The Nevada journal., 1861-06-14
cATCHfyc 4 SHARK.


a week or two in s.the calm latitudes," the
debateable border sea between the ordinary
breezes and the trades, he is no stranger to
the sssiduous attentions of this lank and
1.-THE tenant of the tropical seas. Jack
familiarly calls. him by the title of 9Sea
lawyer" for reasons which are by no means
complimentary to the learned profession;
and views him with that admixture of hate
and fear with which unsophisticated lands
men are apt to regard his terrestrial repre-
sentatiyes To bait line and catch the
mackerel or the bonito, is always welcome
occupation to the sailor; but to no anuse-
ment does Jack bend himself with such q
hearty alacrity as to take the ''shark. >
When, on approaching the northern tropic,
ssDown drops the breeze, the sails drop down, -
'tis not "sad as sad can be, for all is hi
larity and alertness. Away goes one to
the harness cask for junk of salt pork,
another on his knees before the cabin lock-
er, rummaging out an enormous hook,
which tradition confidently reports is de-
posted there;a third is unreaving the stud
ding sail halyards to serve as a line, for so
tough customer needs stout gear; fourth
is standing on the tafrail, keeping an eye
on the monster, that new drops offand now
comes gliding up, light, green mass,
through the blue water, till his whiteness
nearly touches the surface, and telling the
william all the while, with uncouth male
dictions, that his time is coming. The
mate is on the jib-boom welding the
grains, whose, trident prongs he has been
for the last half hour sharpening with a
file, ready to take by force any one Of the
hated race who may be too suspicious for
the bait astern. And now the skipper
himself comes up, for even dignity cannot
brawny hands put on the enticing pork
and lowers away.
'Tis twirling and edding in the wash of
the ships counter; the crew are divided in
their llegiance-half, cluster at the quart
er to witness the captains success, half a.
the cat-heads to see the mates happening.
There scuttle up the two little pilot-ishes,
in their banded livery of blue and brown,
from their station one on each side of the
sharks nose; they hurry to the bait, sniff
at it, and then back in all haste to their
huge patron; giving his grimncss due in
formation of the treat that awaits him.
See how eagerly he receives it! with lat
eral wave of his powerful tail he shoots
ahead, and is in an instant at the pork -
''Look out there? Stand by to take u turn
of the line round Delaying pin, for he's
; going TO bite, and he'll give US sharp
tugi" Every pair of eyes is wide open, and
every mouth, too; for the monster turns on
his side, and prepares 10 take in the deli
cate morsel. But no; he smells the rusty
iron, perhaps, or perhaps he sees the line;
at any rate, he contents himself with sniff,
and drops astern; coming forward again,
! however, 20 sniff and sniff again. 'Tis per-
ilous; yet It's tempting.
A shout forwardl The mate has struck
one! And away rush the after band to see
; the sport; the skipper himself hauls in the
line and JOINS the shouting throng. Yes;
$ the grains have been well thrown, and are
fast in the festy part of the back. What
a monster! full fifteen long, if he's an inch
and how he plunges and dives, and rolls
round and round enraged at the pain and
restraint till you cant discern his body for
the sheet of white foam in which it is en-
wrapped The stout line strains and
creaks, but holds on; dozen eager hands
are pulling in, and at last the unwilling vic
tim is at the surface just beneath the bows,
but plunging with tremendous force.
Now, one ofthe smarter hands has juup-
ed into the forechains with rope made
into moose. Many efforts he makes to get
this over the tail, without success; at
length it is slipped over, in an instant haul
ed taut. and the prey secure.
"Reeve the line trough block, and take
a run with i'll" Up comes the vast length,
tail foremost, ont Of the sea; for a moment
the ungainly beast hangs, twining and
bending his body, and gnashing those hor-
rid faugs, till half-a-dozen boat hooks
guide the mass to his dcath-bed on the
broad deck Stand clear! If that mouth
| gets held Of yeur leg, it will GU. through its
sincw, muscle, and boaej :hc .toutcst man
on board would be swept down If he came
within the reach of that tail. What rever-
berating blows it inhiets on the smooth
pianksl
One Cannot ioek at that fac. without an
invoicatory .l!adder fhc lcss ia. hsaa,
and the mouth SO greatly overhung by the
sneut, impart most repulsive expression
to the countenance; and then the teeth,
those terrible serried fangs, as keen as Ian
Gets, and yet cut into fine notches like
saws, lying row behind row, six rows deepl
| See how the front rows start up in erect
stiffness, as the creature eyes you'll You
shrink back from the terrific implement no
longer wondering that the stoutest limb of
man should be severed in moment by
sach chirrgrry. But the esesi those hor.
rid eyes: it is the eses that make the shark
what it is-ihe very embodiment cf Satan
ie rislignity, Half concealed beneath the