Smyrna times., 1879-02-12
Exciting Chase of a Devil Fish.

An officer Of the flagship Pensacola, of
the Pacific squadron, writing from off La
Paz, Lower California, says:
The most exciting event of our cruise,
thus far, was the capture to-day of an i'm.
mense devil fish. Ever since our arrival in
these waters several huge fish have been
observed in the vicinity of the ship, and
much speculation has arisen az to what
they were. One making his appearance
this afternoon, our gunner, George F.
Cushman, and a crew set out after MIN.
The fish, swimming slowly and near the
surface Of the water, which is very clear
here, looked like great shapeless mass,
frequently throwing above the waves the
thin white tips of its sides like the dorsal
Tin of 4 shark. 1t allowed the boat to ap.
proach within few yards of it without
showing symptoms of alarm, when it sud-
denly sounded. The harpoon thrown by
Mr.. Cushman struck, but not with sufficient
force to hold, for the fish freed itself and
disappeared after dragging the boat with
great velocity for several seconds. Another
was seen, however, after a short search,
and was approached more successfully. As
it showed an Indifference to our presence
equal to that of its companion, we pulled
the boat directly over and no more than a
foot or two above it, and Mr.. Cushman,
standing in the bow, plunged the harpoon
firmly into its flesh. In an instant that
seemingly passive mass was transformed
into an iniuriated monster, which first
threw itself bodily out of the water, and
then, sent the harpoon line whizzing out at
a rate that would have made it decidedly
uncomfortable for US, had it become foul
"The strain soon came upon the dingy,
and as we were whisked along with the
| speed of an express train, we felt as though
we had applied the match to some mine, or
that we had been taken in tow by the
gentleman in black himself. 1t was a ride
that for novelty and speed could hardly be
| equalled. Imagine our situation, in a light
boat, with such monster attached to it,
which, as it rushed along, now on the sur
face, and again diving deep, threatening to
upset us among the sharks, and you can
realize the intense excitement of the
moment The only available thing in the
boat, a bucket, had been made fast to the
harpoon line, to offer some additional re-
sistance, but the fish seemed to regard it no
more than a feather, and with the bucket
out of sight under the water confined to
draw us up and down the bay at full speed.
| During all this time its efforts had been con
fined to an attempt to escape, but as its
~
several times turned upon the boat, eXhibi-
ting the full capacity Of mouth some two
feet in diameter, and lashing the boat with
its sides. We made up our minds that if
the fish decided to jump into the dingy we
would quietly slip out over one side as he
appeared on the other. But q vigorous re.
sistance from bOat-hools and oars induced
him to resume his flight in each instance
I" By this time all hands on the ship were
watching the struggle, and the whaleboat
was sent to our assistance, but for fully an
hour both boats, lashed together, were
towed without signs of exhaustion from the
fish, the thrusts of boarding pixies seemed
only to accelerate its speed. Finally It's
immense exertions told upon it, and il
came to the surface directly between the
two boats. where it was placed hors de comJa
by blows from an axe, and dyeing the
water crimson with its blood, was toweC
ashore and dragged upon the beach. i
required the united eXertions of nearly
forty men to accomplish this undertaking
"a more formidable looking monster
than this devil fish could hardly be i'm
agined. 1t was shaped somewhat like al
immense bat, measuring fifteen and a hal
feet in width by eleven feet in length; i
/, was twenty-inches thick and weigheC
probably two thousand pounds. 1t hat
but one fin, unless the wing-shaped eX
tremities by which it propelled itself cal
be considered such, or that the base of
, long thin tail, similar in appearance to
, riding whip, and which is preserved as
memento Of the adventure. Its eyes ar
placed in flexible projections which seem t
t have been used to grasp and convey food t
: its mouth. The mouth, large enough +
: engulf a man whole, was destitute of teeth
) but furnished with solid bones that in tn
: dying agonies of the fish ground larg
: pieces Of coral as stone-crusher woul
stone. The skin of the fish was rough as
5 coarse file and of a dark grayish hue o.
/ the back, with white patches toward tn
E head and pure white on the under side."-
: VellGo (CoI) Chronicle.