Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1881-07-14
A MONSTER OF THE SEA.

| a Gioucester MASS. fisherman said
to New York reporter while examining
squid at a Rockaway museum:
"Pve been round tho world, seen
sharks, whales and big snakes, but a big
squid when he's cornered is about the
worst-looking creature you want to see.
Generally their body is about ten feet
long, looks like grayish-white bag,
with n tail like a big arrowhead. The
head is small, but the eyes are about as
big as large saucer or plate, and black
and staring. When you catch glimpse
OF them cycling you out from among
their arms, tell you it makes a man
wish he hadn't come. The arms, ten of
them, branch from the head, eight short
ones about fifteen feet, and two long
ones from thirty to forty, depending, of
course, upon the size OF the squid.
Eight of them are lined with suckers,
each one ranging in size from q ten
cent piece up to half-dollar. They
arc like so many air pumps. In each
ono is ring of bone with edges like
saw. These are pressed into you, and
the air is sucked out, which, Of course,
forces the teeth of the saw in, and you
can imagine the eiTer: + hundreds OF
these flying around and stirling on all
| sides. The long arms only have their
suckers confined to the ends, which are
fiattened out. Between ell these arms
is the mouth which has two beaks Just
like a parrots, only larger, and the upper
one sets into the under so they can nip
piece out Of an oar blade as easy as to
say the word.
''Do they swim? Yes, and backward,
too, draggirc the arms after them and
going like lightning. Sometimes they
Jump right out of water aad come down
as slick as flying fish. Tho first one
/ ever tackled was just above Trinity
bay, Newfoundland. We saw something
in near shore and u couple OF us jumped
into n dory and pulled over to it, When
we got near big wave tossed us right
on top of it, and the first thing | knew
| got q shot of water and ink lyon
know they spurt ink from an ink bag
fair in the face, and by the time wiped
it of the squid was half aboard us. 1t
flung five Of its arms over, aud one
struck my mate on his bare arm and
nearly hauled him over. Igrabbed the
AK and managed to cut two Of the
arms, when another got round my leg,
and hauled me of my feet; down went
into the boat, and l believe that's tho
only thing that saved ia, as my hand
landed on a big boat hook. ! lay on
my back, the boat half full Of water,
and jammed that hook right through
the ugly creatures eyes, aud. "a my
mate had pnt an oar through it, il
slipped into the water. All this time,
mind you, II was fumiug and squirting
water and ink; but it was only about
halls fathom OF water, and stuck the
boat hook in it again. After we had
bailed ont the boat We made the squid
fast by the painter, towed it aboard and
cut it up for bait, after We had meas
ured it. From the tip OF the long arms
to the end OF the tail the line gave
fifty-one aud half feet. We packed
it in tub that was made to hold ex.
actly 900 pounds of cod, and it filed it.
wouldn't tackle one again like it for
the proceeds of whole season.
"Why, everywhere n sucker had
struck my mates arm il looked as
though a red-hot iron had been pressed
on and sunk in, and where they had
been torn away tho flesh had gone, too.
He was laid up month. / had heavy
pair of boots on, and the leather showed
the marks, as il they had been cut with
I penknife.
"Yes" lin answer to n question:
"most oil the Gloucester men can tell
big stories about squids. Captain Col.
lins, now one OF the United States fish
commission, used to run the schooner
Howard. and they caught FIVE in one
day, averaging from thirty-fve to forty
FIVE feet on an estimate. and weighing
about a thousand pounds apiece. Some
difference between them and this mon.
ster, that we are money out on"
This account was not exaggerated, rs
any one may prove by paying a visit to
the geological museum of Yale college,
whero Professor verrill has the finest
collection OF these creatures in this or
any country. A few years ago they
were not believed in, and the strange
tales of Hugo were the only hints Of
their existence; but one was washed
ashore on the Newfoundland coast, and
fortunately fell into the hands of the