New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-06-05
HUNTING MAN-EATERS.
swARMs OF SHARKS PROWL ABOUT THE
FLEET IN SOUTHERN WATERS.

Copyright: 1895: The Associated Pr.w)
Key West Fla, June SHARK hunting ha. become
n favorte sport among the men IN the fleet and
tho dispatch boats The Southern waters are alive
with the ugly monsters. and they are the bodest
hunsrest kind Of man-enters The "sailor man.
from the North nj frs, laughs NJ tho shark stories
but he does not cruise in these waters long before
he Joins I'm the general stampede to quarters and
gets much excited aa the natives whenever a
man-eater comes alongside And they come fire.
qucntly and in large numbers
Il would be difficult to imagine more hideous-
looking object than n hungry shark Of the Carib-
bean Sea az he comes gliding along through the
clear water and pokes his against the hull Of
n ship When the water is quiet and the sun is
shining no can he many feet down In the
water and the closer he approaches the more
hdeous he looks. Few stories told about the greed
and viany Of the Southern shark are overdrawn.
He Is Just az black he has been painted. The
thoroughbred sailor hates him rs herceIy as he
does a spaniard and fights him with the same
spirit that he would fight Spaniard Sharks about
tho coasts OF Cuba unusually bold and fero-
cious and the Cubnns say II is because they have
been 90 long accustomed 10 feed on human flesh.
Havana Harbor is swarmns with ravenous sharks,
and tho Cubans believe that they are lured there
by tho number OF human bodies which have been
tossed out 10 them from MORO Castle Here Is a
little story Of an experience the crew Of the Asso
c,c ted Press dispa tch- boat Wanda had with the
man eaters while drifting with Rear-Admira samp-
sons fleet along the north coast OF Cuba last week:
Tho boat had been drifting for several hours. The
sen was as smooth mIllpond. and the water
30 clear that an object Atty feet down could easily
be seen Three OF the sailors had been lowered In
IN. Of the small boats and were at work painting
tina aides OF the ship A little before the
members OF tho crew on deck were startled by an
outcry from the sailors In the boat. and. going 10
the rail, they saw circling about. not ten yards
distant from the small boat. huge shark. most
uncivil- looking neghbor. Round and round he cir
ced each time coming n little closer 10 the small
boat and occasionally lifting his huge head above
thu surface 10 snap at tuft OF seaweed or some
object that had been thrown overheard from the
ship Gliding along. just above his nose. were three
pilot fish which are always seen swimming close
10 a shark They never leave him. and he never
makes any effort to disturb them, although he Is
the mortal foo Of every other fish that swims the
sal, water Sometimes the spr!ghtly little pilot
FISH will rest upon the sharks ugly nose or snug
gle close upon his back. Just behind his fms.
as he glldes through the water AS the shark cir
ced closer to the small boat the sailors became
more frantic with rage and alarm one OF the
negro sailors on deck nearly had Mysteries. Dress
a. Iawd,'' he shouted dat shark jump in de
hoot auah | seen um get right in de boat and
eat two Nassau niggahs just last yeah. de
0ood Iawd. Dem sailors gone suah. But the
sailors were not eaten. although several times the
shark came up close 10 the poa' anu poAeo h'S
great nose against the tiller
con,a,n Miller OF the Wanda. had been watch
,ro the game and. calling to the cook TO bring him
,hs carving knife. told the sailors 10 throw out
urau bits Of biscuit TO the shark and keep him
cIose TO the boat. The cook soon came running
with the knife. and Captain Miller dashed II
armly to the end of pike pole. Ta1n. getting
down into the boat he waited again until the
sbark lifted his head above me water near the
boat and lifting the pike pole high above his head
plunged the knife deep into tho sharks neck. just
hock Of his head The great tawny brute
quickly houndered upon his back and for a
distance Of Nifty feet or moro could be seen with
ing and lashing his tail until ne went down to the
bottom The little pilot fish did not leave him. In
less than ten minutes another shark. larger than
tho FIRST came up and he received deep cash
from me cooks knife, but ne not killed. Tho
kaifa although nHietinS . wound fully twelve inch.