igS 



The Albacore 



many months, it became almost irksome to me to meet 

 so many of my kind at one time. And when I found 

 the numbers of my friends daily increasing, I felt 

 almost a panic fear lest the supply of food should fail 

 us. How little, for aU my experience, did I yet know 

 of ocean's resources ! Presently I found myself 

 swimming in the van of quite a large school of huge 

 Albacore, making steadily northward up that pleasant 

 sea of the south-east trades towards the Line. 



We overtook a ship — a great white-winged ship 

 — ^whose crew never molested us, and whose passage 

 through the quiet waters stirred up for us quite an 

 abundance of savoury food, such as squid and flying- 

 fish. But she proved a treacherous guide, a dangerous 

 friend. We followed her docilely into St. Helena Bay, 

 and when we got over the shock of her anchoring, 

 played about her as we had done aforetime. Then 

 the natives came with spears and hooks and slew 

 amongst us to their hearts' content, as we basked in 

 the sun or sought the shade of what we had grown to 

 consider our great friend and protector. It was an 

 awful massacre, the first I had ever seen of my own 

 kind, although I suppose that my inroads upon the 

 schools of skip-jack would be looked upon by those 

 victims in the same light. But it may well be asked, 

 why did we not by a few flashes of our tails speed 

 seaward and downward, where nought of man's 

 harmful devising could touch us to do us hurt ? I 

 do not know ; I can only record facts and say that at 

 the onslaught of the fishermen we just rushed aimlessly 

 about in the blood-stained water, as do the skip-jack 

 or bonito when we suddenly make a raid upon them. 

 Were I given to speculation upon any subject, I 

 should suppose that it was a providential suspension 

 of our usually acute faculties for the benefit of mankind, 



