The wooden
handle of the hammer was secured to the rope, which, in its turn, was
tightly fastened to the raft.

With eager, almost breathless, excitement we stood watching the
preparations, at the same time using every means in our power to
attract the attention of the sharks. As soon as the whirl was ready the
boatswain began to think about bait; and, talking rapidly to himself,
ransacked every corner of the raft, as though he expected to find some
dead body coming opportunely to sight. But his search ended in nothing;
and the only plan that suggested itself was again to have recourse to
Miss Herbey's red shawl, of which a fragment was wrapped round the
head of the hammer. After testing the strength of his line, and
reassuring-himself that it was fastened firmly both to the hammer and to
the raft, the boatswain lowered it into the water.

The sea was quite transparent, and any object was clearly visible to
a depth of two hundred feet below the surface. Leaning over the low
parapet of the raft we looked on in breathless silence, as the scarlet
rag, distinct as it was against the blue mass of water, made its slow
descent. But one by one the sharks seemed to disappear, They could not,
however, have gone far away, and it was not likely that anything in the
shape of bait dropped near them would long escape their keen voracity.

Suddenly, without speaking, the boatswain raised his hand and pointed to
a dark mass skimming along the surface of the water, and making straight
in our direction. It was a shark, certainly not less than twelve feet
long. As soon as the creature was about four fathoms from the raft, the
boatswain gently drew in his line until the whirl was in such a position
that the shark must cross right over it; at the same time he shook the
line a little, that he might give the whirl the appearance, if he could,
of being something alive and moving. As the creature came near, my heart
beat violently; I could see its eyes flashing above the waves; and its
gaping jaws, as it turned half over on its back, exhibited long rows of
pointed teeth.

I know not who it was, but some one at that moment uttered an
involuntary cry of horror. The shark came to a standstill, turned about,
and escaped quite out of sight. The boatswain was pale with anger.

"The first man who speaks," he said, "I will kill him on the spot."

Again he applied himself to his task. The whirl again was lowered, this
time to the depth of twenty fa