Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1902-07-16

.sply-boat. but mere was a ~ I'd
sponging -sloop raking off the reel, and lf
ster officers used TO come over even en-.
ifigs and entertain us with music.
They had only a cranky mouth organ
and broken guitar; but we all used see
to join in the choruses: s
"Whether 1t, was the racket or the
refuse from the cooks galley, we
brought ourselves visitor. The third
day 1 was down, heavy shadow sud
denly swung over my head. At first
thought the tug. had warped round;
but when l looked up 1 saw "a ls:l
that seemed as big as topedo-Doat.
It hung above me there in the under
sea twilight, slowly furling and unfurl'
ing its tail like a propeller standing
up against tideway.
81 knew what it was. My whole
, inner machinery seemed to stop short,
my blood went cold and heavy as mer'
curry, and clutchei at my sling cables
to keep myself from falling. What Ia
heard of man i'm armor being safe
from sharks went out Of my head like
the bubbles from my helmet; - and
when at last the 'sea.tiger' Slowed
around. and slid quietly off through
the black-blue wall of ocean behind
me, caught at the signal-line as If |
were drowning.
'Up on the tug, though, they only
thought it was a great joke. They
had seen the man-eater! The mate
said he seemed to him about the
length of the Great Eastern, and the
mouth on him Tucked like a church
door hung with icicles.' Tivey, the
engineer, declared it was true that
sharks had the power of throwing off
electricity, for at first it was as If
they had a galvanized jumping-jack at
the end of the lifeline.
"It ended with my going down again,
looking silly and feeling mighty snaky
about the middle. But l wasn't trou-
hled again tnat day.
"Yet next morning the shark was
around, and off and on through that
week. He was always alone. 1t was
the small fish, though, that always
gave me the first warning. AS l
scrapei at the Bellies sheathing, a
dozen or more little 'gropers' were all
the time at my elbows on the watch
for broken shell-fisn and barnacles,
like chickens after worms when you're
srading garden; and all of sudden
they'd whip away. and next moment
the shadow would swoop in over me.
I'd work myself around sidewise on
the sings, turning slow as the hands
of a clock for fear he'd notice me
though l knew his eyes were placed
so ne could only see level and upward
and then I'd grip myself tight AMI
watch MIN through the ghost sun
Light.
"Yet for all my fright, couldn't
help heing fairly fascinated by the
way he handled himself. No fish seen
from under water seems able to make
an ungraceful move, and that great
I, 1S-footer threw off curves like show
penman doing decorative birds. I sup
pose it's because shark has a kind
of elastic cartilage instead of bone,
but know no eel was ever freer in its
motions. And he could turn, not only
IN his long length, but as if on pivot,
though now in nature he could do 1t
with nothing but fins and tail beat me.
"But the times when he came in be-
bind me or dropped down from the
surface to see me working those were
minutes when the only feeling l had
was cold, sick dread. He would hang
there, his nose almost under my arm
CT over my shoulder could feel the
water move. with him he was SO close