ft 



ft Vol. 90 

 ^^ No. 4 



Popular Science Monthly 



239 Fourth Avenue, New York City 



April, 1917 



$1.50 

 Annually 



Fighting the Terrible Devilfish 



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^HE American Museum of Natural 

 I History wanted to secure a big speci- 

 men of a devilfish (called by natural- 

 ists Manta birostris) and Air. Russel J. 

 Coles undertook to obtain that specimen at 

 his own expense. He is probably the most 

 skilful hunter of the devilfish in the United 

 States of America. We are indebted to 

 him and to the American Museum of 

 Natural History for the material on which 

 the following article and the accompanying 

 drawings are based. 



The devilfish is the largest of all the fish 

 known as rays. It owes its name to its 

 appearance — an appearance given by a 

 pair of flaps or feelers, one at either side 

 of the mouth to help in feeding. 



Mr. Coles decided that ordinary methods 

 would not do. He says: 



"I found that both sharks and rays sometimes con- 

 tinue fighting long after both brain and heart have 

 been pierced by lance and bullet, but that death is 

 instantaneous when the spinal cord is severed at a 

 certain spot just back of the brain. ... I therefore 

 designed and had forged a huge lance, more than 

 three times as heavy as a whale lance, which I call a 

 'spade lance' on account of its having a square 

 cutting edge four inches wide." 



A devilfish once towed a lOO-ton vessel 

 far out to sea, and the crew had to cut the 

 rope and let the creature escape. In view 

 of the creature's strength, Mr. Coles de- 

 cided that he would have to 

 inventsomeway of bring- 

 ing the devil- 



The story of a thrilling hunt con- 

 ducted in the interest of science 



fish to close quarters as soon after harpoon- 

 ing it as possible. To this end he designed 

 a drogue, or dray for offering the greatest 

 possible resistance to a pull. In his 

 account Mr. Coles says: 



"I also carried a ver>' powerful repeating rifle and 

 a large shoulder whale gun, from which either a 

 harpoon, or a bomb lance containing half a pound of 

 powder, can be fired. ..." 



In securing his specimen for the American 

 Museum of Natural History, Mr. Coles had 

 with him, in addition to Captain Charlie 

 Willis, the best known and most efficient 

 fisherman on the Florida coast. Captain 

 Jack McCann, who selected the three other 

 members of the crew — all young men, 

 trained, active and without fear. Captain 

 McCann also furnished the boat which was 

 a small tvventy-six-foot open boat with an 

 eight-horsepower gasoline engine. 



In killing a devilfish it is necessary- for 

 every man to move instantly when the word 

 is given, like part of a perfect machine. 

 The procedure is thus described: 



"Charlie Willis stands forward with me to throw 

 the auxiliary harpoon; Captain Jack McCann steers 

 the boat; another man stands just behind me to 

 throw the drogue overboard as the harpoon leaves 

 my hand, and to give me my spade lance; the next 

 man runs the gasoline engine, while the last stands 

 ready with a bucket to bale water should this be- 

 come necessary. .All, including myself, are ready at 

 a word to throw their weight on the high 

 side of the boat if it should 

 begin to turn over." 



After the long fight, it took ten hours to tow the big fish to shore. The "horns" on each side 

 of the huge mouth are here rolled up. The instinct of the animal is to clasp these horns around 

 any object that bars progress. A blow from one of the huge fins is likely to sink a boat 



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