106 Man Against Shark 



exerting slight pressure, a further six or seven babies were born. It was 

 noticed with interest that each one arrived tail first. During the course 

 of a few minutes the remainder of the babies— there were 22 in all- 

 were bom, and at no time was any movement of the mother noted, nor 

 was there any contraction of the abdominal muscles or waves of uterine 

 contraction, such as seen in a human." 



As the ship entered port, two yellow pennants flew from her mast, 

 the customary sign that two sharks had been caught. And fluttering 

 beneath the pennants was a string of tiny flags made of rags and brown 

 paper. By the time the ship reached Looe, all the sharks were dead. 



Dr. Newnham concludes the report on his case with this note: "On 

 arrival in Looe harbour the usual ceremony of weighing and photo- 

 graphing was gone through and the mother was found to weigh 100 

 pounds exactly and the 22 babies, six and three-quarter pounds. Whilst 

 the mother was suspended by a hook in the lower jaw during the weigh- 

 ing, another baby shark fell out. But this was dead on arrival. It was 

 subsequently learned that a post-mortem examination had revealed two 

 further dead babies, but the author was not present at this examination 

 because the interests of science were forgotten in the celebration of this 

 interesting adventure." 



An angler who returns from a shark fishing trip may not always bring 

 back a fish story as good as Dr. Newnham's. The chances are good, 

 though, that even the shore-hugging fisherman who seeks sharks will 

 not have much trouble finding them. There are plenty of sharks near 

 shore, and a fisherman needs only a small boat, an outboard motor, and 

 savvy to get them. (One such American spot is the Delaware Bay: 300- 

 pound Sand sharks have been reeled in there by fishermen in 14-foot 

 boats.) 



Along the entire coastline of the continental United States, and in 

 the waters of Hawaii and Alaska, there are sharks waiting to be caught 

 by fishermen with strong arms, strong backs— and great expectations of 

 the unexpected. 



SHARK CATCH RECORDS 



Sharks of truly monstrous weight, length, and girth have been har- 

 pooned, trapped in nets, shot or gaffed to death while snared, caught 

 on long-lines, and hauled in by anglers aided by one or more companions. 

 But the sharks listed here have been caught on lines by anglers and sport 

 fishermen. 



What follows is the roll of the premier amateur shark fishermen— 

 and fisherwomen— of the world, anglers who have reeled in, without 

 aid, on regulation tackle, and according to the strict protocol of game 

 fishing, sharks of record size. 



