4 - Wednesday, April 30, 1986 ~ North Shore News ? myself. For the benefit of anybody else interested in this genre of ‘literature, here is a minor classic 1 picked up while reading ,a book about Edward Curtis, the famous Yankee photographer who took all those fantastic pictures of the “vanishing races’? of North American Indians shortly after the turn of the century. Curtis ventured as far north as the Queen Charlotte Islands in 1912, not just to take photographs but also to make a feature-length movie about the Kwakiutl Indians as they had lived before the coming of the White Man. Travelling in a 40-foot boat called the Hesperus, Curtis and his companions transferred, along with their camera equip- ment, to an Indian canoe to make the actual landing, since the main vessel didn’t have a hope of avoiding being smashed to pieces if it got too close to the rocks. It was a dangerous leap from the canoe to the shore among the tremendous, smashing rollers. When Curtis, his guide, Stanley Hunt, and an aide named W.E. Myers, were safe- ly ashore, along with their precious glass-plate cameras, the canoe, with a paddler still aboard, returned to the Hesperus, which sailed back to the mainland. After driving the sea lions away by bonking them on the head with a gasoline drum, Curtis climbed to the top of the rookery — where he made a soul-chilling discovery. Even the very highest point. of stone was covered with barnacles. The rock pools were filled with anemones. Also — ominously — there wasn’t a single piece of driftwood on the entire 200 by 100-foot island. This meant Devil Rock was under water at high tide! lt turned out the government - charts had been in error by a factor of some 40 feet. Night was approaching. The angry sea lions were bellowing, having been pushed out of their rookery, determined to regain ’ AS A fan of West Coast survival yarns, | am always on the lookout for true tales of narrow escapes from the clutches of the Angry Sea, having experienced a few their lost turf. The bull sea lions, Curtis wrote in his notebook, dwarfed the men ‘tas though we were pygmies. These belligerent behemoths resented sharing their quarters.” Curtis dutifully took pictures of the animals as they swam around the rock, closing in. Night came. The tide con- tinued to shrink the island down to nothing. The roaring sea lions poured onto the rocks amid the breakers as if acting on orders to launch a mass assault from all sides. The three men fought them off, wielding empty gasoline drums, but were forced to retreat steadily to the highest point of rock. There, they discovered a new kind of hor- ror. The rocks were infested with sand fleas who came out by the millions to gnaw on their thin-skinned visitors — such a joy after chewing at sea lion hides for millions of years! The night proved to be calm. The sea beyond the breakers was as smooth as enamel. Nevertheless, Curtis and the others still felt doomed. Their only hope was to lash themselves by rope to cracks in a ridge of rock shaped like the vertebra of a giant animal. Placed in waterproof sacks, the cameras were lashed to the tocks themselves. The tide finally came in, crashing against the three hud- died men like waves breaking over a deck in a storm. Wrote Curtis later: “Fortunately, this was not the season of the highest tides. But a storm could pile breakers up far over our, heads. We held our breath when the waves roll- ed over us. There was a breathing space between breakers..."’ “The first wave to carry us off our perch was a terrific shock, but our lash lines held fast, preventing us from being swept out to sea. The uncer- tainty of what to expect was unnerving. How long could we survive this beating?” As luck would have it, the A KEG SPECIALTY SEAFOOD RESTAURANT Bob Hunter ° strictly personal ¢ tide reached its limit fairly shortly. Within a half hour the ordeal was over, The men were drenched, bruised and bitten. Exhausted and chilled, they clung to the rocks until dawn, when the Hesperus returned to rescue them, JACK FRASERS -{ Great S} Every 2 and 3 Pce. Suit, every S.B. and D.B. Suit is on sale. Every quality label including Bartley, Europa 2000, Trioni, Jack Fraser, Cricketeer, is on sale. The fabrics are all-wool and wool blends in exclusive Jack Fraser pat- All Sportcoats are on Sale Regular $435 to $175 Harris tweeds, herringbones, stripes. In all-wool and wool blends. Now Sale Priced at $99 to $139. Canadian-madeina deluxe polyester/cotton European designed fabric. Designed expressly for the man that wears a regular fitting shirt. Pub owners delighted with Sunday opening From Page 3 Savage added that the new open- ing hours would slow the Sunday flow of Canadian dollars south of the border to such traditional Sunday bars as Point Roberts. Troller co-owner Wilson said his pub has already hired four new employees to help man the Sunday ale pumps. Queens Cross owner Ron Slinger said Monday’s decision would prove to be ‘one the government won't be sorry for making.”’ In his capacity as president of the Neighborhood Pubowners’ Association .of B.C., Slinger said he had been lobbying the gov- . $269.’ - terns. Reg $215 to $296, they're yours'at a saving of up to $106 off the regular price! Now Sale Priced at $129 to Save . to *56 off ernment for years for Sunday openings. With 80 per cent of B.C. liquor licencees already allowed to be open Sunday, and with Expo 86 on the immediate horizon, Monday’s decision was one the government had to make, Slinger said. Estimated economic spinoffs for the province from Sunday open- ings, he said, would amount to $30 million annually, Slinger, who said he will be hir- ing three new employees, predicted Sunday openings would become permanent. All three pubs ‘plan to be open by noon Sunday. With fashionable front * pleats. In 55/45 polyester/ wool, machine washable, fin a.man's fit. Front and back pockets...