Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-10-27

I
his wings. He leapt from the
water TO fall back with a resound-
ing splash. For 10 minutes he
fluttered about a school of por-
poiSeS. Then the bat skittered on,
coming close 10 the shadows OF
Pedro Bank-hut not invading the
square mile or so of water where
lloated the tiny pink sails.
The bat was taking a siesta on
top Of the water when two human
beings more or less human, that
is-crept toward his gray bulk in
a skiff that had cloth muffled
oars. The sea bat was of no
value, but harpooning one is eX-
citing and dangerous sport.
Flop! Down came the harpoon
not a very good shot. since the
man had become terrifcally eX-
cited as the bow of the skiff came
near this aweSome bulk in the
water.
But the barbed harpoon stung
the bat into instant action. With
one sweep of his powerful wings
he made for the bottom and the
deepest hole he knew. Up on the
surface the skiff started off at 20
knots, in the general direction of
the Transvaal.
Then the bat found his deep
hole. The nose of the skiff began
TO dip. Frantically the men paid
out rope-more rope. Not enough.
With a flip-fop the skiff over
turned, just as the rope parted.
The two fishermen were rescued
later, and a couple shots of rum
lresucitated them. And by that
time the sulking seat bat had man.
aged TO tear the harpoon barb out
of its rubbery flesh.
The wound made no difference
at all-except that the taste OF
blood in the surrounding water
brought a voracious picuda.
Now a picuda, or giant barra-
cuda, is the most voracious fish
of its size that swims. This lean
pirate of the deep is shaped like
pike, save that his jaws are
longer. taking up about one-third
his entire length. Those jaws are
studded with teeth longer and
sharper than even those of the
alligator gar of the rivers and
brackish bays.
This picuda was no more than
z feet long, and weighed about 40
pounds. But he was devil incar-
nate. He made even sharks and
porpoise run from him. He was
the greatest menace TO human
bathers of anything that swims
the Gulf of Mexico and the Carib-
bean Sea-far more dangerous
than an ordinary gray nurse or
white pointer shark.
Tasting blood in the water,
Senior Picuda streaked like a sub
marine for the source of that sail
waiting SAVIOR. He found the sea
bat solacing himself with oysters,
and instantly attacked. The long,
lean, toothy jaws clamped down
upon the periphery of one rubbery
wing. Then Senior Picuda shook
his head and switched his tail,-like
terrier dog trying to tear leash
from his masters grasp.
BUT PICUDA HOLDS ON
He tore, tasted more blood, and
said TO himself it was good. The
sea bat had been irritated any
how. This new prickling burn
down at the end of wing in
furiated him beyond measure. He
turned a series of flipfops. broke
the surface, banged down the sore
wing tip, time after time.
The picuda hung on, lean jaws
clamped He might be beaten to
a pulp, but he would hold TO and
probably swallow that luscious
mouthful, even if he died.
The sea bat began 10 suffer
more poignantly. The picuda
gulped down his mouthful, but inn
mediately chewed down a fresh
hold. He was no menace to life,
as far as the sea bat was con-
cerned but he hurt dreadfully.
The bat threshed more and more
wildly, skittered blindly along the
surface - and then something
peculiar occurred. The bat dived,
came up-and this time right
among those little pink sails on
/ Pedro Bank.
Instantly hundreds of 60-foot
strands, invisible in the water,
wrapped themselves about the
huge expanse of the sea bat-and
weerd- cffrgfng mesn about
the lean body OF the picuda as
well!
Burning, singing horror! The
tentacles chung. They brought the
pink sails with their dependent
tangles closer and closer. Hang
ing beneath each pink sail was
that S-foot tangle of different
kinds of venomous ZooidS. A touch
of any skin, even scaly skin, here,
and the poison barbs penetrated.
The venom was one which puts
lridged red weltS on the skin,
closely resembling the application
Iof red hot barbed wire.
POISON DOES MORE
The poison does more. 1t para
llyzes the motor nerves OF fish and
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