38 THE ARCTURUS ADVENTURE 



from the bridge and an arm over the weather-cloth 

 pointed abeam. We obediently gazed and sud- 

 denly two huge-flanged tails heaved up, hung 

 quivering with giant vibrations, hit the surface 

 almost simultaneously with mighty smacks and 

 were gone. Whether we had glimpsed a battle, a 

 courtship, or merely a frolic of two monster whales, 

 we did not know. 



Four hundred and thirty-three years ago ahnost 

 at this very spot, the sailors of Columbus had seen 

 many dorados, and today, at our early dinner, while 

 sunset colors were still reflected in the all-surround- 

 ing waters, we heard shouts from the boom-walk, 

 and fled to the deck, to find that a trailing hook 

 had been taken by a big Coryphaena or dolphin- 

 fish, or, como se llama en Espaiiol — Dorado. A 

 vigilant deck-hand and the wireless operator were 

 struggling to hoist it to the swaying, narrow boards. 

 The gleaming fish, fighting gallantly, came out of 

 water; the gaff lifted it over the boom, and just 

 then the ship rolled, the dolphin gave one desperate 

 flop and flung itself oft' the gaff*, and the operator's 

 feet slid out from under him. He fell face down 

 on the steep slope of the foot-way, but under him 

 was the dolphin and both arms were locked about 

 it in a grip of death. We cheered him from the 

 upper deck as he regained his feet and staggered 

 grimly to the bulwarks with his prey. The last of 

 the daylight shone on the green and blue and gold 

 of the dolphin's sides, and we gathered about to 

 admire perhaps a direct descendant of Columbus' 

 fish. The first officer, who had been in charge of 



