Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-11-19
THE DAILY
SHORT STORY.
A Shark Story.

diaman. His father, who is dead and
gone this twenty years or more, was
carpenter aboard OF her.
Chips we used to call him. and IL
you don't mind listening to an old salt
who's been round the world enough
times TO make a Iandsman giddy at the
very thought of it I'll just tell you Of
little adventure we had with one of
them man eating monsters.
Well. one day we were becalmed on
the line when says young Bill-he was
young says lie. Il shall have swim
round for a cooler" for. believe me. the
sun was thar hot we had to throw
buckets or water on the deck to keep
1t from catching fire.
So i'm lie goes. head first, with his
clothes on. and me and his old man
looked over the side just abaft the fore
rigging to see him come TO the top of
the water again.
But no Bill could we see, and instead
OF him came up a tremendous shark
with his side sticking out as il he had
a cargo inside over and above his reg
ular bill o lading.
1t was then as clear to us as the nose
on our faces that poor Bill had diyed
clean down It's throat.
The poor old man had a fit right
away. and we carried him below and
put him in his hammock and then ran
up on deck again i'll the hope that we
should be able to catch the fellow.
| But it was nowhere To he seen, so
after watching some time To 10 pur-
pose we went down below to see how
the old man was getting on, and TO our
establishment and sorrow we found his
! body nearly cold and as stiff as the fly
| ing jibbOom.
We sewed him up in his hammock,
putting the grindstone that he used to
grind his tools with inside TO make it
sink. and laid the body on II hatch with
the union jack spread over it for Il pail.
| Then the skipper read the funeral
service. all or us standing round.
As soon as the skipper had finished
the last words, which shall never for
get-they was so solemn-the hatch
was tipped up. and Overboatd the body
went with n splash. and all was over
| at least we thought so.
But almost Immediately afterward
II seemed. than the iirst-certainly it
was thicker.
The boatswain at once ran for the
shark hook and baited it with junk
OF pork and slung it over the stern, and
1t was not many minutes before we
had him hooked and hauled on deck.
Well, the first thing we did was to
cut his tail off. for lie was Tapping it
| Inn hot sh shin
stem To stern. and we were afraid it
would shake her to pieces.
After we had done that we thought
we heard a very strange noise inside of
him-a sort OF grating sound, like n
boat being dragged over shingly
| beach.
So we set to and cut of his head and
then ripped him UP. when, what d'you
think. what should we see, TO our great
establishment and delight. but Bill and
his father sitting upright like two Jo-
nahs. the yOungster turning the grind
stone and the old man sharpening his
knife intending to cut their way out
OF the creatures belly
You say l said the old man was dead.
Please don't interrupt me. and I'll tell
you all about it,
| Inefe = no dOuDI Dut what he seemed
dead, but it was only his blood froZe
with horror. and the shark warmed
him to life again.
What made him most uncomfortable.
Bill said, was the slipperiness and
topsy turviness of the place, for there
was no rest at all. for one minute he
was standing OH his head and the next
on his feet and then tossed from one
side to the other, sometimes getting
jammed between its ribs, and he won
dered the meal didn't disagree with the
fish itself.
But at last came the climax, and Bill
thought it was all over with him, for
down its throat was shot Il heavy body
like a sack of Goals right atop of him,
nearly smothering him. so that he had
scarcely room to move or breathe, and
he must have been some time insen-
sible, he said, when he was woke up by
a loud report.
He thought for moment the crea-
ture had swallowed a powder barrel
and it had exploded, but it was only
the bursting of the canvas shroud the
old man was sewed up in, which had
blown up like a'paper bag.
The noise i'm its inside, Bill said,
must have astonished the shark, for he
again found himself standing upon his
head, so he knew it was making for the
surface, and ON reaching there IL open
ed it's enormous jaws for air, when a
flood OF light entered between the rows
of teeth. which enabled Bill, on gain
ing his feet, to take stock OF his lodg-
ings, and the very first thing that he
saw was bis old father crawling out
from under the canvas like a chick
from its she'll.
The old man had caught sight of the
grindstone and soon put it into work
ing order, and on the fish once more
coming to the top and again admitting