Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1910-08-11
BATTLE WITH SHARK
FISHERMEN HAVE DESPERATE
FIGHT WITH MAN-EATER.
Find Human Bones and Part Of a Ko
dak In Stomach of Huge Fish After
They Succeed In Get.
ting It Ashore.

Seattle.-After a terrible struggl
lAAting seven hours, gigantic shark
&c feet long and estimated to weigl
more than fifteen tons, was capture,
by the combined crews of the fishinl
boats Goodpartner and Pioneer II. be
tween Port Angeles and Port Crescen
recently.
The monster is believed to be th,
largest fish ever caught in these wa
ters.
The Goodpartner and the Pioneer
H., much battered and battlestrained
with half of the crews nursing more
or less serious wounds, towed the
mammoth carcass into Elliott bay. II
spite of the 30-horsepower engine with
which each is equipped 1t took the two
boats Is hours to get the big carcass
down from Port Townsend.
When pulled to the surface the tai
was seen to be full of splinters and
blue paint as the result of the strug
gle to demolish the Goodpartner. The
shark is 18 feet in circumference al
its middle and about twelve feet
around the head.
The huge triangular mouth on the
under side is FIVE feet across. The
flukes Of the powerful tail are six feet
apart. The body is gray and covered
with tiny spikes which make 1t feel
like file.
One result Of the sharks capture is
that the crew of the Goodpartner will
never do any more Sunday fishing.
Captain Dragich and five men were
hard at work early on Sunday morn
ing pulling up their big salmon net
They had not pulled very much of
1t into the boat when the leviathan
made Its presence known by thump-
ing the bottom of the Goodpartner
with it's tail A minute later It ap-
peared alongside and hit the Good
partner amidships.
Luckily the shark had entangled its
front fins and its head in the stout
meshes of the net. Before 1t could
tear itself free three thicknesses Of
the net were wound around it.
Then the struggle began. The six
men on the Goodpartner worked des-
perately to keep the head of the big
fish near the boat and the death-deal-
ing tail away. Again and again It
would rear its big hulk out OF the
water and smash in the sides Of the
cabin.
Olaf Larsen. the youngest mem
Der of the crew, had his arm broken.
Captain Dragich was cut in the head
and chest by flying glass.
The Pioneer II. came to the assist
ance of the desperate fishermen on
the Goodpartner after about an hour
of the conflict. They towed the fish
and the boat to sandy beach.
Tackle was fastened to a tree on
the shore and the Pioneers winch
managed to pull the fighting fish into
the shoal water. AS the tide ebbed
the shark was left high and dry and
its struggles diminished.
At 100 p. m. Capt. George Saeher
of the Pioneer II. got close enough to
the fish to chop a hole in its throat
with an ak. A couple of barrels Of
blood flowed out and the long struggle
was over.
Besides the personal injuries suf
fered by the various members of the
crew. a big net valued at $1,000 was
destroyed.
When first examined the fish was
believed to be a whale or basking
shark. but when the belly was cut
into after Is minutes work with an
Ak. bones were found which indicate
that 1t is a man eater The bones.
from their size and weight, are be-
ieved to be human, although the larg-
est fragment is only four inches long.
making it difficult to decide.
Another unusual find in the stom-
lch. which might be taken as an in
lication that the bones are really hui
nan, is a piece of aluminium, now in
he possession of Captain Dragich.
Ione of the fishermen could explain
" what the thin curved plate of alu-
nlnum mad originally Deen part. AS
oon as they came ashore, however.
was identified as part of folding
Iodak.
The leather which covered the alu.
ninum frame and the wooden parts
# the kodak had been eaten away by
he powerful juices in the sharks
tomach. When the deposit of grease
vas scraped from the plate the words
No. Folding Pocket Kodak. Model
|, Patented" were plain
1t is believed that perhaps the own.
r of the kodak can be traced through
he maker of the camera, as there are
ther factory marks on it which may
low of its being identified.