The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1894-10-04
UNDER THE SEA.
Grouping Around on the Floor of
the Ocean.
ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN PHIL
Desperate Dash for Life-Fight With an
Electrical Eel-The Curiosity of the
Shark Family.

Captain Phil" Dacey and "Old
Tom" Allen are as congenial and COM
pair Of housemates as you
could find in weeks walk. They are
both divers by profession, or rather they
We're, for they have now retired from
active service and settled down to the
quiet enjoyment Of their hard-earned
savings.
When | called lat their home few
days ago Old Tom was out, but l re-
ceived most cordial welcome from
Captain Phil, whom | found seated in
a coy armchair, smoking his pipe.
"Adventuresr' said Captain Phil,
"Well, yes, / have had my share of
'em, | reckon. 1t would be a strange
thing if | hadn't met with some odd
and startling experiences in thirty five
years of cropping around on the ragged
old floor of the ocean.
II remember nasty half-hour | once
had of it while | was working on a
wreck in the West Indies. She was a
large steamer that had struck on reef
and then slipped off into deep water,
taking down the mails and valuable
cargo with her, though luckily all the
passengers and crew were saved. Well,
there were some papers as were partic-
ularly wanted, and l was in the chart
room under the bridge looking for
them, when suddenly as turned / saw
the wicked snout of big shark close
to me. Nice fix for any one with deli
cate sort of nerves to be in, wasn't it,
pinned in corner of little square
room, and big brute between you and
the door. | went creepy all over, but l
kept still and so did he. | got my
knife, which we carry screwed in our
belt, loose. I'd make fight for it if
the gentleman began any little game.
So there we We're, each staring at the
other, and each waiting for the other
to make move.
AT last / stared him out of counter
ance, | suppose. Leastaways he slews
himself round and l see him drift to-
ward the far side, so | begin to side for
the door. AS soon as | begin to move
he gets uneasy, maybe my tube touched
him or the air bubbles frightened him,
anyhow he makes rush for the door
and l respectfully makes way for the
flourishes of his TAIL but when he was
off l was off up, too, pretty lively.
They say, sir, all animals have a
fear of man, but sharks don't seem tC
recognize a man in divers costume.
They often come polzing around and
smelling at us like so many great dogs.
The greatest danger about the critters
is that they might get too curious about
the air tube and sample it with their
teeth, and that, you see, sir, would be
a settler for the man, sure enough.
caught one opening his jaws for this
purpose one time, and gave him a clip
on the nose with my crowbar. He went
off like a shot and never bothered me
again.
Another time an immense brute
came alongside where | was working
and | stops and steps back quietly tC
let him pass. But he didn't. He came
nearer. | wasn't particularly anxious
for his company, so | kept getting out
of his way. But the shark kept on,
and soon / found | couldn't go a steI
farther, for he had me jammed W
against rock / was relieved to SEE
that the critter didn't open his jaws
however, but contented himself will
rubbing up against me- | had prong
shaped iron in my hand, and / put thi
between my body and his, for the sen
sation was just about as pleasant al
that of having a COW rubbing hersel
against you. But these sharp iror
points seemed to be just what he wanted
He took it like great pig, bend
ing his body and turning over ON hi
side, so as to present fresh place tt
the scratcher. Would you believe it
sir, was kept there a full half-hou
scratching that NANCY shark, and
suppose the operation must have don,
him good, for at last he moved ava,
and didn't see him till the next day
when he returned for another applica
ton. That was the only time l hell
the job of scratcher to shark.
81 think, sir, the greatest shock
ever got from shark was one tim
when l was blowing up reef of rock
so as to enlarge little harbor on tn
coast. 1t was my work to make hol
to put in charge of dynamite. Whel
| went down every morning l woul,
go over to certain ledge which wa
always good resting place for lob
sters. Morning after morning l use'
to find two or three of these crusty
shins, as a well-eddicated friend 0
mine calls them, and send 'em up alof
in basket. Well, one day wake,
straight up to this ledge as usual, am
ran my hand carefully along its lowe
side. was surprised to find my ham
scraping along what l took to be
rock, but | was surprised still NOR
when l discovered that my preciou
paw was cropping within six inches Q
the mouth of big shark. which ha
retired to rest in this cavity. TIL
brute must have been as much alarme
as / was, for it made one spring iron
its resting place and disappeared in tn
dark wall of ocean. You can just be
| let Holsters alone after that and at
tended strictly to business.
But sharks and such critters are no
the only danger. You see, sir, whel
we move about wreck the air tub
and the line follow us, and we have t
be mighty careful always to come bacl
the same way we go; because we see i
we pass anything on the way or g
around mast or under companion
ladder, and come back t'other side O
it, the tube and line kink around it an,
bring you up all standing, and yo'
hnun To 60 hanl, aud falloxu YOUR tnh