"Bery easy, sah, indeed. You see de sharks mos'ly goes to sleep in de middle ob de day. Dey creep into de coral caves. All de same, sah, de tail all lef stickin' out ob de holes, you see."
"And do you mean to tell us, Quambo, that you went and pulled their tails?"
"Not quite, sah Quambo not quite so big a fool as dat. But I myse'f and two more tiny boys go dive down, and plenty quick Quambo slip de noose ober a tail, den signal. De noose he tighten now, and de shark is pull right out and lift up all de way to de boat. How dat shark do squirm to be sure! When de man in de boat hab kill he propah, den down Quambo go again."*
* This is no sailor's yarn. This terrible mode of catching sharks is really adopted in the South Sea islands and elsewhere.
"Well, Quambo, that is very awful, if true."
"Oh, he true, sah! I gib my word of honah on dat, sah."
"But, Quambo, did the sharks never retaliate?"
"Yes, sah, de shark 'taliate my leetle brudder, sah. I see my brudder try to make fast to one bery big tail. He not can do. Den de owner of dat big tail come out plenty quick. I dive up, sah."
"An' your brother, Quambo?"
"Oh, I guess, sah, he dive down. I hab no mo' leetle brudder after dat. I spose he 'taliated."