Fisherman Anthony Dexter is knocked Out of Boat by Monster. Lucky Blow on the Head Kills it When Man is Almost Exhausted by Battle.
Anthony Dexter, a member of the crew of the fishing schooner Eva and Mildred, and a 300 pound swordfish engaged in a battle for life in a twelve foot dory, and Dexter was the victor, although the swordfish gave a good account of itself.
The Eva and Mildred arrived at Boston recently with sixty-eight swordfish to show for three weeks cruise. The big fish were easy victims, with the exception of the monster that fell to the lot of Dexter.
The Eva and Mildred fell in with the big fellow three days ago, and he was neatly harpooned from the pulpit. Dexter then leaped into a dory and followed the fish until it lay quiet upon the surface. Then he rowed up alongside and putting the hooks into the fish, swung it into the dory. The swordfish occupied nearly the entire bottom of the dory, and as soon as he was out of the water he began to thrash about. Dexter prepared to give the fish the finishing stroke and failed to notice that the creature’s tail was under his seat. The fish suddenly struck the seat a tremendous blow with its tail, and the seat and its occupant went sailing through the air and dropped into the water.
“It was the most awful whack I ever got,” said Dexter,” and I didn’t know anything until I hit the cold water. That revived me, and I saw the dory, with one gunwale under water and the fish half out, trying to squirm back into the sea. I dived under the dory and coming up on the other side, brought it back upon an even keel. The fish was now in my dory, and I was in the water. He seemed to know he had the upper hand, and every time I made a move to get in that awful tail would wave, and I would drop back again.
“Honestly, I don’t know how I finally got back into the dory, but the next thing I knew I was lying in the bottom of the boat on top of that jumping, thrashing fish, and in all kinds of danger of getting crushed under it or getting killed by a blow from its tail. Every time I tried to climb up the fish would knock me down again. The boat was nearly full of water, and the fish was good and strong.
“I think he would have done for me if I hadn’t happened by good luck to hit him a welt on the head. That quieted him until I could get upon my feet and finish him. It was a lucky thing for me that the water was smooth or the fish would have gone out of the boat and taken me with him.
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