Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-03-30
SAVED HIS PORT LEG.
A Shark Story From the Shores Of
the Chesapeake.
How Good Man Had q Close Call From {
Man-Eating Shark-An Anchor
Sweeper's Lively Ex.
perfence.
baltimore Sun.1

Thomas K. Knight, good man weigh
ing two hundred and fifty pounds, who
oflciates as turnkey at the Southern Police
Station, was doing comfortably in his
chair while several men of the night re-
serve were seated near him talking about
adventures on the water, when one of them
struck into shark story. "Tom," as he
is called by all who know him, reused up
and listened to the recital of the tale with
mich interest. At its conclusion he said:
"When I was chor-sweeping, boys, I
had a closer call from a shark than that
fellow did whom Jack Humphrey has just
been talking about"
"What is anchor sweeping, Tomw
"Tll spin you that shark story first and
tell you about anchor-sweeping after.
wards"
'No, let's have anchor-sweeping first
and bring the shark story in as an incl
dent"
GAN right, here goes. Every winter
many vessels lose their anchors, and
every spring and summer certain pers ons
go down the bay and sweep for them. The
business is more profitable where ..sea go
ing vessels find holding ground. The
shore along the Chesapeake capes, In the
region of the horseshoe and other exposed
places where vessels are often compelled
to ride at anchor during winter storms,
can be proftably worked. Frequently the
sea is too heavy for vessels to stay there.
1t is also too heavy to get the anchors, and
cables are slipped by vessels which have to
seek other quarters or they are parted and
the boats driven ashore by the gale. There
is always good crop of anchors and
chains on the bottom after stormy win
ter, and men make money by securing
them. The work is done.in this way: Two
pungies, each carrying crew Of four men,
work together. They start out the latter
part of April or on the 1st Of May and
work for three or four months. In the for
ward hold of one of the PUNCHES large
capstan is placed. The sweeping is done
with two-inch rope. The PUNCHES are
brought side by side together. The long
two-inch rope is placed half-and- on
each pungy. They each hoist sail and
edge apart, one going little to port and
the other to starboard, paying out the rope
all the time. When the rope is run out its
entire length the vessels drop sail and drift
with the tide or wind. The rope sinks.
and, as the vessels drift, forms a loop in the
center, which scrapes along the bottom.
When it picks up something heavy on the
bottom the vessels stop. The ends of the
rope are then quickly passed around the
head ear of each vessel, run through cleats
and made fast on sides opposite to what
they were at first. This has the effect of
drawing the bows of both vessels together.
When the vessels meet both ends of the
rope are run through a chock on the bow
of the one which has the capstan in her
hold. The ends of the rope are placed on
the capstan and wound up. AS the ropeis
thus drawn in it is passed to the second ves-
sci, which falls astern as it is paid out to
her from the capstan and thus assists in
the work. When the first boat is brought
directly over the object caught by the
loop on the bottom an iron messenger is
put around the lines, securely closed, and
sent down by means of a stout line. By
humping it against the objectit can easily
be told if it be metal below. If it is an
anchor, then both lines are put around the
windlass on the forw ard deck and the men
set to and heave away until the anchor
comes to the surface. Sometimes an an
Choir may be SO firmly embedded that the
bow of the vessel has TO be hove down as
far as pCssibl5 by the aid of the windiass
and the anchor gradually broken out by
the action of the swell of the sea. When
the anchor is brought up the forebellards
of the second vessel are hooked on to it
and the prize hoisted into her hold.
II oh
were out over three months and secured
$4,000 weight of anchors and chains. got
S2l1 for my share after paying the mess
bills. We got one anchor and chain that
weighed 5000 pounds. 1t had the United
States Navy stamp upon it. A Govern
ment vessel came alongside US one day and
without saying BY your leave, gentle
men," hoisted the prize out of the hold and
went of. We were lying at Fortress
Monroe at the time.
''One hot day we were becalmed off the
horseshoe. Three of US went swimming
in the bay. There was an awful lot of hun
cry sharks about that summer, but we
didn't think about them as we SWAN away
from the vessel several hundred yards.
Presently some one yelled: Sharks swim
for your lives, nenr I looked around. and
there, sure enough, was the fin of a man
eater skimming along the top of the water.
Jerusalem, but didn't swim! 1t was no
time for fancy strokes, and l just dug at
the water with my hands and arms, scoop
ing it up like propeller aud throwing
myself half out OF the water as plunged
forward But we couldn't begin to swim
with that shark. He was a half mile away
when we first saw him, and one of our
boats was coming toward US, manned by
four men, who were rowing like giants.
But the distance between US and the shark
disappeared with greater rapidity than the
space between ourselves and the boats.
Well, we reached the boat and were
hauled in just as the shark had turned on
his back TO make a meal of my port leg.
He didn't get me, although felt the snap
of his jaws as he brought them together.
He turned over in his disappointment,
glared at us half minute, and then famed
of to look for his dinner in another quar-.
ter. Since that experience have not been
fond of sharks"
Brain WORK.
"Cncle Aleck, what are you dong this