Clarksville evening chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn) 1886-1890, 1888-11-17
CAPTURING a swoanElsa.
A Vicious Monster. Deing wounded
ptefces a Block Island Doat.

/ pterces Block Island DOat.
A man stands on little platform il
front of the bow armed with HARMON
having sharply and deeply barbet
point, 50 that in piercing the fish, if i
goes in far enough, it cannot be easil,
got out, let the fish be as ugly rs he NAV
The iron is so arranged. in connection
with a pole and cord, that the cord car
be detached from the harpoon, the pol,
pulled back. and the harpoon left firmly
liked in the now maddened fsh-tht
line, o very strong rope, 500 feet long
being fast to the iron and the other end
secure on the vessel. This end is imme.
diately fastened securely to an empty
BARREL which is then thrown overheard.
and it marks the course and position Of
the enraged fish.
1t also enables the vessel to send ont a
life boat to haul in, tire out and, il pos
sible, capture the ugly fellow. And ugly
he is, if he is young fish. If he is old
and heavy, he is much quieter-even
with a harpoon in him. 1t is the
younger, livelier fellows that are so full
OF ugly courage-that attack and kill
whales and attack, indeed, pretty much
everything in the ocean, unless it may
be the sea serpent and the devil fish.
That they will attack man, even a
batller. who is in water not over his head
and kill him, too, unless he can make
wonderful time in getting into shallower
water, was proved few years ago in the
case of a young Catholic priest who was
attacked while bathing on the California
shore, in water just above his hips; he
was fearfully gashed and nearly killed
before ne could get ashore. Sometimes,
in its fury at being harpooned, it rushes
at the small boat and thlusts its ugly
sword up through the boats bottom.
Woe to 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 8 inches long,
and weighed undoubtedly 45O poun. \.
Much larger ones have been caught. bet
rarely. We also secured two others, not
50 large. And it 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 great rate
against the wind-for it is a curious and
hitherto unrelated fact that a swordfish,
when harpooned, always rushes off to
life boat put out to secure
aim after duly playing him. In il
went Block Islander belonging to the
vessel, and two courageous passengers.
BY the time they reached the barrel, they
we're mile from tho vessel, and could |
% seen, with glass, pulling in on the
inc.
They worked the fish good while.
When swordfish, finding himself har-
'ooned and hopelessly held, really gives
Up the fight, he suddenly turns and goes
o leeward The men at the line under
tand what that movement means. They
we're still playing" this fellow, and OK
lausting him, when, having several
ines had him hauled in close to the
oat, so that his blue figure was dis
inctly visible, and as often permitted
i'm to 60 100 feet off or more, some.
hing happened which caused the captain
I the steam yacht a milo off, looking
trough his glass, to exclainl: ''They re
trouble! he has struck the boat!'--
nd to order an instant start for them.
lie was mono too soon. Tho enraged
sh, withdrawing some sixty feet, had
lade ono Of those arrowlike rlshes upon
10 boat, which can be equaled in its
clocity by no other fish i'll the sea. The
word pierced tho bottom of tho boat a
tile one side of the keel. near the center
coming up nearly two feet. Fortu-
Ately men have learned ere now not to
down i'll boat engaged in hauling in
swordiish. BY standing Gas well as
ley CAM their feet present smaller
lrface, and hence diminished chance
being hit. Last year one mans boot
Eel was partly hit, knocking him head
ng.
In tho present instance one of the men
I'd narrow escape of hardly ten inches.
ut the men wero saved. Indeed the ,
'at, being shell lifeboat, would hardly ,,
I've sunk, although it was already half ,,
III of water and the men hard at worl;
ling when the steam yacht reached =,
en-. The vicious fish was repeatedly
need through the head and neck Till he
It comparatively quiet, when. in haul
3 him up the side, with the harpoon !
l:chagc at the shoulder and the long
appling hook at the tail, a sliplinot was
cccsSfui!y got over his wide forkcd tail |
and then--wc had him. But for this .
st grip he woald have turned tho boat
er. But the way he lashed the sea
til that tail was u caution. Hartford
mos.