Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 211, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 September 1911 — Catches Man-Eating Shark [ARTICLE]

Catches Man-Eating Shark

Italian Battles for Hours Before Big Fish Is Landed—Odd Collection In Its Stomach. Boston. —Leonardo Romano- brought in this morning, a 200-pound man-eat-ing shark with which he fought from 10 o’clock in the morning until after dark the other evening. Romano was hauling his trawl off Middlebank, when the head of the blue-back shark came over the gunwale. As the shark made a quick turn and swung his tall square into Romano’s face, the fisherman swatted it with one bt the oars. The shark wriggled back into the water before the oar struck the spot for which it was intended, and Romano splintered his oar. The Italian took some rope and, forming a slip-noose, tried to drop It over the shark’s head. The nearest he came to it after repeated trials was to drop half the coll Into the shark’s mouth. The Italian was alone in the boat He would, have cuFthe trawl lose, but as the monster was attached to one of the first books, to do so would have meant to lose all his gear and fish. Romano hitched the trawl line to a cleat and started his gasoline engine, hoping that the shark would either get tired out or possibly ground up by the propeller. The sharp swished his tall into the propeller and the engine stopped running. The Italian had then been struggling with the fish for over an hour, and the big monster was about “all in** by this time. After much maneuvering, the fisherman got the noose over its head. Once the

noose was drawn tight, it was an easy matter to choke the shark to death. Besides the coil of rope there was taken from the shark’s stomach this morning three full-grown codfish, one tinker mackerel, four haddock, a section of a swordfish’s sword, part of a tin can, a man’s cap, seven fish hooks, a clay pipe and a boot