The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-03-28
TERROR TO THEIR SPECIES
Man Eating Sharks Frequently Do
Battle Among Themselves.

Every once in a while someone will
rise up to tell us that there are no
man-eating sharks. 1t would not do
to tell an old sailor that. He knows
better. Some years ago I met a young
man who knows that there are such
fish-he had left his left foot and part
of his leg with one of them while he
was bathing off Key West, and had
moment it did the shark would have
eaten the rest of him. When sailing in
the steam whaler in 1874 one of our
amusements was fishing for sharks. I
MADE a nook after drawing, and with
1t we caught number of them. One
of our boat steerers gave me his opin-
Ion of how the shark became a man.
eater. and 1 have often since thought
he had it right. Since then I have
seen the same opinion advanced to
account for the man-hStnting tiger. All
| tigers are not man hunters. any more
! than are all sharks man-eaters. His
idea was that if a man-eating shark
did attack man, then any other
sharks that might also be in the neigh
borhood would also attack him, and
after these sharks had done so, then
they too, became man-eaters. The
shark IS Ike the wolf in one respect
II he gets hurt any of his companions
that may be present will tear him to
pieces without loss of time. 1 have
seen them do it.
We were under sail and were stand
ing west under a light wind, hardly
doing more than keeping steera ge way,
1.-THE sea as smooth as a mill pond, when
one morning just after daylight
shark was seen following US about 100
yards astern of the ship. He had
probably been doing this all night
| Only his doTsal fin showed above the
water, bu- he seemed to be a large
one. Our hook was thrown to him,
1 but the only notice he took of it was
/ to drop a little further astern; he did
not want the hook. At noon he was
still in his place astern, and, leaving
the hook out for him we went to din
ner He might get bold enough to
/ take the hook when we were not III
sight, l thought, but he did not for
when we next came on deck he was
still as far astern as before, and now
made up my mind to shoot him. We
had rifles on board. but I could not use
one of them without the captains per-
mission, and just as 1 had started to
go and get mis- permission he came on
deck, and, seeing the shark, sent me
for his glass and a rife. I brought up
an old Sharps rifle, and while the cap
tain stood at my elbow with the glass
to coach me 1 fired three shots, using
his fin, the only part of him 1 could
see, to aim by.
I wanted to hit him amidships and as
low down 1 could and not have the wa
ter defect my ball. The first shot was
too high, the next one not high enough,
but the third shot got him. and the ball
had hardly hit him when two other
sharks that none of US had seen before
seized him, one on each side of him, and
dragged him down.
For the next few. minutes something
seemed to be doing back there. The big
shark got the top of the water twice.
throwing himself nearly out of it the
! first time and giving US chance to see
how large he was, but each time the 9TH
fers pulled him below again. They were
stlll fighting when we had dropped them
too far astern to be able to see how the
fight terminated. These sharks will fol-
low ship day after day to pick up what
may be thrown overheard The sailor
thinks that it is he they want to pick UP.
Some of them would not refuse him if
ne did drop over. When we found them
following US we would bring up bucket
of Kitchen refuse and throw it to them.
Then present them the hook and some
one of them generally made the mistake
of taking it. When he did, only got
him; the rest of them always 1eft.-For-
est and Stream.