FIGHT WITH AN OCTOPUS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 723, 24 January 1910, Page 4

FIGHT WITH AN OCTOPUS.

'AT PALMEE HEAD.

WADER'S THEILLING ADVENTURE,

." Octopuses' on .dir. 'coasts are known to be' fairly. numerous,?! and .waders and- bathers taking.dip "iii;-the; vicinityof 'rocks' sometimes - lake 'chancess- which axe 1 not.

pleasant to contemplate, for the strength''. .. . ■of;the tentacles of. these hideous denizens . ~ of ; . the deep, is astonishingly great when the comparatively . small' sise of tures. is taken into: account.: Scrae threo ■ months ago, it is stated ..that, one of' the' ':,.'/ men / engaged oh . the; corporation's septic \ tahkjijinV; the/vicinity of ... Island Bay, when shovelling gravel for concrete •:■ on ,tho . edge of fairly deep- water, had his V shovel./ suddenly, seized, " and, in a .between >octo- ir.... pus, the' latter won,' aidthe . shovel ;10St.;'.V:/!*;rf'::'v;-"'-- ; i; ■'■' '/' i" ; '.'■ On Saturday afternoon, however,' Mr. C. /'A.' Ifairn, /residing/in; Abel ...Smith . : :/ Street,' and in' tho employ of; the /City Corporation,' : met with .i: an:': adventure'/; in . thovicinity of Palmer. Head V which reads, like.'aI*page1*page 'froih v :Viotpr'i: BugoV "Toilers- of v the, Sea.": ; :lt, 'appears .V that". Mr.; Jfaira '■ and- a cimponicn.: had ,; /; : ; proceeded "out: to Seat'oun;,; and,; having--fishing lines; with theih, made their'.'way south-along/the shore: post Rolling Bay. The: fishing proved unsuccessful, and, leav-<> ;ing .his companion to attend to ..the linesi 1 Mr. Nairn I ,made-his;way among the rocks . / / for. some .distance. further - south.Arriv- 1 v, : ing at a little inlet between the rocks, i he divested himself of some of his cloth-- ■ : ; .ing, :and-was soon busy detaching.: mufr A, . .sels: from:-, the'' rocks with a knife. ; . ■ "/ v-The water/: in ,whichi;he was' standing at . : '. :: the time :w'as, almost waist'high, and, obv,' serving s "roller": breaking : in,/he turned to-,esoape it. ,-As he turned /shorewardhe tripped and fell, one' of his feet having V: ■ / been , caught/ by' /'what' he ■ imagined at : ' the time to; be ,a' riband of : seaweed.'Next::' , instant the surge over took, him, and, in • 'a desperate effort to /recover hi 6 footing,. ho lost hia only means of offence—his'.- .'. knife. '■■£ Half-choked by the blinding spray and water, he struggled'to'ijlis leet,. levering himself up the... rock, . by '■' oatching hold of projecting pinnacles,V ; and as\liis .-other/ foot/and'one': of his legs; were .now'en-. .; veloped, it needed -no', great /power •>,of ' divination to tell him* that he had bcc* gripped by an octopus. . . . : It :was; a decidedly; ugly situation.. Hii• companion/'Was: out-:'ofi''sight,.;.and: th«';: ,':; assistance of . another." fisherman , standins : //. / on a rock-nearly ■ half-a-milei away; and . consequently unable to see,- was not to ;■ /' ' be'.: thought' of;: Tho imprisoned man, however, ■ retained his presence< of mind, and, after, some twenty, minutes' spent in, ; waving oho of. his : arms, he succeeded,in. attracting the attention of a ' picnic party,' consisting of. Mr. :C. i r . Carrtuhers ana : Mases/iUregg : and ..'.Walsiiigham. l .;, \Vhen /, they'came. on .the.scene -Air, plained his-unpleasant' predicament, but us: no: member ot : tho parly ' had any/im.;*:, ■ . plement'of. offence..with them, Mr..:Car>'- '•'/ ruthersj''after - ascertainiilg:. that MrVNairn, could . ''hang : on,"::'returned bad ■ . ■ along, tho hill/tor aipieceJof angle iron which he fortunately had . noticed, and,.. with, this. implement: in :o'no hand; and, a -'.' '' piece ; of■ jagged gas-pipe,. ill:. the .other,r entered tne water.: -.- .>■ -

Operations still wore difficult, for the baoic-wnsli oi the undertow? .swept the • ■' fine ■gravel from .under both men's -feet,;'■ . and' it was'dilHcult ,to l keep*;!ojie's footing, Luckily the octopus : proved|i to be • oii'.y a. '' "passive.-resister," ■ and, 1 at teach' blow of -i :,' the jagged iron, made .no 'further'move-1' ' ment. than: to retire further . into ".the cranny in' the rock in which" ho was irtmly established,and ' after : 1 receiving about a : score of vigorous- jabs, let go ■ altogethori 'and retired out of isigjit-under . the .rock. : Mr.: .Nairn- '.was .to shore, and,: though the : skin' had -'been'" 1 brpken in places"by; the grip of tho; creature,, it was :found .that- the -effects',.-• of the adventure, were nothing more serious' than shock. - Some stimulants were . procured, and, after,-partaking ■ (if '-' these, he was. assisted' as,far- sis', the Stai'il toun tranv. ;tornmius, and sent home.'