captain reached for the line trailing in the water. Now he remembered the warning in his operations and survival manual!
“Avoid attracting or annoying sharks. Most of them are scavengers continually on the move for food. If they don’t get it from you they will lose interest and swim on. Don’t fish from your raft if sharks are nearby. Abandon hooked fish if shark approaches.”
The captain didn’t call the others. He sat alone, stonily silent, waiting … pulling the line in as fast as he could. Then the huge dorsal fin broke the surface again and he could have touched the shark. Breathlessly he waited. The line snapped and his fish was gone.
The captain pulled in the cord and sat back, praying he’d seen the last of the shark who could so easily slash the rubber raft and sink it.
He wondered how ferocious sharks really were. Some people said that unless driven to fury sharks were usually harmless; others maintained they were willing to eat anything that came within reach.
Quiet now
, the captain told himself.
Don’t move. Maybe he’s gone away
.
But the shark reappeared, swimming around the raft, his dorsal fin raised high. Again and again he circled, coming so close that the captain scarcely dared to breathe. Would the shark charge? Would he make a quick pass at the raft?
The captain watched, not daring to move. He counted the number of times the shark circled the raft. He considered calling the others but decided to put it off for another few seconds. He was scared. He picked up an oar.
The shark whipped the water with his tail and disappeared below again. Where would he come up now? Beneath the raft?
It was time to call the others, quickly! But before the captain could make a move the dorsal fin broke the surface more than fifty feet away. The captain breathed easier.
Get out of here, you. Get!
he almost screamed aloud. His hands tightened about the oar.
Suddenly the shark turned and twisted completely around, streaking directly for the raft! The huge dark fin cut through the sea of glass, leaving whorls of ripples behind.
The captain struck the water with the flat of the oar, hoping the noise would scare the shark away. The sharp retort shattered the quiet and the others in the raft sat up abruptly as though they had been struck in the face.
“Look sharp, everybody!” the captain ordered. “A shark’s after us. He’s somewhere right around us but he won’t stay down long.”
The captain’s voice snapped them to attention, and they strained their eyes trying to pierce the depths.
Oh, good Lord, don’t let him come up beneath us!
they thought as one.
Not that!
“There’s something off to starboard. Is that it?” the navigator shouted. “No. No. Nothing. Look to port. There. No, it’s another shadow.”
“Quiet!” the captain ordered sharply.
They all saw the fin far off to one side. Maybe their enemy was leaving. They scarcely breathed. It was the biggest dorsal fin any of them had ever seen. The shark must have been thirty or forty feet long from dorsal fin to tail! All he had to do was to lunge at them just once, to hit and run—and it would be the end. The sharkseemed to have stopped momentarily, lying just beneath the surface. Was he resting, waiting? Would he attack or wouldn’t he?
“He’ll leave. I know he will,” Alec said.
“I hope so,” the navigator responded fervently.
“If he doesn’t—”
“Smile, ol’ buddies. We’re still afloat,” the copilot said grimly.
“Quiet!” the captain ordered.
“There he goes—down again,” Alec said.
They waited, sweating from fear that the raft might suddenly rise beneath them. But nothing happened and that was the last they saw of the huge black dorsal fin.
Despite its sea anchor, the raft had moved with the wind and current. In the early afternoon the captain took in the sea anchor and rigged a square sail in the bow, using tarpaulin, and oars as mast and crossbar. He erected the mast by tying it securely to
“Avoid attracting or annoying sharks. Most of them are scavengers continually on the move for food. If they don’t get it from you they will lose interest and swim on. Don’t fish from your raft if sharks are nearby. Abandon hooked fish if shark approaches.”
The captain didn’t call the others. He sat alone, stonily silent, waiting … pulling the line in as fast as he could. Then the huge dorsal fin broke the surface again and he could have touched the shark. Breathlessly he waited. The line snapped and his fish was gone.
The captain pulled in the cord and sat back, praying he’d seen the last of the shark who could so easily slash the rubber raft and sink it.
He wondered how ferocious sharks really were. Some people said that unless driven to fury sharks were usually harmless; others maintained they were willing to eat anything that came within reach.
Quiet now
, the captain told himself.
Don’t move. Maybe he’s gone away
.
But the shark reappeared, swimming around the raft, his dorsal fin raised high. Again and again he circled, coming so close that the captain scarcely dared to breathe. Would the shark charge? Would he make a quick pass at the raft?
The captain watched, not daring to move. He counted the number of times the shark circled the raft. He considered calling the others but decided to put it off for another few seconds. He was scared. He picked up an oar.
The shark whipped the water with his tail and disappeared below again. Where would he come up now? Beneath the raft?
It was time to call the others, quickly! But before the captain could make a move the dorsal fin broke the surface more than fifty feet away. The captain breathed easier.
Get out of here, you. Get!
he almost screamed aloud. His hands tightened about the oar.
Suddenly the shark turned and twisted completely around, streaking directly for the raft! The huge dark fin cut through the sea of glass, leaving whorls of ripples behind.
The captain struck the water with the flat of the oar, hoping the noise would scare the shark away. The sharp retort shattered the quiet and the others in the raft sat up abruptly as though they had been struck in the face.
“Look sharp, everybody!” the captain ordered. “A shark’s after us. He’s somewhere right around us but he won’t stay down long.”
The captain’s voice snapped them to attention, and they strained their eyes trying to pierce the depths.
Oh, good Lord, don’t let him come up beneath us!
they thought as one.
Not that!
“There’s something off to starboard. Is that it?” the navigator shouted. “No. No. Nothing. Look to port. There. No, it’s another shadow.”
“Quiet!” the captain ordered sharply.
They all saw the fin far off to one side. Maybe their enemy was leaving. They scarcely breathed. It was the biggest dorsal fin any of them had ever seen. The shark must have been thirty or forty feet long from dorsal fin to tail! All he had to do was to lunge at them just once, to hit and run—and it would be the end. The sharkseemed to have stopped momentarily, lying just beneath the surface. Was he resting, waiting? Would he attack or wouldn’t he?
“He’ll leave. I know he will,” Alec said.
“I hope so,” the navigator responded fervently.
“If he doesn’t—”
“Smile, ol’ buddies. We’re still afloat,” the copilot said grimly.
“Quiet!” the captain ordered.
“There he goes—down again,” Alec said.
They waited, sweating from fear that the raft might suddenly rise beneath them. But nothing happened and that was the last they saw of the huge black dorsal fin.
Despite its sea anchor, the raft had moved with the wind and current. In the early afternoon the captain took in the sea anchor and rigged a square sail in the bow, using tarpaulin, and oars as mast and crossbar. He erected the mast by tying it securely to
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