The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-10-11
CAPTURING a SWORDrlSH.
A violens Monster, Dting Wounded
Picrccs Block Island noat-


Pierccs Block Island Boat.
A man stands on little platform in
front Of the bow armed with harpoon
having a sharply and deeply barbed
point, 50 that IN piercing the fish, if it.
goes in far enough, it cannot be easily
got osit, let the fish be AS ugly as Inc may.
The iron Is 50 arranged, in connection
with a pole and cord, that the cord can
be detached from the harpoon, the polo
pulled back, and the harpoon left tismly
fixed in tho now maddoned iish-the
line, very strong rope, 800 feet long,
being fast to the iron and the otter end
secure on tie vessel This end is inlme-
diately fastened securely TO an empty
barrel which is then thrown overheard,
and Il marks the course and position Of
the enraecd fish
IL also enables the vessel to seri out
life boat 10 haul in. tire ont and, II pos
sible, capture the ugly fellow. And ugly
he is. If he Is a young fish. If hn L. old
and heavy, he is much quietes-eyen
with q harpo0n in him. It is the
Younger. ivelier fellows that are 80 full
of ugly courage-ihat attack and kill
whales and attack, indeed, pretty much
everything IA the ocean, unless it may
be The sea serpent and the devil fish.
That they viii attack o man, even q
haiher. who Is in water not over his head,
and kili him. too. unless he can MAKE
wonderful time ia getting into shallower
water was proved few years ago in TIE
case of a young Catholic priest who was
attacked while bathing on the California
shore in water just above his nips; he
was fearfuily cashed and nearly killed
before he could get ashore. Sometimes,
IN Its fury at being harpooned, it rushes
10 the small boat and thrusis its ugly
sword up through the boats bottom.
Woe 20 the man It hits!
Our harpooner fastened TO fish that
was secured, as it happened, with little
trouble, though the harpoon only pene-
trated little way into his big carcass.
He proved to be 10 feet inches long,
and weighed undoubtedly $50 pounds.
Much larger ones have been caught, but
rarely. We also secured two others, not
so large. And il was with the second
one that there was an exciting time. He
proved TO be "a young man among his
fellows, and an ugly young fellow, too.
Having him well harpooned, and the
barrel going dancing at a great rate
against the wind-for IL is a curious and
hitherto unrelated fact that q swordfish,
when harpooned, always rushes off to
windward-theli life boat put out to secure
him after duly playing" him. In it
went a Block Islander belonging to the
vessel. and two courageous passengers.
BY the time they reached the barrel, they
were a mile from the vessel, and could
be seen, with a glass, pulling in on the
line.
They worked the fish good while.
When q swordfish. finding himself har-
pooned and hopelessly held, really gives
mp the tighr, be suddenly turns and goes
20 leewlrd. The men at the line under
stand what that movement means. They
were still playing" this fellow. and cx-
haustlng him, when, having several
times had him hauled in close TO the
boat, So that his blue figure was dis
tinctly visible. and as often permitted
him 10 20 100 feet off or more, some
thing happened which caused the captain
Of the steam yacht mile off, looking
through his glass, to exclaim: They're
IN trouble he has struck the b0ati'-
and % order an instant start for them.
lie was none toe soon. The onraged
fish, Withdrawing some sixty feet, had
made one Of those arTOwlke PUSHES upon
the boat. which can be equaled IN its
velocity by no other fish in the sea. The
sword pierced the bottom Of the boat
little ono side of the keel, near the center
coming up nearly two feet. Fortu-
nately men have learned ere now not to
sit down in boat engaged in hauling in
"a swordiish BY standing Gas well as
they cam their feet present a smaller
surface. and hence a diminished chance
of being hit, Last year one mans boot
heel was partly hit, knocking him head
long.
In tie present instance one Of the men
had q narrow escape Of hardly ten inches.
But the men were saved Indeed, the
boat being she'll lifeb'oat, would hardly
have sunk, although it was already half
full Of water and the men hard az work
balng when the steam yacht reached
them. The vicious fish was repeatedly
ianced through the head and neck Till he
got comparatively quiet, when, in haul
ing him up the side, with the harpoon
purchase at the shoulder and the long
graphing hook at the tail, a slipknot was
successfully got over his wide forked tan
and thon-wc had him. But FOR tins
last grip he would have turned the boat
over But the way he dashed the sea I
with that tail was a caution. Hartford
Times
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