"No, sir; a moray's teeth ain't set that way. 'Is teeth set backwards so they 'old anything solid. 'E started to swallow the tube, the moray did, and jerked the diver on 'is back so that 'e couldn't pull the signal-cord. 'E would have been drowned sure, for 'e was forty feet down, but the
water was so clear that some one on board the boat saw the fish attack 'im, and they pulled 'im up."
"How about the moray?"
"'E was 'angin' on," was the reply; "'e wouldn't let go, and by the time they 'ad the diver on board agen, the fish 'ad chewed up the air-tube pretty well. But that wasn't the worst, sir," said the talkative old man, growing garrulous, as he saw the boy look at his watch. "Did you ever 'ear 'ow a big moray 'ad a fight with two men, one of 'em a fisherman from New York, and jolly well beat 'em both?"
"No," Colin answered; "how could that be?"
"I didn't see it myself," the keeper began, "but from all I 'ear the story's straight enough. The fishin' party 'ad gone out on the reefs after rockfish, which is one of the gamiest fighters we 'ave 'ere, and some of 'em runs up to fifty and sixty pounds. They 'ad 'ooked several fine 'ogfish—you want to 'ave a look at some of 'em; crimson fish they are with long sweepin' spines—and the next bite turned out to be a chub. They could see 'im plainly enough through the clear water. When pretty nigh the surface, just near'a large dome of brain coral, a long spotted fish shot out
and seized the chub, swallowin' the 'ook into the bargain."
"Did they have a strong line?" Colin asked. "A moray is a powerful fish, isn't he?"
"'E's all muscle and teeth," the keeper answered. "Yes, sir, it was 'andline fishin' and they 'ad a good strong line, so it was a sure thing that they could land 'im if 'e didn't wrap the line around a rock. Israel, the boatman, wanted to cut the line, but the New Yorker 'e said, no; 'ad never caught a moray before and 'e 'oped to get this one. So they got the boat out into deeper water, Israel keepin' it clear of the reefs and the fisherman tryin' to 'aul in the line."
"It must have been good fun!" exclaimed Colin. "I wish I'd been there!"