| Show CAPTURE OF THE SWORDFISH tile die Hiel hickory cory polo pole harpoon and the lance how the fish is killed the apparatus employed in the capture of swordfish professor goode says is simple it is a harpoon with a detachable head when the fish is struck the head of the harpoon remains in the body of the fisli fish and carries with it a light rope which is either made fast or held by a m man an in a small boat or is attached to some kind of buoy which is towed I 1 through the water by the struggling fish and which marks its whereabouts after death the harpoon con consists sisti of a polo pole fifteen or sixteen feet in length usually of hickory or some other hard wood upon which the bark lias has been left so go that the harpooner may have a firmer I 1 hand band grip this pole is from an inch and a half liala to two inches in diameter and at one end is provided with an iron rod or shank about two feet long and five eighths of an inch in diameter this shank is fastened to th the e pole by means of a conical or elongated expansion at one end which fits over the sharpened end of the pole to which it is I 1 secured by screws or spikes A light line extends from one end of the pole to the post where it joins the shank and in this line is tied a loop by which is made fast another short line which secures the pole to the vessel or boat so that when it is thrown at the fish it cannot be lost upon the end of the shank fits fit tile head bead of the harpoon the entire weight of the harpoon pole shank and head bead should not exceed eighteen pounds the line is from 50 to fathoms long in addition to tile harpoon every carries a lance this implement is precisely similar to a wha lemans lance except that it is smaller consisting of a blade perhaps one inch wide and two inches long upon the end of a shank of five eighths inch iron perhaps two or three feet in length fastened in the ordinary way upon a pole fifteen to eighteen inches in length the swordfish are always harpooned from the end of the bowsprit of a sailing vessel it is next to impossible to approach pro ach them in a small boat all vessels regularly engaged in this fishery are supplied with a elp special ecial apparatus called a rest or pulpit for forthe the support of the harpooner as he be stands on the bowsprit and this is almost essential to success when the fish is from six to ten feet in front of the vessel it is struck the harpoon is never thrown the polo being too long tile the strong arm of the harpooner punches the dart into the back of the fish right at the side of the high dorsal fin fill and the pole is withdrawn and fastened again to its place when the dart has been fastened to the fish the line is allowed to run nin out as far as the fish will carry it and is then passed in a small boat which is towing at the stern two men jump J ump into this and pulling in upon the li line until the fish is brought in alongside it is then killed with a whale lance or a whale spade which is struck into the gills ne new york mail and express |
