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Show ' BATTLING WITH AN OCTOPUS. DtrTtralt Fight with a Mooter Having Seven 1'oot Tentacles. Thw? yonnff men aged about 18 years bad n exciting encounter with an octopus, octo-pus, or devil fish, under tho old wharf belonging to tho Myers Canning company, com-pany, at Want Seattle. It resulted in tho frightful creature being killed after a fearful struggle, It was necessary to I sever completely every one of the hor- j ri bio creature's tentacles from its body, before it gave up the struggle, The fight was witnessed by quite a number of stwtetators. The boys were fishing for tomcod from tho front of tho wharf when they noticed no-ticed a considerable commotion in the water tinder tho wharf. One of them, Dick Smith, took a long polo and climbed under tho wharf, to find out, if possible, the cause of tho disturbance. Ho had not gone far when in tlio semi-gloom he discovered a strange shape and saw a pair of small eyes glaring at him. In his fright he poked at the animal with his joio, but to his horror and amazement amaze-ment it was wrenched from his hand aa easily as though it had been a straw. VoUTift Smith savo a frightened yell and climbed to the top of tho wharf ta jrivo tho alinn. Several boys, arming themselves with poles and spades, climbed down under the wharf to investigate inves-tigate this marine monster und if pos-i pos-i sible capture it. After the eyes of tho lioys had beconio . nccitstoined to tho gloom they beheld to i their wonder and surprise that the creat-; creat-; tire wilh which they hail to deal was a luitfo devil fish, lushing tho water into i foam with its merciless arms, which I wen? spread out for a distance of about ' M'ven feet in every direction. Tho boys attitcked tho creatnro with poles and spades. Ono loy mado a striko at tho animal, cutting it slightly with a e'ptide. Tho infuriatwl creature seized the spado in its Knupand threw it far out. anions tho piles. Tho fi;;ht continued for some time, tha animal seizing everythinc; that was thrust at him. Several times one of tha boys narrowly missed being caught and drawn beneath tho surface by the monster mon-ster of the deep. At length, by n united pull at several ptiles which tlio octopus has seized in his blind raa;e, he was drawn from tho wator. but even then he kept unthe ficht ! with unabated fury, striking viciously t cverythint,' within roach. Otm after another the tentacles were wvered from the frightfully misshapen body. Kven after the hist arm had been severed the animal did not give up tho liKht, and when any ono approached it, glared at them and caused its body to quiver in a manner that induced a thrill of fear to run over the beholder, even with h knowledge that it won harmless Tho devil fish was finally dispatched with a spado. The arms were carried away by the several boys who had severed sever-ed them as trophies of the fight, but the body remained on the ground and waa viewed by many people daring the remainder re-mainder of the afternoon. Seattle Press. |