l it up on a
big winch."

"But don't they fight desperately?" said Steve eagerly. "Sharks are so
strong."

"No, sir; they're cruel fish, sharks, but a Greenland shark's about the
stupidest, most cowardly fish there is. He could break away easily
enough, but when he's hooked and feels the line tight up he comes as
quietly as possible, just as if he came to the top to ask what we wanted
by hooking him like that."

"And do you tell him?" said the doctor, laughing.

The Norseman shook his head.

"No, sir, we don't play with him. As soon as the bit of chain appears
that's fastened to the bottom of the line on account of the shark's
teeth--because, if it wasn't for that, he'd bite through the thin line--
some of us stand ready with a big hook at the end of a pole like a
spar--a good sharp hook with a rope that runs through a block up aloft
rigged to the spar; then, as the shark comes to the top--_click_!--the
big hook's into him, the rope's tightened, he's hoisted on board, and
before he has time to struggle much he's whipped up on to the deck,
where two of us are ready for him."

"And what do they do?" cried Steve,--"kill the shark?"

"Yes, sir, and pretty quickly; for when the sharks are biting there's no
time to spare. One of us gives him a crack on the head with a
handspike, and the other cuts open his side with a big knife and drags
out his great liver; then we use the pipe."

"Yes, go on," said Steve.

"And blow the dead shark full of wind and throw it overboard."

"To keep it from sinking?"

"Yes, sir, that's quite right; for if we didn't he'd sink, and all the
other sharks would begin feeding on him and wouldn't bite any more at
our bait. Then we get the hook ready, and down it goes again, while the
sea-birds get a good feast of shark instead of the fish."

"All that to get only the liver?" said Steve. "Yes, sir; but then the
livers are very large, and from some they get quite a barrel of oil,
only that's from the very large sharks."

"What do you bait with?" said Steve. "Pieces of shark blubber, sir."

"And isn't the flesh good for eating?"

"Poor people eat it sometimes, sir, for it's nice and white; but we
sailors never care for it. It's fine fishing, though, for you get your
hold full of the livers, and take them back to port to be boiled down.
Barrel of oil's worth as much as seven pounds, sir."

"What do they use it for, lamps or machinery?"

The Norseman stared.

"I thought you k