The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1906-06-01
THE SHARK HUNTERS.
Horrible but Alleged Painless Way
the Fish irc Killed.

Horrible but Alleged Painless Way
the Ei>, .irc Killed.
The strictly commercial business OF
shark hunting i; done in small sloops
wE1#e headquarters are in the more
uorth@riy Norwegian ports. The crews
are raG the most part made up of pure
FLOODED descendants of the vikings,
who arr still II be founi il any num-
Ter a.AOn@ the coifshn@s of Hammer
fest of Iromso. ANA Il magnificent
race OF men they are! Accustomed
from h3yhood t. I life of hardship,
;hey have Il way of treating Father
Neptune with Il slightly c0atemptuous
federation. IL" an Oil friend. of some
what uncertain temper, whose rapid
changes from smiling benevolence to
Wild. clustering anger are on the whole
rather anna ing than otherwise.
They emo nothing for danger and
little for suffering in themselves or in
others. Why, then, should they stop
to thinl that perhaps Il maimed but
still living shark can feel?
The fishing is done off the coast of
Iceland in about eighty fathoms of wa
ter Three or four gallowS-like Struc-
lures are rugged up around the sides of
the SlOop and from each of these hangs
Il pulley block. over which runs
strong rope, and 10 the end of this the
baited hook is fastened. \ plentiful
supply of ground bait is thrown out to
attract the quarry. and such is the ea-
geTre&S with which the sharks take the
bait that sometimes each one of these
gallowS-like fishing rods will have its
fish hooked and fighting for life all at
the same time.
There is no playing" the fish. 1t is
not ncccS Sary or possible, and the pow
erful tackle is hardly likely to break,
no matter how ti2rc2ly the hooked
shark may struggle. But the shark is
not for his size Il game fish, and except
when he is actually being hoiSted out
OF the water there is no very serious
strain on the tackle. If he does now
ana then get away it is not because he
ever manages to break the line, but be-
cause lightly fixed hook easily tears
through the soft cartilaginouS skeleton
Of his head and so sets him free.
AS soon as Il shark has taken one of
the bats the hauling tackle attached to
his particular GalowS is manned, and
without any superhuous fuss or cere-
mony he is hauled up to the sloop and
hoistcI just clear OF the water.
lie is not brought on board ut all,
but with Il few bold Slashes his liver is
cut out as he hangs and is thrown into
Il tub to be further dealt with later.
Then his eyes are put out, and he is
cut aarift to go and complete the tardy
process of dying where and how he
pleases.
All this sounds very horrible, but
there is ore curious fact which goes
far TO make Us believe that this death
cannot. after ali. be such Il cruel one
as ut first appears. 1t is this, the fisher
men say-that unless they put out the
them Il lot Of trouble by coming and
taking the bait Il second time.
It sounds incredible, but the state
mcnt is thoroughly well authenticated
by cyewitncsScs who have seen Il liver
less shark DO just this very thing. Sci
cntistS doubtless are right in saying
that the shark (Which by anatomical
classification is one of the lowest of
the fiSheS) does not feel pain i'll 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. who is thus sacrificed that his
liver may supply us with what?
1t is Il secret not to be spoken aloud.
Norway is one of the great centers of
the cod trade, and from cod is made
cod liver oil. and sharks liver oil tastes
and looks exactly like it.-Pearson's
Magazine.