WITH THE SHARKS AT SUAKIN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXIV, Issue 9, 11 January 1890, Page 4

WITH THE SHARKS AT SUAKIN.

Mr George T. Lucook, seoretary of the Shipmasters and Officers' Union, writing from South Shields, sends the following ao* count of an adventure he met with while serving as second officer in the transport steamer Gardepu, No. 88, at Suakin, dining the late war :— Ono fine Sunday, while i Transport No. 88 anchored on the Su »'_in ooaat awaiting orders from the port authori ties, it was all arranged that a boat should go in the early morning away from the ship to the ooral reefs in seat oh of coral and shele. Accordingly, the first and seoond officers, and firßt and third engineer, with a jovial lot of seamen and firemen, started at j 530 Irom the ship, aU bent on a good bathe and on finding gome good fipeoimans of coral ' and shells for wives, sweethearts, or sisters at home. We tried the first tsei, but ic did not oome up to our ideas of ooral, therefore we pulled further south to the next reef. Soon Bill hands were stripped and in th_ water ; but first it was arranged between the first and seoond mates that one or other of them should remain iu the boat with a boat's orew, Well it was that euoh arrangement was made. After about eight or nine of the men had been a little time in the water, some on one side of the boat and some on the other, and at a distanoe from twelve to twenty fathoms, a hue and cry was raised from the party on the port side of the boat, "A shark, a shark ! M The second officer, being in the water and on the starboard side of the boat thinking this was a got up scare, was in the aot of remonstrating with the men on such foolishness, and threatening to have them all called into the boat, when his brother officer, the first mate, let out an unearthly yell from the boat. "For God's sake, give way, iads, with your oars." The boat W-B Bpcedily aloDgeide the pcor third engineer, and oni/ jmt iu time for tho mats to deal Mr Sharkey a prod with the boat hook, for alraa-iy his hugj wjiite shining beily waa upturuiug, eo that bis great u;[ly miw might grab a ; * taa third engineer. He, poor fallow, was now hauled into the boa r , though more dead than alive, the rest I scrambling into ber as tes-. they oouid. lhe I ohiai muts, realising tho danger his fallow J offioar was in ous to windwurJ, shouted, J 1 Look out for yoursalf, Mr L , and God j help you. Give way, my lade, for the love I olt God; he'll have t:e s-oond mate," I

" Aye, aye, sir," was the hearty response. And didn't we just give away I Why, we nearly raised the boat out of the water with powerful strokes of our oars, till she seemed to jump over the waves like a living crea« tare who shared our determination to cheat that ugly brute if we eonld, and don't a shell back, specially a deep water one, just like cheating them ugly brutes 1 You bet 1 if the Government would send sodgers and men-o'-war to kill them monsters, instead of slaughtering men, I for one would think it better. Ho whomever, fly as that boat did, we were none too soon. The excite-*-* ment of us fellows was intense, as the chief mate caught the shark another dig in the js>w with the boat-hook and diverted him from the poor second dickey, for a moment, who meanwhile was caught up into the boat in. nick of time before the shark could go for him again. The chief mate then fetched the shark a second prod with the boat hook, and that caused the shark, I suppose, to sheer off full speed, for we saw him lash hilmself off into deep water. The first mate, who had been " many years in Her Majesty s service," and who had been sUve catching many years in the Red Sea, and on the African coasts, believed the shark was one oi! the reef-Bharks, but he never had any idea till he saw that one that they would be in suoh shallow water, Tbank God, wa all got safe back on board No. 88 to breakfast, but when tho oaptain saw iha solemn faces at> tho breakf ass table ■ hat Sunday morning be b'gau to t-mell tha', soxe^bing u-.* usual had been up, aud jou may be sure we goi a severe wigging for our trouble ia going coral huntiog on Sanday. Tlie poor mate, though but a youcg man, only mado two or three voy&gea after tha", wben he was called from t'.-ia earth ; be sue ocmbedt) tbe favor at Aspineli. Bnt tbe second mate ana tbo third engineer still live io Bpin this yarn, and thank God for their esoape, and to"pray tbat, tho Uaion and S.a« faring miy bo as successful in rescuing shell-backs from lani sharks as we were in retiouing them from the Snakin shark.

At G-raferfcb, Silesia, a large chandelier holding petroleum lamps fell in & crowded ballroom. The lamps Acploded, and the clotbing of a number of meu and women was set on fire. In most oases tbe flames were ej'iir-gaieher], but two ladies were burned 10, dtj-h. Several. of the injured ones will be marked for life. Deaf Forty Years.— The description of simple remedy, by whieh a complete cure of deafness and noises in the head of 40 years' standing haa just been effected, will be sent free to any one who applies to J. H Nicholson, 175 William Street, Melbonrne,