The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1898-03-01
A DIVERS YARNS.
THE ADVENTURES THAT BEFeLL A
SUBMARINE WORKER.

While Exploring the Oceans Bed He Was
Crippled BY Oyster Shells Seven Feet
Higb-A Peari Hunters Thrilling Fight
with o Shark.
To fight to finish with a man-eat-
ing shark, eighty feet below the sur
face. was the lot that fell to Andrew
Cameron, Scotch diver, in the har-
bor OF Vera Cruz, Mexico. Not only
did he survive the encounter, but he
landed in New York recently from the
Ward liner Yucatan and told the tale.
Cameron Is a stockily built chap OF
Herculean strength. Barring an In
jured left knee he came out OF the
desperate struggle unscathed. lie
holds a certificate from tho British
Navy, and is considered an expert in
deep sea diving. That is why he was
engaged three months ago to go to
Vera Cruz and inspect the base OF a
bulkhead 1000 feet long, built by a
Glasgow firm, for the Mexican Govern
ment.
The bulkhead forms a square basin
that varies in depth from twenty to
eighty feet. Its walls are made OF
blocks of stone, set in concrete. At
intervals, inside the basin, are pilings
driven close to the walls.
Cameron had two men to man the
pumps that supplied him with air, and
a Mexican diver named King, who
looked after the signals and saw to 1t
that the proper volume of air was sup
piled. Cameron had been at work
ten weeks and had inspected one-half
OF the wall by October 16 the day of
his nearly fatal encounter.
His experience from this point is
best told by himself, as follows:
~ descended at point where the
water was eighty feet deep, and the
deepest spot in the basin-and the
pressure was about forty pounds to
the square inch.
II had been working about two
hours and a half when l noticed a
shadow over me. The water was very
clear and l could see the wall and the
bottom distinctly. On looking up, to
my utter astonishment, l saw shark
fully ten feet long, close to my helmet.
THE sight almost bereft me of the
power Of motion for moment. l had
seen dos-fsh some two feet long in
the basin, but they had not bothered
me and l had been assured that no
man-eaters ever came into the harbor.
Yet here was shark weighing at least
700 pounds and evidently he was ma
nouevring to get at me. 1t was
his life or mine. Instantly
dropped the hammer and wrench l
held and reached for my dirk. 1t was
a good one with a two-edged blade,
two and one-half inches wide and
eighteen inches long.
Reaching up quickly, l drove the
blade into the sharks throat and
ripped as big hole as could. Then
I pulled the signal to be drawn up,
but it was not understood, apparently,
and l am glad of it now, for had l
been drawn up then the shark would
surely have bitten off my legs.
"He didn't expect any sudden attack,
but knew the monster would quickly
retaliate; so l tried to slip behind one
of the piles that stood out from the
wall. But l was too slow.
The diving clogs weighted my feet,
and the shark, turning quickly,
and sinking almost to the bottom,
darted at me. tried to get behind the
pile, but. like fash, the shark turn
ed on his side--as the creatures al.
ways do-exposing the big white belly,
and opened his jaw.
MY left leg was aXposed, and / eX-
pected 1t would be snapped off. But
the shark closed his jaws too quickly.
He bit solid piece from the rubber
leg CT my diving suit, and jammed my
leg with such force against tina nila
r-=I rn- '-"uv-.4 So sEruued ana the
knee dislocateo.
THE leg was partially paralyzed but
I saw my chance and drove my dirk
into the sharks belly with my left
hand, and gave one desperate rip with
all the strength I could command.
THAT finished Mr.. Shark, but ] did,
not know 1t then for the blood and the
mud from the bottom hid him fronP
view A new danger threatened ma
for the water rushed through the rent
in the rubber Logging and arose IL
my chest.
There the pressure of air stopped d
for time, but I knew that | woulS
soon be strangled if was not draws
TIP. so l tugged at the signal ropeS
They harled me up, but the sharK
reached the surface ahead of me. AfE
er thrashing about while he stretchS
ed out dead. The sight of the dying
shark had told the men OF my danger
aud caused them to haul away WITH
all their might. s
II was so nearly unconscious thai
! couldn't climb the short ladder IA
the raft, and when at length they rel
moved my suit fell In a heap, totally
exhausted