The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-08-10

1t is not often that a shark breaks
into a mans henroost and steals his
chickens. Such a case. however. is on
record at -Hache, says the
New Orleans Times Democrat.
Emmett Hingle told the STORY as he
showed a visitor around his fathers
back year. which was full of lively and
intelligent young chickens. Mr.. Hin
gle has only had a few years expert
ence as a lawyer. His veracity is there
fore unquestioned. He introduced the
matter by remarking:
I'VE lost a great number of our
chickens last year by a shark"
White or colored?" asked the visi-
tor incredulously.
"A shark, mana shark. from the
Gulf-eight feet long"
did he walk all the distance or
come in a fish carr"
THE affair is not as impossible as
you are inclined to believe" remark
ed Mr.. Hingle in an aggrieved tone.
You notice the levee in front of the
house. Well. each year during the
equinoxial season, a strong southeast
wind blows the waters of the Gulf
into Pointe-a-la-Hache and floods the
town. The water is three or four feet
deep. We have to go in skiffs from
the front of the house to the levee.
Last year, as usual, when the floods
commenced, we drove all our chickens
into the big henhouse. Naturally,
when the flood became deep they could
not come down to eat In order to
feed them we rugged up a rope parallel
to each roost, and slowly pulled
basket of corn from one end to the
other. In this way the chickens had
to eat Standing up"
Il did not know that chickens ever
ate sitting down or in a reclining po-
sition" interjected the visitor. How
ever, that may have been their Gus
tom during the days of the Romans"
st was only a method of expression"
continued Mr.. Hingle. II meant that
the chickens stood on the roost and
ate the corn as it passed before them
in this way for a few days when we
noticed that they had begun to dimin-
ish in number. We then began to
count each morning, and found that
four or five disappeared every night.
We finally decided to watch. 1 rugged
myself up a platform in the chicken
house and went out to spend the night.
From 10 o'clock until 4 nothing hap
pened, and I was becoming pretty we'll
tired, thinking probably that the negro
who had been robbtng our henroost
had seen me and would not make an
other attempt while / was there. AS
the gray light began to dawn, however,
L heard series of splashes, and look
ing toward the rear I saw large
shark jumping the fences as if they
had been hurdles. Naturally, I was
very much surprised. When the
shark had jumped our fence he dis
appeared under the water. was
looking all around for him when I
heard noise in the henhouse, and
looking down I saw the shark. He
had come in by diving through the
large hole through which our chickens
had gone into the yard when they
aWoke in the morning. You may i'm
agine my CONSERVATION. l was alone
in the henhouse with a chicken-eating
shark, and l had no adequate assur-
ance that he was not a maneater The
shark did not wait for an introduce
ton. Balancing himself upon his tail
he grabbed a chicken from the roost
and swallowed it whole. He repeated
this feat until he had eaten six, and
then diving through the hole went
leaping over the fences again, evil
IDENTIFY very much pleased. He had
tailed to see me, otherwise he might
have bitten me in the leg.
well, to make a long story short"
continued Mr.. Hingle, I'VE waited for
him next morning and stopped the
hole after he had entered, We then
killed him with rifle"
Taking the visitor to the rear GAL
lery, Mr.. Hingle showed the jawbone
and teeth of the shark. In the teeth
were number of chicken feathers.
I'VE managed to kill him before he
had time to pick his teeth" remarked
Mr.. Hingle modestly.g