. We don' often
get that much. Sometime tho.
One time we want out seven ttirty, eight o'clock.
Nine otelock we come back. In.. fu. Yes ;lateral twenty fit
ttousand pound thees silver perch. Made a. ttousand dollars
that wan night. No, not me by myself. We feesh on shares.
Sure. I get most because the boat she's mine but all the
men takes their share.
Ne go out nights when we hear the Leech shets runnint
good. That's a funny thing. We don't have no reglitier
plan, where we go, but no boat never goes alone. No.
We start out, try elle places where we know Leech comes
sometimes. Then when we come back one boat comes up, the
Cap says *You had good oatelit If I say 'yes' then likely
say, "Ceetet I didn't get nothintItm comint weeth you
tomorrow.' Or if .1..didnt do so good, next day I go out
weeth a crowd's got a good eaten.
0 If you want you could come out in the boat when we
2.
am' gone shtay but a few hours. Sure, Itll fix it.
Theretsh plenty room. We'll wait for good calm day. You
tell me when.
"see.. T can tell you 'bout evertthint. I can tell you
shtories, ant I can tell you what we do.. but I cant tell
you the feelin's. You getter see how we go.. what we do.
'Look.. start out about three- four :Lana mornInt. It's
dark an boys& Is it colt Well, an.' then we go out-
side the harbour not far a couple hours maybe..ant
start fishint. It's get light then ant they's coffee onus.
stove. Evert body feels good...
"Yee, ma'am. I got a beautiful stove onto my boat.
We cook chowder, oyster stew, make coffee. .ever'
Ant plenty ot room. Like I told you, eight people can
sleep there. You'll like it out for a day. A nice, calm
day.. no rodkint..no storms& We'll pick one for you.
You can bring your friends. It'll be like a excursion.
No, we dontget so tired unless by night wetve worked
hard. Then mebbe we, wan' stretch ourselves, have a little
pun. But we don' mind getting up early. People don' need
so much sleep they think. Look at me. Been fishint
t'irty years ant sometimes up two -three nights. I always
start early in the mornint. But when I get home I don'
want to go to bed. Maybe have a little nap, then.T work
around the house, or go out see my friends.. have a little
drink maybe down to Mac's.. have some friends in for fried
3.
fish ant a glass ot ale.. Once I'm off the boat I want a
change..
"Yes, sure, I can fry fish myself. If I couldn't fry
fish ant make chowder Ttd hat starved plenty ot times.
Well, some fries it one way ant some another. The Yankees
they generally puts salt pork into it. But we Portuguese
we use the olive oil. Yes, sure.. roll the fish into
flour. Then rut your oil onna pan. Let it get smokint
hot..
"Ant don' turn the fish alla time. Leave it cook till
one side she's brown's a pork chop. Then turn her over.
Let that side cook an she's done, nice ant crisp ant dry.
Ant that puts me in mind., you ever eaten our galvanized
pork? You come over some day ant my wife she'll give you
some. You make it like this.. you take a good pork roast
or chops ant ali day you dip ten in sauce made with vinegar
and garlic ant real hot peppers, then you cook 'em like
always. They're swell..
"Jeezel I'm teachint you cookint stead of talkint
about the seal But fried fish ant galvanised pork..
thatts real Portuguese. No Portuguese fisherman goes
without that...
matam you just let me know when you want ant
I'll pick that day for you to come fianInt. rola give
you a better idea. We'll show you evert thin'. Yes,
you an' me will write us a good story.
Name Alice Kelly
Title Living folklore
Assignment Portuguese Fisherman
Topic Interview with Captain
Joseph Captiva
Number of paper 8
"The dance was pretty wasntt It? No, I didnt see you.
Seven hundred people there, you couldnt see no one.. Sure,
my wife was there an my girls. It's for the families.
know. It wash hard to get tickets. You cant buy the',
It's like invitations. But I could hat solt mine a
hundred. times. Evertbody wants to go.
"Howtd you like the Chamarita? Nice, ain't it? Ant
graceful, too. You should see it inna oll country...weeth
the big skirts an' the bright shawls the women wears.
IS Pretty. Not like thees jitters ti shags In like that.
They don' dance no more.
Just jump
aroungt...
Who me? Sure,. I was shaggint.. You gotter nowadays...
M7 girl the youngest one, Jennie, she says 'Don' be behint
the times, pal and' 1 like a good time.
"sure, it's nice the whole family goes out that way.
That's the way in tht 01' country. The families make what
we call tfiestat together. It's not like here, the women
out all day, the men out all nights.. Unless once in a
while like Sat'day nights the men they go out have a few
drinks..
"Plenty people say the Portuguese don' care for their
wives 'cause they don' make mush fuss. They oall all right.
2.
Sure, they care. Only weeth us the mants the boss. Evert
thing is for the man. Makes him feel big, T guess. If a
woman shels a good wife, has children, keeps the house
niae$ shets all. Tight.
ft.C11
a same weeth us, it's like weeth all tht ether
countries. The woman shets boss in tht house. Yes ma'am,
she runs the house the way she wants, just so she has the
meals right an' takes care the children..
That's one thing. I think the Portuguese take more
interest like in the children. Maybe its only fishermen,
they done see ,em so often. I dunno. But the Americans,
they talk about the kids, don/ stay arount em so much.
But me, I liked play weeth mine when they was little.
Always plannint on havint the boy weeth me, ant the girls
educated an/ growini up nice..iiis family, she means a lot
to a Portuguese,. Sometimes Americans, they think, I
should& a married. Just a worry.. But the Portuguese,
he plans that ways.
"Maybbe he playa arount some, but he always plans have
his own home..bie. children. Likes a good family. That's
his life.. that's what he works for. A man weeth no
family, that /8 a. man has something wrong, weeth t
Portuguese..
"Bela/ at sea: likely makes you like your home better.
Somethin/ to came back. to. But I think all Portuguese
feels pretty much like that.
3*
"Yes, sure. A lot of the fishermants wives, they go
out to work. The way things is, sometimes good, sometimes
had they feel like they got to help. But soonts the men
get goint the wifees through& she stays home then. Yes,
matam, we likeiour wives to be home.
"Both my girls is through school now. The oldest one
shoets workint steady. The youngest one she wants to train
for one ot these beauty parlours. Her mother thinks tneyts
too many doint that I dunno. Me I just ts soon she gets
married: has a family. Sure, shets a prAty girl. But she
done never give me no worry. shets a good kid.
"Its good to get 'em raised.. see 'em doint good. Oh,
sure..
m gone out tomorrow.. Theyls a colt spell comint
ant then you don't know where those damn fishell go. Ill
come in when 1 get back.. tell you anything that happened..
Name: AlIe D. A.elly
Living Folklore
Assignment: Portuguese Fisherman
Topic l interview with ''.!aptain
Joseph Captiva
No. 9
"So you heard a'cout it? Lon t tell mel I gotta jeenx. Yes,
matam, she blows right up just out th1 harbour. No, no one was
hurt, tee God for that. Itts jus' the starter she blows out.
But we gotter 17at in, lay up most a week. Art just. when the feesh
she's runnint good. Now, sure she's all right but no one can'
go out. Thees colt she's fierce for feesh.
"They's storm signals ever! where. Says fcir small craft
anyway to put in. Fo, not any more. They uses to be storm
signals out there to Mbodshole. They got broke two tlree yearsh
ago an they aint never replace' them. We gotta radio now, see.
Yes ma'am. That's where we get the reports*
"Sure they're pretty good. But 1111 tell. you, it's like
these* The weather's change'. Sure it soun's funny. But look..
yearsh ago we had lotea snow ant ice. Good long, hard. winter.
We knew we had to go pretty far to f4nt feesh an, we went.
mind when I first come over, how surprise' I was see alla
snow an' ice. Now, what you get? All different kin's. Snow
turns to ice ant ice to rain ant maybe hail, Then all at once
it comes like Spring in December maybe or rount the firsh of
the year. "The winls aintt the same neither. Used ter be
you could say- Nortt Easter, ttree to five days blow, Soutt
Easter two to ttree, Not' wester maybe ttree four..an1 like
that. Ndw no more. The win's dance all arouni.
Name: Alice Kelly
Title: Living Folklore
#10
Assignment: Portuguese Fisherman
itie Interview with Captain
Joseph Captive
riou see that man I just talk to over at col' storage?
Matte bennie Regular. I aint seen him for an awful long time.
What? ReKular. NO, no, Pot That P.int hie name. Thatts h s
nickname. Mos the Portuguese has nickname:-. More than thl
A ericans I 'tech.
They
tem all kint s reasons. Ftrinstance. The es Bennie
gular. They call him thpt because bets a regtler feller. They
call him th, ever since he was little. Mets regtlar, gee?
Who m,? Sure, they call MR Pulaski. That means peppy, full
o life, full c fun. Then they's a whole family down to the West
End, We ca.I lcm the 6aubas. Means dumb, foolish kinder.
they s John Portygee. That means hey s all Portygee. Very Portygee.
The way he locks ant talks an' theenks. Jus' like in the olf coun-
try...11'.
"Then they's my boy, they ccli him Kaki.' I dunnow what
that means. An' Morrie over here, he's 'Fonda on account of
theese captain Fonda was
such a liar. An' Zorra that means 'Fox'
Zorrats family got that name long ago, like my family got 'Captive'
like 1 tolt
well, Zerrate family was thl best fishermen where
they live so they wee call' Fox ot the sea.
"Then they a whole family call them oidm4, Johnnie
am,Ros le Goddam an' like that. That''cause the ell lady'
she couldn/ speak k...0:glish so good an' she'd. call the children
when they was littl, You come here goddam., Don you ,o that
Page 2.
t drivm. so they eall ten the uoadans.
Then they 's lots I
ldn tell you. xhey aiht so nice.
The Portuguese they make a lot 01 jokes an' they 11 name a man
because he ac's this way or that way, goes th,,es place- or that,
an' sometimes the names they sin' so polite. hey's one family
always called *the dirties." 7 dunno. I guess the ol' woman she
sin' such a good hoiseeeper or somethini. Anyways that's what
call tem. You ask one of m. Do you know Jo or Manuel or
an' they'llsay 'you wan one o the dirtie4.
"They's names, too for D1cces The Lisbonsowe call
That mesns rsbbts. They 's a real Portuguese name toe,
but the Lisbons is always called ail. An' the people
"Quail"
that comes from. St. Michael's island we calls them lkikes,t I
couldn' say No ma'am. But that's what we call 'em. qiikes.1
"Besides the nicknames a lot o' the old country people changes
their names over here, Sayol, country names is too hard to say.
think that's a lot o foolishness. Anybody can learn say 'Silva'
r k,0
vat or Avellart or k.,abral. Jeeze They am1 so hard.
Anyways slot of em1 s cnange. $111,:::0
A Perrys was Perrera, I guess.
Ant herets those two brothers an' they change the name an now
one's called Denis an' th1 other Caton. That don' make no sense.
Some the &see use' to Rosario an' they's a lot got change.
No malami You wouldn' get ma to change my name. guess not.
ff,
's lo sa other names but I c,n1bring to min' r,g t
of T' tell you any others I think
age
When. are ou comin out
the boat? Maybe you'd like
to s e a real storm? No? Well, we'll get some good weather
Goon Youll. see. This spell' about worn out The turn
she'll come soon. Yes ma'am. You come down to th' dock some
me Ilex' week when
time yo,, come over tomy house, I'll show you some pictures the
ol' country."
in a.
I'll show you over. An next