Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1889-10-09
FIGHT WITH A SHARK.
Gigantic Monsters OF the Deep
Seen by a Yankee Sailor.
How One Of Them WhOopcd Things Up for
Venturesome Fishermen-SomO True
Fish Stories Told by q Strictly
Truthful Old Tar.

Captain Sam,' said little boy who, ac-
cording to the Philadelphia Times, was
watching very red-faced old fisherman
way up the Maine coast, as he baited his
trawl hooks, ''what is the largest fish you
ever saw or heard off"
"Wal," replied the old fisherman, with
out looking up, ''it stands to reason that
I've heard on some bigger ones than ever
clapped my eyes onto. Sailor folks is great
on yarning; there amt any use in denying
that. One Of 'em starts yarn, and it keeps
CROWN so fast that by the time it gets
ashore the man what started it wouldn't
know it."
"But there are some true fish Stories"
persisted the little boy.
''Sartin, sartin," replied Captain Sam,
sand guess I've seen about as big fish
as the next one. When / was q boy not a
mite older nor you my gran'ther was owner
and skipper Of as fine sixty ton schooner
as cut the water in these parts, and as soon
as l got big enough not to fall overheard
and to pull on herrin' or macl1rel line he
took me along, and it was on this very
cruise that saw big fish. We were fish
in on what is called the Georges Bank,
away up to the north ard spell. The men
were out in dories a fishin' an only me an
gran'ther aboard. was foolin' around
lynn alongside. First thought it was a
shadder of the keel, but it kept comm
nearer and more distinct until all at once
see it was critter. First thought it was
whale and sings out to my gran'ther that
there was a big whale alongside. He came
a running out of the cabin and took one look
at it and says: It's a bone shark and the
biggest one ever see.'
'.As far as we could make out it was
sixty feet long-a lynn perfectly still, it's
back out of the water so that man could
have walked ten or twenty feet on his
back We had a harpOon, but he didn't
dare throw it for fear of losin' it, havin' no
boat to follow, so there the big shark stayed
until finally the old man tuck ton of red
hot Goals from the galley fire and tossed
them on his back. Some of them stuck, and
it wasn't long before he left.
when got grown up" continued Cap
tain Sam, 81 saw another shark almost as
big, and helped catch it. l shipped in a
/ sword fisherman as first man. We sailed
from Boothbay, but finding fish scarce, we
put down toward Cape Cod and when we
got to the southland we found about all we
could attend to, and in less than week
bore away for New Bedford with "a good
Boston load We put to sea again on a
Friday, bad day, so sailor men say, but
this turned out good luck for US. We were
| about on what they call The Sisters when
the lookout sighted what he thought was a
swordtish, and we cleared decks accordin' /;
but when we got alongside we see it was a
big bone shark. The skipper said it ought
to pay one hundred dollars in lie, so we kept
away while the man spliced bigger line on
| to the harpoon and then wore around and
came up on him again.
"He was a-lyin' right in the slush of the
sea. There was fair so'west- wind
a-blowin', just enough to make the sea
make clean break over his back that
looked like a big log, and 1 reckon that S
what you'd a-taken it for if you'd a-seen it.
| Howsomever, we came a-bowlin' along in
! great shape, the skipper putin the
schooner within ten feet of him, and, as we
shot by, me and the second mate let drive
our irons into him, and the same minute the
men hove over the keg an line.
"What did he dol' said Captain Sam,
who, in the excitement of the old memory,
had dropped his line and was looking the
! little boy in the face, with hand on each
| oilskin knee.
"Why, he whooped things, and accordin'
to my mind we got out Of the way just in
time. You'd a-thought volcano had bust
right thar. Up come big tail fifteen foot
| in the air, with water and sprays aofyin'
then down it went with noise like the top
sail of fifty gun frigate in stays. There
| was long cable or line on the harpoons,
| but it wasn't two minutes before we saw
| the kegs go under and up they came a
| hundred fathoms away, and went along
sending the water as high as our topmast.
sit so happened, our luck bein' still on,
| that the fish bore away on the wind; if it
had a. struck to the windward it would
have been good bye sure, but on the wind
was our best pull, and after q two hour
chass we came up with the kegs, havin'
| kept 'em in sight the hull time from the
tops Ye see the kegs was painted white, SO
VIC could SEQ which way the fish was gon'.
'The big hsh was about played out; ten
miles or more at such rate had about
| knocked him, and we rounded to and put
out tive dories and took the kegs in. Stand
byP says the skipper, for the minute he
feels Us a-takn' in slack he's a-goin' to take
| OF agin,' and sure enough he did. We got
| the kegs aboard, and the first pull he made
/ ! was nigh Jerked overheard but we hung
| to him, takin' in a foot when we could,
lcsip' one an gainln' two, durin' which
| he flowed las . matter Of three miles or
more; then we reckoned be was about
through, and we took in pretty fast We
| got within one hundred feet, when the
other dory ehead slipped alongside and give
him the lance the same WY they kill
| whales.
81 have heard Of bone sharks seventy
feot, but Atty and sixty footers Is all kin
speak for sartin about, and ] guess that's s
l the biggest fish that swims today
|
ui.:.I.rium of the Sexes.