The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-07-11
A FIERCE CONTEST.
A FURIOUS BATTLE BETWEEN
SHARKS AND ALLIGATORS.
The Ocean Bloodhounds Attack the
'Gators-How the Rush was
Avoided - Survivors Two
Sharks and One Gator.

'Gators-How the Rush was
Avoided - Survivors Two
Sharks and One Gator.
Last week, says the st. Louis Globt
Democrat, contest was witnessed by 9
hunting party, on the Indian River,
Florida, that they describe as being ex-
citing in the extreme. While fishing at
the mouth of small creek their atten-
tion was suddenly attracted by furious
splashing and plunging in the water
about quarter of a mile from shore.
Hastily pulling up their anchor they
rowed out to Investigate. On reaching
the scene Of disturbance they saw, to
their astonishment, FIVE or six alligators
and as many "man-e eating" sharks en-
gagged in a deadly fight. The maddened
brutes were too frenzied with rage to
notice the spectators and good view
was had of the atlray.
The sharks, from appearances, had
come up unawares on the saurians and
had taken them by surprise. Two of the
latter had lost co h a foreleg. But they
were all lighting furiously, swapping at
the sharks with their ugly, wide opened
jaws and using their tails to as good an
advantage as possible. But they seemed
desirious of getting away from the man.
eaters, and ut every chance they moved
further out into the river. However,
the wondering spectators, who thought
the gators were afraid of their oppo-
nents, soon saw that the saurians knew o
thing or two. A few rods further on
the water shoaled to some three feet or
less, and gliding on to this the gators
seemed to be perfectly satisfied. The
sharks were rather bothered by this state
of affairs at first, as they preferred deep
water, where they could dive and turn
over, in order to get their cruel, big
mouth fixed on choice bit Of alligator
flesh. The latter, as soon as they reached
this shallow place, remained quiet, only
watching their foes, who swan round
and round them, unable to make deci-
sive blow. The blood flowing from the
wounded gators seemed to make the
sharks fairly crazy, however, and in a
few moments they plunged in feroeiously,
with wide open jaws.
The scene that ensued, say the eye
witnesses, was beyond all description.
The two were about evenly matched, and
each animal seemed to select one partic-
ular antagonist and engage in deadly
embrace.
The ocean bloodhounds endeavored to
seize the forepaws of the gators, while
the gators, fully aware of the powerful
jaws of their antagonists, carefully
avoided their rushes, and, in turn, with
awful openness of jaw, tried to secure
mouthful of shank steak. The. two
dashed at one another in the widest kind
of fury, their eyes cleaning with fero.
ciousness and anger, while the tails of
the saurians threshed the water into
white foam in their wild sweeps at their
foes. The crunching of bones, the tear
ing, ripping sound of giving flesh and
the sullen roars of pain and rage from
the wounded gators all combined to rem
der the combat most exciting. The
sharks seemed to be fully. aware of the
folly of trying to cut through the thick,
mail-like armor of their opponents, and,
like skilful gladators, tried to upset the
gators, 80 as to get at their soft, unpro-
tected under sides. But this the latter
resisted with all their might, hugging
the sandy bottom close and raising high
their heads, with open jaws, displaying
sets of long, cruel-looking teeth as they
snapped at their opponents.
The sharks made frequent feints, dash
ing in ferociously, checking themselves
within foot, as it tseemed, of the noses
of their enemies, and then, as the latter
snapped at them, attempting to dodge in
under their jaws and seize their fore
paws, which is one of the gators most
vulnerable parts. Several of them sue
ceeded in this, and then the combatants
would become almost Invisible in the
foam raised by the furious struggle of
the two mighty denizens of the water.
If the shark missed, the saurian's power
full jaw would descend upon the sharks
back, and his cruel teeth would be i'm
bedded into the flesh, and then, with q
snap and jerk, the sickening sound Of
tearing flesh would be heard, as huge
piece would be torn out of the plunging
and furious fish.
The blood from the wounded animals
dyed the waters red for rods and its
taste seemed to render the combatants
perfectly wild with fury. Their rushes
became more and more furious, and il
seemed to be fight to the finish only to
end with the death of all. The indi-
vidual cases were remarkable for their
ferociousness. Here was seen gator
in q semi-ludicrous situation, half
sitting as it were, with his head
and fore legs out of the water
uttering roars of rage as he endeavored
vainly to grasp the shark in his jaws,
while his long claws were ripping up
the latter in o manner that made him
thresh and churn the water with his
fail in q most violent manner. The
shark had forced his way under the
/ gator and by selling him in an unpro-
tected part of his body had him at his
mercy.
Near by would be seen a huge man.
eater struggling to break away from the
fierce grip that his enemy had secured on
his shoulder, the fail-like tails of both
raising columns of water high in the air.
The gator held on with bulldog grip,
his tiery eyes cleaning as i. he enjoyed
the fun, while every now and then he
would savagely shake his victim as cat
would huge rat. In another case both
would be seen to have secured good
holds, each engaged in tearing huge
mouthfuls of flesh from his antagonist,
their fury and anger seemingly in
creased by the pain from their wounds.