Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1910-06-10
ATTACKED BY SHARKS
A Whales Terrific Battle With q
School of ThraShers.
AN AWE INSPIRING CONTEST.
Tho Unequal Fight Was Ended by the
Death Of the Courageous Mammal,
Who Was Torn to Shreds by Her
Ferocious AssaiIants.

Death of the Courageous Mammal,
Who Was Torn to Shreds by Her
Ferocious AssaiIants.
Early one morning while engaged In
building new quarters for the light
house keeper at Breaksea Island. near
Rottnest. Western Australia. the con-
tractor and his men noticed a bull
whale. with cow and calf, passing
the island some distance off. They
watched them with interest for awhile,
noting the immense size Of the two
parents and the ineth0dical regularity
with which columns Of water rose
from their blowholes aud then resum-
ed their labOrs.
An hour or so later-about 8 o'clock,
to be exact--the men were startled by
an extraordinary noise, apparently
coming from the eastern end Of the Is
land, noise unlike anything they had
ever heard before. Dropping their
tools and staring toward the east.
they beheld such sight as 1T falls to
the lot of few people to witness.
There, not 500 yards from the shore,
was being waged battle to the death
"A fight between the great cow whale
previously seen and school Of thrash
er sharks. The calf was swimming
about dlstractedly. but the old bull
had disappeared. having basely desert
ed his family at the first approach OF
danger.
The sharks. as though acting In &c
cordance with some preconcerted plan.
had completely surrounded the two
whales and. apparently realizing that
nothing was to be feared from the
calf, concentrated all their efforts upon
the COW. Again and again they charg-
ed In upon her. their jaws swapping.
tearing at her mighty sides until the
sea was red with blood. Meanwhile
the COW dashed her tall furiously. hurl.
ing up sheets of reddened water and
occasionally crashing down with ter.
rife force upon one of her vOracious
opponents. Maddened with pain and
rage. she dashed this way and that,
but the sharks hung to her side with a
perslstency and ferocity that made the
fascinated onlookers shudder. Now
and again the wildly flashing tail would
catch one Of the assailants. driving 1t
beneath the waves-no doubt killed or
disabled-but the remainder rushed in
undismayed, tearing viciously at the
mammals bleeding tanks or butting
her with the force Of battering rams.
Presently the spellbOund spectators
realized two facts-frst. that the calf
had disappeared In the melee and, Sec
ond. that the tortured whale was un-
doubtedly becoming weaker. II was
obvious that the unequal struggle
could have only one ending Still.
however. she fought Oh doggedly, win
ming admiration and sympathy by her
exhibition Of hopeless courage. Alter
ing her tactics. by supreme effort she
hurled her whole great bulk clear OF
the water for a moment, and the fascL
mated onlookers beheld the sharks
hanging from various parts Of her
cleaning body by their serrated teeth.
Then down she went again with
crash like thunder. and for an instant
whale and sharks were buried amid
masses of foam. heavily colored with
the poor mammals lifeblood. Rising
again. she essayed another change OF
plan. making for the rocks and desper-
ately striving to rub of the clinging
sharks against their edges But the
thrashers were equal to the occasion.
While those on the outside maintained
their grip. the others dived under their
enemy and charged. her anew, tearing
at the whales side In an ecstasy Of
that was bloodcurdling to wit.
ness.
More and more feeble grew the
whales struggles, and at last. to the
heartfelt relief Of the spectators. for
her death fight had been terrible to be-
hold. the great body turned over and
sank beneath the red tinted water.
The unequal battle was over. having
lasted from 8 o'clock until noon. as
awe inspiring contest as man was
ever privileged to witness. The men
went back to their work greatly I'M
pressed by the unique spectacle. and
of sympathy for the whale
we're heard on every side.
Forty-eight hours afterward the
body. which had in the mean
lime become distended with gas. rose
10 the surface and exploded with a
roar like a miniature powder maga-
zine. causing the startled people tc
rush to the shore to discover what had
On examination Of the re-
maius 1t was discovered that every
shred Of the outer flesh Of the whale
mad hsen torn Off by the sharks, who
had doubtless gone Off to repeat their
.actics upon some other hapless levia-
han Victor Pitt-Kethley In St. Louis
Post-Dlspatch.