gard to the character of the prowling intruder, which was
distinctly seen struggling in the wake. It proved to be a shark. But
the fellow disdained to be captured by such ignoble instruments as a cod
line and a halibut hook. He remained comparatively passive for a time,
and allowed himself to be hauled, by the united efforts of the crew,
some three or four fathoms towards the brig, when, annoyed by the
restraint imposed upon him, or disliking the wild and motley appearance
of the ship's company, he took a broad sheer to starboard, the hook
snapped like a pipestem, and the hated monster swam off in another
direction, wagging his tail in the happy consciousness that he was
"free, untrammelled, and disinthralled."

"Never mind," said Mr. Thompson, making an effort to console himself for
the disappointment, "we'll have the rascal yet."

The shark manifested no disposition to leave our neighborhood, or in
any other way showed displeasure at the trick we had played him. On the
contrary, he drew nearer the vessel, and moved indolently and defiantly
about, with his dorsal fin and a portion of his tail above the water.
He was undoubtedly hungry as well as proud, and it is well known that
sharks are not particular with regard to the quality of their food.
Every thing that is edible, and much which is indigestible, is greedily
seized and devoured by these voracious fish.

We had no shark hook on board; nevertheless, the mate lost no time in
making arrangements to capture this enemy of sailors. He fastened a
piece of beef to the end of a rope and threw it overboard, letting it
drag astern. This attracted the attention of the shark, who gradually
approached the tempting morsel, regarding it with a wistful eye, but
with a lurking suspicion that all was not right.

It was now seen that the shark was not alone, but was attended by
several fish of small size, beautifully mottled, and measuring from four
to eight or ten inches in length. They swam boldly around the shark,
above and beneath him, and sometimes passed directly in front of his
jaws, while the shark manifested no desire to seize his companions and
satisfy his hunger. These were "pilot fish," and in the neighborhood
of the tropics a shark is seldom seen without one or more attendants of
this description.

Two of these pilot fish swam towards the beef, examined it carefully
with their eyes, and rubbed it with their noses, and then returned
to their lord and master. It requ