A LARGE SHARK. 261 



to va.ry the sameness, clay after day, but a series of 

 heavy tempests, attended by terrific thunder and 

 liglitning. One night (the 12th of March) the scene 

 was absolutely appalling — presenting a perfect war 

 of the elements. In the words of an old song (than 

 which I know of no better description) : 



"Now the dreadful thunder roaring, 



Peal on peal contending clash ; 

 On our heads fierce rain falls pouring, 



In our eyes blue lightnings flash. 

 One wide water all around us, 



All above ua one dark sky; 

 Different deaths at once surround us — 



Hark ! what means that dreadful cry." 



"What the words "that dreadful cry" referred to in 

 the song, the reader must imagine ; in our case it 

 was that of a shark. A monster of that species, 

 attracted probably by his instinct, which led him to 

 expect prey on such a night as this, swam around 

 and around the ship ; the intense darkness of the 

 night and phosphorescent gleam of the ocean made 

 his huge bulk show out in relief, and appear treble 

 his real size. With a swab trailed astern, we soon 

 got him within darting distance, and hove an iron 

 into his carcass, which stopped his marauding 

 forever. He was an enormous sized one, and required 

 the united strength of half a dozen of us, after he 

 was mortally wounded, to drag him part way from 

 the water. 



The storm did us no damage — the lightning ran 

 over our yards and the various ironwork of the ship 

 in a manner to terrify the boldest. The reason 

 assigned for so few cases of injury to ships by light- 



