The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-02-23
HUNTING THE SWORDFISH

James B. Connolly, in Harper's Magazine
 for March.
 OHN was noted among his mates
 for his eyesight.. The skipper could 0 tell you of incredible distances at which John could see fin, and even pick out swordfish's from a sharks. There is a difference, of course. A sharks fin is largely triangular. and his tail is always moving. There is a graceful wave to sharks tail when he is cruising. A sword fish's fin is also three cornered, but the edges of it are curved, and the tail as it slips through the water is almost with out motion. When there was a slight breeze and the seas surface was broken into a million little wavelets, every one looking like a fin, that was when John performed miracles to the masthead.
 On the afternoon of that morning which saw us among the fleet we sighted fish, A cry came from aloft. The skipper stood up and unslipped his long pole. Norman's back stiffened on tie wheel box. Bill came out of his trance, looked aloft, and shifted his gaze to leeward The bright, bald head of the cook shone up the fore castle hatch, and then up came himself, smoking tranquilly. He cast a peek aloft, said fish-h! and stepped on to the deck.
 Fair abeam to loo'ardl' John called, and Norman, with eyes on the compass, put the wheel up. The passenger was looking hard. but as yet could cee noth- ing-nothing but the corners of million little wavelets, which might have been fish, but which he knew were not. The skipper, erect now, was balancing his pole. but without Joking at 1t. His eyes were for fish only.
 Hard up!" came John voice, and we all could see it sweeping through the' water, the curved fin and the tail moving steadily after it, and. judging by the dis tance between tail and fin, fair sized fellow. Our bow was swinging into line with him. Norman, at the wheel, could see nothing. "Steady." called John. The swordfish was yet some distance ahead.
 The skipper was swaying from the waist A big boned rangy man the skipper, more than six feet high and wide shouldered, with a good reach and muscular back. He hefted his pole-a week now since he had ironed swordfish-and looked back to see that all was clear behind him. From his iron 50 fathoms of line ran back to A tub in the waist of the vessel. To the painted buoy. Looking after line and buoy was the cooks business; and now the cook, Interpreting the slippers look. sang out, "All clear," and slowing his pipe in his stern pocket stood by the tub.
 We were within half the vessels length of our fish when he disappeared. Port" called John. and port 1t was promptly. Steady dy-ste-a-dy-Lard, man, steady" We conld not see the fish from the deck, but they from the masthead could follow his course under water.
 The fin and tail showed again. We were headed for hNn, or rather headed to in- tercept him oN his course. The skipper swayed forward and back, by way of loosenng up his waist and back muscles.
 We were almost on the prize now. He was cruising lazily The slippers right arm and shoulder were drawn back. On deck we were anticipating the stroke, but fin and tall took a sudden shoot. "Luff! luff!" yelled John. The vessel shot up, the skipper leaned far over the pulpit rail- We, watching him, thought he was waiting too long; but looking at the sur face of the water we saw that fin and tail were in action again. the body just under the water. From the bow rail we could now follow the blue black shadow. and the shadow had turned suddenly and jumped ahead; and suddenly again he was shooting diagonally across our bow. And while still wondering if the skipper would get him, after all, the passenger saw the tall man rise on his toes-and he looked nine feet tall with that long right arm raised above and behind his head and then. whing!-a semi-circular swoop