NARROW ESCAPE

Southland Times, Issue 22214, 5 January 1934, Page 6

NARROW ESCAPE

FIGHT WITH SHARK BROKEN OAR FOR WEAPON EXPERIENCE IN BAY OF ISLANDS A graphic story of a fight for life with a blue shark in the waters off the Bay of Islands was contained in a letter received by an Invercargill resident from an ex-Southlander. “Awaking to a beautiful morning and having no pressing work to keep me busy among the sheep I decided to go fishing in the Bay (his letter ran). So providing myself with some kawhai for bait I stepped into the little dingy and rowed happily out of the creek. As I rowed I held in the oars several times to let a line down to try the ground, and presently was rewarded with a fine terekehi, so dropped my anchor and put out my two fishing lines. Having caught several fine fish, I lit my pipe and put my oil coat in the bows of the boat, sat down with a line in each hand and prepared to enjoy myself as if the slump were really over. “Feeling completely happy, and basking in the warm sun, I dozed a bit when suddenly I heard a swishing noise alongside the boat. Waking from my reverie with a start, I saw a huge blue shark, with its dorsal fin sticking up feet above my head, swimming past the boat. My happiness quickly ending as my hair pushed off my hat, I grabbed the anchor rope and started hauling up the anchor, intending to shift camp as fast as possible away from this awful monster that had already nearly ruined my happy day, when suddenly I espied him returning straight for the boat, not five yards away. The shock I received at this terrifying sight made me quickly drop the anchor rope and grab an oar with which I jabbed the brute in the face, and jabbed him so hard that I broke the oar just above the blade, and my support giving way, I fell headlong into the water on top of the monster. Horrors! Fortunately the shark thought I was attacking him, and dived away from me, giving me a slap with his tail on the side and taking my v ind away. When I rose to the surface and turned to grab the boat, I saw with terror that the boat was about twenty yards away. The push I had given it when I fell overboard had sent it as far away from me as the anchor rope would allow. “But this was not all. To add to my trouble the shark was quietly waiting on the surface between the boat and me, and as it was nearly twice as long as the boat, its fin obscured it from my view. Thinking quickly, as one does when in dire peril, I made straight for the brute, holding the broken oar like a spear in my hand. I did not do this boldly, but with terrible fear in my heart, praying as I advanced upon the shark that he would retreat; but not he. Just as I was closing with him and nearly dead from fear (but pretending to the shark that I was very savage and bold) he grew uneasy at my attitude, and retreated about fifteen yards to the side, and commenced swimming round the blade of the oar to see if it was good to eat. I made record time to the boat, and with much difficulty crawled in, all the time with a feeling, as if I wished my tail were ten yards in front of me. Pulling up the anchor, I found I had no spare oar, so had to paddle the boat, as there was no cut for sculling at the stern. Then to my mortification I discovered that the tide was setting out to sea stronger than I could paddle against it, so I was forced to drop the anchor again, in the meantime shaking like a leaf. For nearly three hours till the tide again turned, this awful grinning beast kept with me, and every few minutes came up to leer at me with its awful, cold, cruel businesslike eyes. “When eventually I did get ashore, a Maori friend told me the shark was only after the fish I had in the boat, and the smell from them was keeping him with me, but I have good reason to think that I was the poor fish he was after. I think the jab he got in the face with the oar in the first place is what made him careful, and saved my l.'fe. So ended my “pleasant” day’s fishing at the Bay of Islands.”