The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-09-06
FIGHTS WITH SHARKS.
HOW THEY WHOOP THINGS UP
FOR THE SAILORS.

An Old Maine Coaster Tells the Small BOY
Couple of Yarns Bone Sharks Seventy
Feet i'm Length-Towing Boat Several
Miles,
Capt. Sam" said little boy who was
watching a 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. lit stands to reason that
I've heard on some bigger ones than |
ever clapped my eyes onto Sailor folks
is great on EARNING. there amt any use
II denying that One of EN- starts a
yarn. and it keeps a CROWN so fast that
by the time it gets ashore the man what
started il wouldn't know it,
But there are some true fish stories. :"
persisted the little boy
"Sartin. sartin, replied Capt Sam
and guess I've seen about as big fish
as the next one When was a boy not
mite older nor you my gran'ther was
owner and skipper of as fine sixty ton
SSAOO'aSA se' Nul tiiC WAUGH GilCSC
and as soon as got big enough not to
fall overheard and to pull on herrin or
mack rel line he took me along. and it
was on this very cruise that saw a big
fish
RED HOT GOALS ON HIS BACK.
"We were fishin' ON what is called the
Georges bank. away up to the north ard
spell The men were out in dOries
fishin an only me an gran'ther aboard
| was foolin around two lines. when |
see somethin black a lyin alongside.
First | thought it was slladder of the
keel. but it kept comm nearer and
more distinct. until all at once | see it
was critter. First thought it a whale,
and sings out to my gran ther that there
was Il big whale alongside He came
running out of the cabin and took one
look at it and said: Its bone shark.
and the biggest one ever see.
AS far as we could make out it was
sixty feet Tonga lynn perfectly still, its
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.
hatin no boat to follow, SO there the big
shark stayed until finally the old man
tuck ton of red hot Goals from the gal
ley fire and tossed them on his back.
Some of them stuck, and it wasn't long
before he left.
"When | got grown up." continued
Capt. Sam, Il saw another shark almost
as big, and helped catch it. 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 time than a week bore away for
New Bedford with "a good Boston load.
We put to sea again on a Friday, bad
day. SO sailormen 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
swordfish. and we cleared decks &C.
cordin'; but when we got alongside we
see it was big bone shark The skipper
said it ought to pay 500 in lie, 80 we
kept away while the man spliced big.
ger 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 big log, and reckon that's
what you'd a-taken it for if you'd a-seen
it. Howsonlever, 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 dor" said Capt. Sam,
who, in the excitement of the old mem
Dry. had dropped his line and was look
ing the little boy in the face, with
hand OF each oil skin knee.
why. he whooped things, and &C
cordin' to my mind we got out of the
way just in time. You'd although
volcano had bust right thar. Up come
big tail fifteen foot in the air, with water
and sprays a-fyin'; then down it went
with noise like the topsail 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 hun
dred fathoms away. and went along
sending the water as high as our top
mast
1T 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-by sure but on
the wind was our best pull. and after a
two hour chase we came up with the
kegs. havin' kept 'em in sight the hull
time from the tops. You see the kegs
was painted white, SO we could see
which way the fish was a-goin
THE big fish was about played out;
ten miles or more at such a rate had
about knocked him. and we rounded to
and put out two dories and took the kegs
in Stand byr says the skipper. for the
minute he feels us a-takin in slack he's
a-goin to take off agin. and sure enough
he did We got the kegs aboard. and the
first pull we made was nigh jerked
overheard; but we hung to him. takin' in
a foot when we could and losin' one an
gainin' two durin' which he towed us a
matter of three miles or more, then we
reckoned he was about through. and we
took in pretty fast We got within 100
feet. when the other dory ahead
slipped alongside and gave him the lance
ihe same way they kill whales
Il have heard of bone sharks seventy
foot, but fifty and sixty footers is all
kin speak for sartin about, and | guess
that's the biggest fish that swiins today"
philadelphia Times.