The National tribune., 1906-01-11
PROFESSIONAL sHARK-HUNTERs.
Descendants Of Vikings Make Up Crews
| for the Work.
(Pearson's MagaZine.)

!! The strictly commercial business of
| shark hunting is done in small sloops'
whose headquarters are in the more
northerly Norwegian ports. The crews
are for the most part made up OF pure
blooded descendants OF the Vikings,
who are still to be found in any num-
Der among the codfishers Of Hammer
fest and Tromso. And magnificent
race Of men they are! Accustomed
from boyhood to a life Of hardship,
they have a way Of treating Father
Neptune with a slightly contemptuous
liberation, like an old friend OF some,
what uncertain temper, whose rapid
changes from smiling benevolence to
wild, clustering anger are on the whole
rather amusing than otherwise.
They care nothing for danger and
little for suffering-in themselves or In
others Why, then, should they stop
to think that perhaps manned but
still living shark can feel?
The fishing is done off the coast OF
Iceland in about so fathoms of water.
Three or four gallowslike structures
are rugged up around the sides of the
sloop, and from each of these hangs
pulley block. over which runs a
ST. ong rope; and to the end of this the
halted hook is fastened. A plentiful
supply Of ground bait is thrown out
| to attract the quarry, and such Is the
eagerness with which the sharks take
the bait that sometimes each one OF
these gallowslike fishing rods will have
| its fish hooked and fighting for life al
at the same time.
There is no playing the fish; it is
not necessary or possible. and the pow
erful tackle is hardly likely to break
no matter how fiercely the hooked
shark may struggle. But the shark Is
rot, for his size, game fish; and. ex-
cept when he is actually being hoisted
up out of the water, there is no very
serious strain on the tackle. If he does
now and then get away it is not De-
cause he ever manages TO break the
line, but because a lightly fixed hook
easily tears through the soft cartilagi.
nous skeleton of his head, and so setl
| him free.
/ AS soon as shark~has taken one OF
the bats the hauling tackle attached
| to his particular gallows is manned
and without any superfuous fuss OF
ceremony he is hauled up to the slooI
and hoisted just clear of the water.
/ He is not brought on board at all
but with a few bold slashes his liver
is cut out as he hangs. and is thrown
| into a tub to be further dealt with
later. Then his eyes are put out and
he is cut adrift-to go and complete
the tardy process of dying where and
| how he pleases.
| All this sounds very horrible, but
there is one curious fact which goes fan
| to make us believe that this death can.
+, not, after all, be such cruel one as a
/ first appears. 1t is this the fishermen
say, that unless they put out the
sharks eyes he will afterward cause
them a lot of trouble by coming and
| taking the bait a second time.
1t sounds incredible. but the state.
ment is thoroughly well authenticated
by eye witnesses who have seen a liver
| less shark do just this thing. Scien-
4 :c<~ ri< 4 1,.,,
the shark (Which by anatomical CLASH
| fication is one of the lowest of the
fshes) does not feel pain in the way
more highly organized animals feel it
We will cling to that belief, for it is
consoling-to us, IL not to the shark