The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-07-27

I
nous pressures OF water where they
dwell. and when they ascend near the
] surface the effect of the decreased press
! ure on them is just as the effect of as
cending TO nigh attitudes in a balloon is
on man. Blood bursts forth from ears
and nose, and finally the eyes. Were It
| possible 10 ascend still higher. the aero
naut would burst Just so it IS with the
| fish. Those that are seized by deep sea
travis and hredges always come 20 the
surface split and torn open, with their
eyes actually blown out OF their heads and
! their entrails protruding. The more deli
cate forms are generally ruined for all
! purposes except those OF mere scientific
Identification.
However, for some unknown reason,
| perhaps driven from its back caverns by
scarcity of food, this uncaany monster
did find It's way upwards until It lay in
what was shallow water indeed-shaliow
enough to make its tiny pinpoints OF eyes
blink. dazzled by the light that filtered
! down through the wonderful clear, light
| blue water for the depth over the shelf
of rock where the ChannonIureana found
| itself was only 6s feet. And there. wind
ing in and out among strange things. it
self the strangest Of all, driving the but
/ terfiy and the bride fish and the angel
! fish and parrotfsh, in all their gorgeous
reef hveries. before it in terror, it found
baited hook and SNAPPED at It with that
| mighty gaping mouth.
Floating above it lay a fishing bout,
/ with deep well in its hull, so that the
/ captured fish might be kept alive. Three
! negro fishermen loIIed in the craft They
| had sailed out to this spot. seven miles
| northeast of Bermuda, armed with great
| bellying bottles of pineapple rum, to fish
| for market, but they were devoting far
more time 10 the TASKS than to the fish
| lines. They were anchored right on the
edge Of the reef where it descended into
/ the depths. Now and then they would
pun up a gay hsh-green, yellow, violet.
blue, scarlet-hsh of dozen colors far
more SNOWY than any rainbow that ever
was-fish of one color, some like flames.
some ike the sky overhead, some like the
| sky at sunset.
Gradually the pineapple rum took eff
feet and the three negroes began to dozes
| One happened to awaken for a moment,
took hold of his line and tugged. He
could not move it. After working lazily
| for a moment or two he decided that the
hook was fast to the coral on the bottom,
and settled to another doze, hoping that
It would work loose while he slept. But
he awoke TO find the hook stin fast.
Then he took the lead-jack. The lead
| jack is a hinged ring of lead. very heavy,
that the reef fishermen put over their
lines and send down TO the bottom to free
their hooks when they foul on submarine
| distractions. The lead-jack plunged
down swiftly but it did not clear the
hook. Then the three fishermen grasped
the stout line and began to sway on it to
break It.
/ To their amazement, 1t suddenly began
to give, not easily, but with tremendous
| swirlings and surgings deep below. Pull
as they would with all their might, some
| thing in the water was pulling harder
! than their six arms could. Again and
| again the unseen quarry overcame their
! efforts and shot toward the bottom again.
Suddenly the thing ceased pulling and
came upward and toward the boat with
| tremendous speed. And then its head
shot above the surface. ard with wide
/ open jaws 1t seemed to be heading
straight for me three men. One shrieked,
The debbil," and crawled to the extreme
| bow of the boat, where ne lay covering
| The man in the waist let go the line and
ran for a knife, intending to sever the
Irvine and let the monster go. But the
/ third man scented some great reward
for was not the professor from New
York always asking for queer things?
This was a queer thing with a ven
| geance-almest too queer for a man 10
J TQsTf nil z4oxf,@ Iv.c ,,S
nerve the negro overcame his supcrsti-
/ tioDs terror and held on to the line. FL
nally he induced the others to help him.
| and at last the devil snake" was drop
ped in the live well, where forthwith it
dashed and writhed until the darkies were
frightened all over again.
When they got ashore the news of their
unique capture spread quickly. II was
not long before the Bermuda darkies had
discovered positively that this was IN
deed something from the bottomless pit;
and as devil snake the creature was
known thereafter. The news reached a
young naturalist, Mowbray Of St. George,
Bermuda, who hurried down to the shore
and obtained the fish He had IL trans
| ported 10 a tidal pool. There 1t was
! viewed by hundreds, and all sorts of ls-
gends soon were told Of it. One was
that It could make itself smaller or larger
at will. Iowbray investigated and found
that It was true. The beast could slon-
| gate its uncouth body enormously or con-
| tract it at will.
| Professor c. I. Bristol, of the Univer-
sity Of New York, is IN Bermuda collect
ing specimens for New York. public
aquarium. He heard Of the ind and
bought it at once. He and the other sci
! entists In Bermuda could not identify IL
in their first examination
They put the creature into n great tin
tank. and it was shipped to New York, IA
company with other tanks containing two
hideoEs specimens Of octopus. and sew
eral dozen Of beautiful. gaudy. graceful
angel fish and other tropic beauties.
Thus in one day the aquarium was en-
| riched By a collection that comprised
within itself the most ugly and The most
beautiful ocean dweliers that thee are.
| For as truly as the devil snake" de-
| serves its name. 50 does the angel fish
earn its appellauon. Those are not FMS.
but wings ia truth that bear It soaring
/ through the transparent water az It's
/ tr0pic home It's face is wise IS that =
human being. and IL IS as gentle and
tame IS i is beautiful. Over its dainty
boay there play a dozen colors. ali equal
Is rich and al equally delicate in shading
ard tint Bright blues chase bright
green's. vivid gold aushes along its sides
AID fades and gives way q pink so pale
that It may hardly be seen before il =