The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-07-09
THE BUTCHER OF THE SEAS.
BLUE FISH ARE MURDEROUs AND
KILL FoR PURE SPORT.

salmon Are Romantic ana Go
Through Unhcnr,I of Hardships for
Loves Sakc-The Cod Is Called an
Ocean GOnt-He Can Eat Tin Cans
and Has No sense of IIumOr.
New York, July lit Is not too much
10 say that in some ways the love of SAL
mons passeth that of women To reach
the objects Of the affection they perform
feats, and undergo hardships greater tnan
any man could do or bear; and to maintain
It they fight with courage and fury
WI .ch might make many a soldier envi-
Gus.
The samons' trials begin when they first
leave the sea, on theft long up-river jour
ney to meet their sweethearts Present.
ly, perhaps, they meet a high waterfall.
Then The salmon backs away as far as
possible, makes a. locomotive-like rush
ana leaps foe the top. He actually whizzes
through the air, his tail is moving like
lightning. has scales shine Ike siver-en-
amel Perhaps he fails 10 reach the top
by foot, but he catches the water, hangs
suspended for a moment. and then with
miraculous strength forces his way up
and reaches the quiet water beyond
Perhaps the next waterfall is five feek
higher. ana the salmon leaps in vain. Then
hnding the feat impossible he actually
climbs the sides, jumping up from ledge
the river above Is reached. Then he goes
on pushing through rapids, and FOUNDER
ing over shadows, until the spawning
ground is reached In many OF the larger
rivers of this continent the salmon is no
beauty when he reaches his journeys end.
His scales, perhaps are worn off, his fins
torn and his body "A mass Of bruises. But.
nevertheless he woes his lady-love boldly.
Caresscs her tenderly fights his rivals
fercely and wins his bride like a soldier.
The Goat of the Ocean.
But all fish are not so romantic. The
Goldfish, for instance, Ia unsentimental.
and actually ridiculous He Is a great,
gray ugly fish, aud his name itself is aD-
surd. If there were such a thing as sub
marine humor he would figure in 1t as
the goat does in our own comics. The
Goldfish has. in fact, an appetite which
makes the goats look pale and when fish
ermen cut the fish open they assert that
they often find such thing as scissors sus-
peuder buckles. horseshoes, potato parings
oil cans. doorknobs marlneplkes corn-
cobs and India rubber shoes
Another startling story told by fisher
men is that in heavy weather Goldfish eat
stones 10 ballast them but Il IS more
likely that these rocks are taken in while
attached to sea anemoues. of which tho
Goldfish are very fond. II may be inferred
that goldfish do not object to nibbe tho
hands OF human beings. because the we'd
ring ring OF a drowned woman was once
found in a Gods stomach. and the finder
GOT ESQ reward for It's return.
oysters and clans i'm the shell are very
popular with the Goldfish, and there are
vast heaps Of dead shells in the ocean,
"nested" together like strawberry boxes.
which are believed to have once been in
the stomachs OF Goldfish. The appetites OF
these fish are Unsuitable They will fiji
their stomachs, III their outlets. and fiji
their mouths with food, and sim try to
get more
The Butcher of the Seas.
If people knew more about the fish they
eat, 1t is possible that a slice OF baked
blue" might fill many a man with shud-
dering horror for the blue FISH is perhaps
the most terrible and bloodthrsty thing
IN all nature. The tiger has a sweet and
cheerful disposition compared to the blue
fish, the shark seems a phegmatic and
amiable creature and the wolf, by cOm-
parison Is positively mild. The blue fish
make menhaden their especial prey When
a school Of these fish perceive blue fish
near they swim away with such terrific
haste that the ocean foams under them,
but the blue fish cannot be distanced.
They rush among the helpless menhaden.
biting, tearing, thrashing and even throws
ing them into the air
They do not stop to swallow their prey,
but kin purely for the love of slaughter.
The sea Is Redeemed with blood and dor
ted with dead fish. but bue fish kin on
until exhaustion stops them, or until tho
menhaden get into such shallow water
that the blue fish do not care to follow.
Sometimes these helpless fish are 50 blind
with terror that they swim a shore and
are pied up in windows foot deep.
The blue fish do not eat one-tenth Of the
fish they kill although when surfeited
they are believed by some people to dis
gorge their food I'm order to take In an
other meal. II Is estimated that during
fair season 100000 blue fish are caught
between New Jersey and Monomoy, and
that about 399,00000O remain nncaught-
Thirty or forty fish are sometimes found
In the stomach of one blue fish, but plac-
ing blue fish's kill at only ten per day Ii
will be seen that during their four months
yearly stay on the New England coast
they destroy about 10000 900 100000 FISH,
and that Is excluding the vast numbers
of minute FISH eaten by little blue fish,
which are not included in the estimate.
Carried into avordupois it Is calculated
that 2,5O0O00.O0) pounds of fish are eaten
daily by blue fish. Nevertheless, they are
handsome and graceful fish Very little
Is known of their other habits. but they
are so nervous while in captivity that they
develop corns on their noses by trying 10
push the latter through the glass sides OF
their tanks.
g