Off Catalina

A six-foot shark nosed lazily about, off Santa Catalina Island in the Pacific. It was a bright day. In the pellucid blue beneath him the shark could see scores of rakish fish shapes, deep brown, like his own; silver-edged green, mottled grey, golden bellied; big tuna, amber jacks and yellowtails curving dreamily hither and yon, flashing off now and again for a bite of food. A school of his kind wrangled over a dead porpoise, but the big shark had fed. He lolled contentedly.

Then a commotion on the sea's bright surface caught his eye. Slowly, with cautious curiosity, he circled up that way. It was something ruddy, swimming right on top. That it was no fish could be told from the ribbons and puffs of silver bubbles it made beneath it. It was one of those forked animals from the land, a man. On board the U. S. S. Maryland, gobs spied the shark, saw him swing over to inspect, and follow at no great distance, their buddy, John Radowich of the Pacific battle fleet, who was trying to swim the 23-mile channel between the California mainland (Los Angeles) and Santa Catalina Island, in practice for a $25,000 marathon swim announced for the near future by William Wrigley Jr., gum man, chairman of the Santa Catalina Island Co. Swimmer Radowich saw the shark too, but paid no heed. He had enough to think about, for placid though the waters looked, they were full of treacherous tide-rips and cold eddies which dragged him about like a chip. It was the rips and eddies, not the idle shark, that made John Radowich signal to be lifted out, after three hours of strenuous swimming had taken him only six miles. . . . Other aspirants to Mr. Wrigley's money followed Sailor Radowich by boat, including one Bodie Blewett, svelte bobbed beachling, who promised she would enter the marathon if and when held, sharks or no sharks.