Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1907-03-14
THE SHARK HUNTERS.
H0rrtbI- bat Alleged Painless Way
the Fish Are Killed.


the Fish Are Killed.
The strictly commercial business of
shark hunting IS done in small sloops
whose headquarters are in the more
northerlv Norwegian ports. The crews
are for the most part made up Of pure
blOodcd descendants of the vikings,
who are still to be found In any num-
Der among the codfshers Of Hammer
fest of TromsO. And a 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 eighty fathoms Of wa
ter. Three or four gallows-like etruc.
lures are rugged up around the sides of
the SloOp and from each of these hangs
pulley block, over which runs a
strong rope. and TO the end Of this the
baited hook is fastened. A. plentiful
supply OF ground bait is thrown out to
attract the quarry, and such Is the ca
gerneSS with which the sharks take the
bait that sometimes each one of these
galiOwS-l like fishing rods will have Its
fish hooked and lighting for life all at
the same time.
There is no playing" the fish. 1t 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
not for his size a 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
and then get away 1t Is not because he
ever manages to break the line, but be-
cause a lightly fixed hook easily tears
through the soft cartllaginous skeleton
of his head and so sets him free.
AS soon as a shark has taken one of
the bats the hauling tackle attached to
his particular Gallows Is manned, and
without any superfuous fuss or cere-
mony he Is hauled up to the sloop and
| hoisted just clear of the water.
He is not brought on board at ALL
| but with 4 few bold slashes his liver is
! cut out aS he hangs and is thrown into
Il tub to he 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
! pledSeS.
All this sounds very horrible, but
| there is one curious fact which goes
| far to make us believe that this death
! cannot. after all. be such a cruel one
| as at first appears. 1t is this, the fisher
men say-that unless they put out the
| sharks eyes he will afterward cause
them Il lot of trouble by coming and
! taking the bait a second time.
1t sounds Incredible, but the state
ment is thoroughly we'll authenticated
! by eyewitnesses who have seen liver
| less shark do just this very thing. Sci
entists doubtless are right in saying
that the shark (which by anatomical
classification is one of the lowest of
the fishes does not feel pain in the
way more highly organized animals
! feel it. We will cling to that belief, for
it is c0nsoling-to us, If not to the
shark. who is thus sacrificed that his
! liver may supply us with-what?
! 1t is n 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 s
! Magazine.