CATCHING A TARTAR. 



CAPT. J. G. LEEFE, U. S. A. 



When Yellow Jack made his biennial 

 entry into New Orleans, the garrison of 

 Jackson barracks retreated, in good order, 

 and took up a position on Ship island. This 

 was in 1870. The island is simply a bar, 

 belonging to Mississippi; but, unlike other 

 bars to which her faithful sons thirst for ad- 

 mittance, this one is entirely surrounded 

 by water. It is about 12 miles off Biloxi; 

 laved on the South shore by the emerald 

 waters of the Gulf of Mexico, but only half 

 washed by the muddy surge of Mississippi 

 sound on the North. 



Here we arrived at midnight, and were 

 welcomed by half the entire male popula- 

 tion, to wit: the light-house keeper, who 

 shone resplendent in a new wooden leg, the 

 gift of a grateful country. The other half, 

 a high-toned goat, deferred his part of the 

 ceremony until the next morning. Then 

 he appeared before the commanding officer, 

 bowed gravely, and butted him off the 

 plank walk leading across the sand. -His 

 goatship at once retired, with dignified 

 slowness, to his fastness at the other end of 

 the island, and stayed there. 



Incited by the Doctor, who had been 

 there before, we brought with us lots of 

 hooks and lines and other things with 

 which to lure the wary fish. There was lit- 

 tle chance for angling on the South shore, 

 but the surf was fine. So tempting was it, 

 Lieutenant O'Bog declared he would " be 

 afther lavin' mesilf in it for a bit ov a 

 shwim." However, when a swift and shin- 

 ing shark rolled over on its side, and, with 

 a bland smile, showed 6 rows of gleaming 

 teeth, the Celt took water and swore he 

 would " bate the likes of that naygur wid a 

 hook." 



There was fishing to spare on the North 

 shore, and the long pier jutting thence *4 

 of a mile, until it met clear water, was the 

 daily resort of idle men in blue, eager for 

 bites. Many a polished rod swung to shore 

 the shining perch. There were lots of 

 sheepshead, green trout, silverfish, and 

 others that shall be nameless, because I do 

 not know what they were. Sometimes we 

 hooked a pompano, the pout if ex maximus 

 of all flat fish. Now and then a shoal of 

 redfish huddling shoreward, leaping and 

 fleeing in terror from a pursuing porpoise, 

 " would the multitudinous seas incarna- 

 dine." 



Sharks of every species pervaded the 

 deep at times; and so the smaller fry did 

 not fare so well. One scorching, nibble- 

 less day, Mr. O'Bog's "naygur" was in- 

 quisitive, regarding 6 pounds of salt pork, 

 and was hauled ashore, to be despatched 

 by the irate Celt. Then some one else be- 

 came an object of envious interest by land- 



ing another kind of shark (one of the no 

 name series), small, black and glossy, with 

 upper part of snout corrugated, like the 

 sole of a tennis shoe. 



The piece de resistance of our feast of fish- 

 ing came to the surface on a fine September 

 day, when the wind was lively from the 

 Northeast and the waves were turbulent. 

 Not so rough, however, as to disturb nu- 

 merous albatrosses that rode the waves like 

 old caravels at anchor. The Doctor came 

 up smiling, prophesying devil-fish. Sud- 

 denly the albatrosses took to themselves 

 wings; the already storm-tossed waters 

 grew unduly vexed; while a line The 

 O'Bog had set for shark tautened — a splash, 

 a snap, and back flew a part of the line 

 against the pile to which it was attached. 

 Close to the pier, careening swiftly by on 

 the top of the waves, we saw a monstrously 

 hideous thing! 



Before the Doctor could find breath 

 enough to gasp, " th- th- that's one of 'em," 

 the thing disappeared. It was flat, diamond- 

 shaped, like the mortar-board hats worn 

 by students, and appeared 12 feet across. 

 Its glistening back was dark, but as it 

 swayed from side to side, like an overhand 

 swimmer, its belly flashed white through 

 the pale green waves. In front of its hid- 

 eous head, moving back and forth and later- 

 ally, was a pair of feelers, or tentacles, each 

 about 4 yards long, resembling serpents. 

 Close about its beaked mouth writhed and 

 twisted a mass of smaller claws. Its huge 

 round eyes, like a pair of gig-lamps, shone 

 with glassy fierceness. 



There was no more fishing. Discussions 

 were in order. At the mess that evening, 

 when cigars had been lighted, the Doctor, 

 with his usual air of having " been there 

 before," shied his castor into the arena. 



" You are of course aware gentlemen," 

 he began, " we have to-day seen one of the 

 great family of Mollusca, of the class ceph- 

 alopoda, mis-called by the mariners of these 

 waters, ' devil-fish.' " The Doctor's fine 

 courtesy in assuming we knew what he was 

 talking about, won from us a spontaneous 

 burst of silence. 



" If I may ask you," he continued, " to 

 remember the oyster, which has formed a 

 not unimportant part of this repast, and 

 then to pass to the contemplation of the 

 proportions of the monster that made 

 away with Mr. O'Bog's hook and line, you 

 may form some idea of the extreme range 

 in this class of animals. They are men- 

 tioned by Aristotle, and, if I am not mis- 

 taken, by the elder Pliny. Mr. Gosling, 

 who is fresh from his books, will kindly 

 correct me, if I misstate (subdued snore 

 from Mr. G.). The specimen that appeared 



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