St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 68

THE DEVIL FISH THAT PULLED AGAINST ITS ENGINES $Mi: L- This Giant Ray, Weighing 5000 Pounds, Fought a Losing Battle for More Than Three Honrs Against Men and Bullets. 5 jM Maddened, the monster whirled to SiCi3- 'wTi right itself and started seaward, drag- right itself and started seaward, fish, whereupon the wounded monster struck out in the general direction of Spain, carried out 600 feet of line -and kept on going when the limit of the line was reached. The half-inch rope had snapped. The fisherman then tackled the second devil fish. One of them stood in the bow of the boat and made a cast with his fishing tackle.

A hook sank into one of the fins on the side of the creature's yard-wide mouth. dragging the boat, stern first and against the power, for fully five miles. During the struggle everyone on board hauled and tugged at the line, which wore away a half-inch groove over the Let's-Go-Two's stern. Steel-jacketed bullets from Captain Gould's high-powered rifle finally sapped the strength of the monster and the boat's engine slowed, then checked the race. The fight had lasted three and one-half hours.

The huge carcass slowly settled into the depths, and the combined strength of the five men and young Rugg was needed to prevent it from sinking to the bottom. The LeFs-Go-Two. limping homeward, could make only about a mile an hour, towing this burden. After the boat reached port, seamen and engineers worked all night trying to raise the devil fish from the water to the exhibition racks. Block and tackle didn't budge it.

The derrick on a workboat only got the body far enough out to crush a section of the dock and railing. Then, in the morning, a Fort Lauderdale city crane, using chains instead of ropes, brought the monster up into full view. The catch has helped business here, increasing trade at tackle stores and bringing a rush of patronage to boats of the boat's 20-horsepower engine. It was the prize devil fish of the last 10 years, and perhaps the largest ever taken on this coast. The monster was encountered less than an hour's run from port.

Gould's cruiser, the Let's-Go-Two. had set out that morning for the Gulf Stream fishing grounds. On board, in addition to the captain, were O. A. Porter of Indianapolis, Clayton A.

Rugg and his son, Clayton Elmer L. Johnson of Jamestown, New York, and Albert P. Fritz of Hollywood. They were looking for fish which would give them a bit of a fight. As the boat sped along over the smooth sea, a commotion in the water attracted Gould's attention.

At first he thought "it was a whale, but on approaching, found the fuss was made by two devil fish, swimming side by side. To those looking over the side of the boat into the clear water it appeared as if the bottom of the ocean were moving off in a gigantic shadow, which resembled a great bird flapping its wings and swinging its long, thin tail at it flew along. Gould quickly harpooned one of the A view of the monster which are for hire. Captain Gould has been engaged for all his available time by fishing parties. He also has received a lot of fan mail, and has been mistaken by many for the millionaire sportsman, Frank Jay Gould, some of whose friends have written to congratulate him on his remarkable catch.

OULD has caught other devil fish, but none nearly so large as the latest one. whirl. ured 19 feet 8 inches across. The devil fish, or manta birostris, belongs to the giant ray family, and is a bat-like creature which uses its body fins as a bird does Its wings in flying, with a waving, undulating motion. The Young affection form I as thin unions affection form lasting unions.

Who Can't Speak English it fiy a Special CorretponJent of the Pott-Dispatch Sunday Magazine FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida. HIS resort town. which hundreds or people come each year for the sport of deep-sea fishing, and which is the home of a lare number and variety of commercial fishing craft, is rather blase about catches brought to its docks. It has seen so many ocean creatures, big and dangerous, grotesque and rare, that the landing of such things as a 500-pound shark, or a huge barracuda, jewflsh or grouper is nothing to get excited about any more. Rut when Captain Jay Gould and his party cruwled into port the other day with their catch, a crowd gathered to see something at which even this thrill-hardened town could exclaim, and drug stores sold out their supplies of film to persons eager to photograph it.

For Gould's fishing schooner had brought in a devil fish sa gigantic that crane owned by the city was required to lift from the water. The giant ray. it was estimated, weighed more than 5000 pounds, and it had been overcome only after a fight of three and a half hours, in which it dragged tiu cruiser five milos against the pull ay a Special CorretoonJent at Post-Ditpatch Sunday Magazine PARIS. -jiMjjiji I VINO in France are some Mm I 10.000 bovs and tirls-who constitute a unique byproduct of the World War. They are Americans, but most of them have never seen America and can't speak English.

They are the children of members of the American expeditionary forces who stayed in France when they left the army or returned shortly afterward, married French women and settled down to earning a living and rearing families in this country. It is estimated that at least Snno veterans of the A. E. F. stayed or cam.

back after the war to marry Jeanne. Jacqueline or Juliette, and are still residents of France. Hut they have all retained their American citizenship--at least no instance of a change in nationality is known here and their children are, accordingly, American In the eyes of the Fnited States Government. The French Government also claims them as citizens, however, so these youngsters might be said to have a dual nationality. The fathers, despite their legal Americanism, have adopted pretty completely the French ways of life.

They speak French, of course, and some of them work in French offices or factories and live in French homes. A decade or so of residence here has accustomed them to French cooking, clothes and customs. Many of the romances between American soldiers and French girls quickly went on the rocks; theirs are the ones that didn't. Theirs are the cases in which husband and wife were able to reconcile differences in temperament and viewpoint, due to their different nationalities, and from mutual concessions and mutual Vaqe Four. 10,000 pondent of th showing its gigantic mouth.

physical feature from which it derives its common name are the lobes, or, as they are sometimes termed, cephalic fins, which extend outward and upward from each side of its flat head like curling horns. In the aduit fish tne head fins are from three to four feet in length, about six inch es wide, and very powerful. Many stories have been told of hi devil fish stealing ships and carrying them out to sea. The stories are all very similar: a ship is lying tjuMly at harbor when a devil fish swims into its anchor chains. Instinctively twines its tenacula, or feelers, around the chains, and, applying its tremendous strength, pulls up the anchors and moves seaward, towing the ship.

norance of English on the part oi the children of American fathers is afforded by one of the activities of th-American Church of Paris. The church was founded in 1857. and until a f-w years ago all its services were in the English language. But row-there is a special Sunday school c'ass for the children of A. E.

F. Vetera: and it is taught in French be; they don't understand English. teacher, incidentally, is the Fr wife of the assistant pastor. The church has also a Bible class in for the French wives of the sc. THE fathers of the little Fru: are trying to fnoJ i way to remedy this They want their children to lean: speak English, to recite the Declaration of Independence, sing "My Kentucky Home," and read "To Sawyer" in the original.

But so f-no practicable method has been The Ladies' Auxiliary of Paris post. American Legion, operates a "Thin- day school," which meets on that because it is a holiday for chlhlr. attending French schools. The iary's teaching is in English, and curriculum includes American songs, history, ideals, poetry, and geography. But less than a -dred children attend regularly.

A smattering of Americanism is i-ii-parted. perhaps, by celebrations of certain American patriotic festivals. an event was the Washington bi-or-tennial party at the American Chu-ch here, which many of the youngster at tended in costume. Plans are afoot now to organir a Legion nchool. which would hold classes five days a week Instead of one, and a committee Is studying scheme to make the Franco-Americ' children of Paris English speakln a-well as French.

HE hook was evidently embed- I ded in such tender flesh that the captive did not have the courage to pull away, for the fisherman was able to hold the ray and play" it for 25 minutes. By that time Captain Gould had fastened the broken harpoon line to a steel shark hook and had tied on the anchor line. The shark hook was dragged over the stern until it entered the devil fish's mouth. Then, with a Jerk, Gould set the hook in one of the immense flippers, snubbed the line to a deck-post and sent the boat full speed ahead. The sudden pull of the line turned the captive over on Its back, fastening the anchor line in a beautiful half-hitch about its ugly body.

Americans -J 1 edition of an American newspaper. He has a French wife and a daughter who is now 10 years old. General Pershing is the child's godfather. Whenever Pershing comes to Paris he and his former orderly get together and talk over events of thei wartime association. In 1927, when the General came to Paris for the American Legion convention, Cohn journeyed to Cherbourg to greet him and to present him with the first copy of the second Stars and Stripes, the A.

E. F. newspaper which was revived for the duration of the convention. Cohn has the distinction of being the only enlisted man who ever borrowed Young These American ex-soldiers are scatter, through all the provinces of France, but the birst group is living in Paris, where it fornia important part of the American colony. The Americans in the French capital constitute a distinct community a city of 2.r),(HiO people, with its own clubs, cliques, feuds, scandals and interests.

It has a hospital, a library, a high school, two newspapers, four churches, a Chamber of Commerce, a bowling league, an active American Legion post (with a bar in the clubroomsi. and various other associations. The American Ambassador, sense, is the Mayor. in a limited THESE veterans and their fellows In the provinces represent all army ranks from buck private to Colonel, and earn their living in a great variety of occupations. They are preachers (all five of the American clergymen in Paris are A.

E. F. veterans), journalists, farmers; chiropractors, hotel keepers, milkmen, piano tuners, glove manufacturers; they make wine, operate cafes, manage casinos, banks and garages, design homes, build churches and pull teeth. But with most of them the income is less than they would receive for the same work In the United States, and undoubtedly, a good many of them often long for salary checks on the American scaje. It is difficult to save money on their incomes and for this reason it is doubtful that some who hope to return to the Fnited States some day will ever be able to.

One of the American veterans living in France is Kd Colin- Sergeant TA Cohn in his A. E. F. days who used to be orderly to General Pershing. Cohn seems to be well satisfied with lif here.

He is employed the circulation department of the European Franco. Americans at a Washington bicentennial party. erans and their French wives the 10.000 or so young Franco-Americans whose existence is due to the World War provide a serious problem for their fathers, who. in spite of their French residence, treasure their identification with the Fnited States and would like for their sons and daughters to share their feeling. For most of these youngsters are growing up without knowing much about the glories.

Institutions, customs or even the language of their fathers' country. A few speak English as well as French, but the big majority know only the language of the country of their birth. A striking illustration of this ig money from the commander In chief of the American Expeditionary Forces. When he needed more cash than he had he just asked the General, for a loan, and the latter always obliged. But the General, although accommodating in this respect, saw to it that a good orderly was not spoiled by his own indulgence; he required the Sergeant to repay every loan to him at the time he had promised to do it.

Cohn undoubtedly could tell many interesting personal things about Pershing his likes and dislikes, hobbies and habits, angers and enthusiasms but he very definitely declines to do so. The children of the American vet- Vott UUpateh April 39 1932 Sunday Magazine St. Loui.