Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1871-08-26
A SHARK HUNT OFF COBB,S ISLAND.
SOMETHING ABOUT SHARKS.
The CObbs, and their Island.

GEditortGl Correspondence Of The Star.I
COBB's ISLAND,
OFF VIRGINIA, August, 1S7I.}
"Now, gentlemen, when you feel shirk at
your hook, don't pull in ON him at first Let
him get the hook well down, then draw In.
"When shirk is hooked, all the rest of YOU pull
in your lines as fast you kin, or they'll get
tangled the wust kind when he begins to thrash
around.
Don't crowd to the side of the boat and don't
try TO pull the shirk into the boat until he /.
killed Then trail him forward and lift him ON
deck"
The speaker was Capt. John Doughty, COM
mander of the smart little pleasure yacht at
Cobb's Island, and the audience was a party of
twenty out on asharking expedition. Next to the
renowned Nathan Cobb, the elder Of the Cobb
brothers, Capt John Doughty is the great
authority Of this region in all matters concerning
fish and fowl, the winds, the tides, &c. &c,
and so we received his words as words OF wis
dom. CObbs Island, as everybody knows is
famous for its fishing and cunning, but its most
exciting sport is shark-hunting. Rather a bad
recommendation, the reader may think, for a
watering place claiming to have the safest surf
on the coast; but the fact seems to be well
attested that the shark never ventures into the
surf, where he is in danger of being stranded;
and if by chance the voracious fellow finds HIM
self there, his instructive and immediate effort
is to get away as speedily as possible.
But, for some reason, the bay and channels on
the side of the island opposite TO the surf liter
ally swarms with sharks, as shown by the fact
that no boat ever goes out at the proper time of
the day without catching more or less of them
The three requisites to abundant and assured
success are slack-water, smooth seas, and a
hut
day without regard to these conditions Their
presence in these waters in such numbers is
probably due to the abundance of food to be
found in these bays and inlets swarming with
fish. Their fayorite food seems to be the variety
of fish so plentiful here, known as sspots, !" and
various kinds of crabs, also abundant here. A
shark caught in this bay lately, measuring
twelve and half feet in length, was found to
contain more than four bushels Of the two kinds
Of crab styled the king-crab and horseshoe
crab, well chowdered with ssspots." And though
the shark Is so instinctiveiy shy Of the surf yet
on the bay side he follows his prey, the schools
Of ssspots," with such avidity up the shallow
.drains'' in the marshes that his dorsal I'm and
a portion OF his back is exposed above the
water, betrsying his presence, and he Is fol-
lowed and killed with considerable ease with
the harpoon or the gun or revolver. But his
instinct is always right, and he never ascends
these "drains" except on a rising tide, and so
runs no risk OF being stranded, though his in
stinct does not go far enough to hint at danger
from man In shallow waters Shark hunting Is
on so well established basis at Cobb's Island,
and the yacht is so safe, roomy, and comfortable
in Its appointments that ladies frequently go out
with the shark hunters, but Just now there are
none here of sufficient courage to undertake it,
AS we swept out from the Island pier into the
bay, headed for the sharking ground" 1. 9. the
channel leading into the bay south of the island
rest Of the exciting entertainment promised Ms
Two other boats bound on the same errand, and
with sails filed by the same crisp, invigorating
sought unsuecessfully to keep ahead Of our saucy