The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-06-22
HUNTING DEYILFISli.
EXCITING SPORT WITH A PORTU.
GUEse FISHERMAN.

To Land One Ut tile tucanny Monsters Re
quircs Courage aud Cool Nerve Enor-
nous strength OF THEIR Many sucker
Lined Arms.
As sport pure and simple hunting the
dcvilnsh Is perhaps ~ exciting and full of
incident ~ can be found. Not long ago
visitor to san Francisco saw AN octopus
hanging I'm one Of the markets, and seized
with the desire to sec the capture of such
creature followed It up and engaged the
Portuguese fishermen to take him to the
locality, not far from the Golden Gate.
Thu amateur fisherman was provided with
an ordinary bont hook which he was told
wa. used in the capture OF the FISH, and
when the tide was well out he was taken
TO Il group of kclp covered rocks and in
formed that the game was waiting to be
flushed, as it We're The place abounded
In pools in which the water was about a
foot deep, these being partially covered
with floating weed. Passing from rock to
rock the hunter thrust his hook. or spear,
turning up the sand at the bottom Of these
pools.
He had nearly given up the chase when
his boat hook gave a violent wrench under
his hands, and up from the weed came an
unyanny arm of livid and chocolate hues,
finger trembling with rage and appar
entity endowed with intelligence finger
lined with enormous suckers, that curled
itself about the squid hunters leg SO quick
ly that before he could make an aggressive
move he was in the arms Of the enemy.
As ne fell slipping partly on his back he
was Mortified to find that his prey held on,
and that he had pulled 1t partly out of the
wa,er.
: ruggling to his feet, he was met by
whit appeared to be a ball Of snakes with
two green eyes cleaning with rage and
fun and about which writhed eight suck
er lined arms 1t was enough to democrat
ize the most intrepid lover Of sport, but
the octopus merely hung on, making no
advance. Having gained his footing, the
hunter took the boat hook by the end and
bur led 1t in the writhing mass, from which
Immediately an inky fluid poured and
seemed TO dye the water black. Waves of
color shot over the arms, and the monster,
raising itself out of the pool, endeavored
TO haul its way to the ocean. 1t threw Its
Ion arms into every crevice, winding them
about the rock and holding on with the
tenacty of iron, gradually moving toward
the water.
The body was but a small part of the
affair perhaps as large as a child's head,
and in this the hook was caught. The &C
topus slowly gained ground, but finally
the fisherman obtained bracing vantage
and held back, shouting for help. With
assistance the animal was disabled and
borne ashore where IL was found to have
a radla spread of nearly Is feet
OCtopi of this kind and size are found
all along the upper California coast to
Alaska, some attaining extraordinary pro
portions. Curious tales are told concern
ing them, several instances being recorded
where they We're supposed to have caused
the death of swimmers. That they are
powerful enough to drown man there is
not the slightest doubt One of the size
mentioned could drown three or four men
at a time, assuming that they were swim
ming aud that it could attack them in that
position.
The writer once saw an octopus with a
sprt adj Of but four feet throw down II man
who with others had been lifting rocks in
to boat from reef, carrying them ashore
to save the specimens found upon them.
As piece was thrown upon the beach q
big greenish brown octopus came out and
starred for the water, at which the man IN
qucHtion, who was barefOoted, gave it 0
ki,h. Like flash, the animal resented
the insult by throwing its eight sucker
lined arms about its opponent claspine
him in an embrace that held his legs to
Eethcr so tightly that he fell headlong OF
the and shouting for help and fearing e
tou h the animal with his hands to tear II
oil. He was released only when one of the
mel, inserted knife beneath the coils anc
severed the snakelike arms.
To show the strength Of a large one
taken at King 5 island 1t was landed in L
net and after great difficulty secured by O
Of fv Hx-hn lv mia
of sacking around their hands TO protect
them from the suckers, each took an arm
ana walked away, but the octopus writhec
like snake and actually pulled and hauled
them about at will, so they had to exert NJ
little force to prevent the animal from fas
tening to them, which seemed to be its in
tenJlOn.
The strength of the octopus is remarka
BILE The writer has taken scores Of then
with the spear and has known them tC
bring up 20 to 20 pounds Of coral, clinginG
to it with their tentacles when pulled in
and these We're comparatively small ones
the body being the size of ones closed fist
1t IL easy to imagine what the strength OF I
large one might be. The octopus is founC
on almost all coasts where rocky shores
abound but the California species is thu
largest 1t is hunted there as an article o
food and is much relished by the Portu
guose On the Mediterranean it is equally
appreciated. The octopus has a baglik
body, from which radlate eight sucke
lined arms its feet. Between these 1
the mouth, armed with two beaks, lik
those of the parrot in shape and color, ca
pablo Of severing the backbone of a fish Il
single bite. The tongue is provided witt
teeth. The animal crawls over the rock
by hauling itself along with peculiar gal
loping motion and can pass through crev
ces astOundingly small so that 1t oftel
disappears in the most mysterious fashion
San Francisco Chronicle.