The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-06-29 00:00:00

SOMETHING ABOUT MERMAIDS.

In noticing the arrival of a Manatee (Manatus
latirostris), at the Westminster Aquarium, Mr. Frank
Buckland, in Land and Water, says that—" This
exceedingly rare cetacean was captured off an island
at the mouth of the Eisequibo River, British Guiana.
It is, without doubt, the origin of the story of the
existence of the mermaid. Mr. Carrington has brought
it from Glasgow with very great labour. It feeds
upon lettuce, watercresses, &c. The structure of this
animal is of the highest interest to naturalists and the
public. It supports itself in the water by its broad
tail on the bottom of the tank. Its features are
somewhat human like, and it is, certainly, one of the
rarest, if not the rarest, animal ever brought to this
country."

On the subject of "Mermaids," The Times gives the fol-
lowing :

In the August of 1875 the Fellows of the Zoological
Society were supplied with a subject for discussion of
more than usual interest by the arrival at the gardens
of a living manatee. A specimen intended to have
been shown alive had been received a few years before,
but it died before it could be exhibited, though it gave
Dr. Murie an opportunity of making a dissection, the
results of which were published in the eighth volume of
the Zoological Society's transactions. A real living
manatee, however, the animal which was the
foundation of all the pretty and sometimes doleful
legends of mermaids, caused much excitement among
the frequenters of the gardens. The tank in
which it was placed was not deep enough for it to
"sit up " on its tai', and so show itself in the position
which led sailors to speak of a mermaid combing her
hair. As the ungainly-looking animal appeared in its
tank it was really difficult to form an idea how sailors,
except after a day ashore, could see in it anything that
should suggest a mermaid such as poets, turning
sailors' rough language into verse, have so often de-
scribed.

Now there is another living manatee in London
at the Westminster Aquarium. The glass tank in which
it is placed is entirely above the level of the floor, and the
water, which is fresh, as the animal, though marine,
often swims far up rivers, is kept very clear. The depth
of water given to the Aquarium specimen has at present
hardly allowed of its full display in the mermaid posi-
tion, as the tail oughtto ic able to get quite free from the
bottom of the tank. There seems, however, to be room
for much more water to be added. There is, as it is,
quite enough room for it to show its head well above
water with its body nearly erect. One flipper slightly
thrown up gives the traditional hand looking-glass,
and tne gentle paddling of the other when seen in clear
water gives, the hand holding the traditional comb.
The harp introduced in some drawings, however, does
not exist. This specimen, like that at the Zoological-
gardens, which lived but it few days, is from Demerara,
and at present seems in good health. The curious
lateral working of the prehensile " lips " was
especially noted by Professor Garrod in the specimen
at the gardens. What further may be learnt from this
specimen it is too soon to say, as it was placed in its tank
only late on Thursday; but it affords an instrw.tive
example how traditions are based on distorted facts.
Those who wish to look up what has been written on
the natural history of the manatee find, in
addition to the better known accounts, an article in
the "American Naturalist" for May, and a paper on
the proceedings of the Academy of Natural Science of
Philadelphia for 1875. Sir Emerson Tennant, in his
"Natural History of Ceylon," alludes to the way in
which this animal gave rise to the mermaid legends.

The Evening Standard gives the following additional
particulars respecting the " Mermaid " at the West-
minster Aquarium:
This animal, which s a young one, measures nine feet in
length, and is five and a half feet in girth. It has been
brought to this country in the steamer Blenheim, Captain
Picod, from Demerara. Captain Picod states that the
animal was caught on the Dauntless Bank of the Island L g-
liana, near the mouth of the Essequito River in Britian
Guiana. It is said to be the first specimen observed in that
locality in the past three years, and was captured in a net by
some fishermen, and brought by them to Demerara. It was
then transferred to Glasgow in a wooden tank, about 12ft.
long by 4f I. deep, and, when the water was let out, it took
35 men to transfer the box and its contents to the train.
At the St. Euoch's station the tank was placed in a
covered truck and forwarded by the Midland railway to
London, and duly placed in a larger tank of glass in
the Aquarium: It must have been a relief to the
poor beast to have got into a place big enough to move
about in, but its present home is by no means too capa-
cious. It is evidently of a very different temperament
from its neighbour, the White Whale; and, instead of
disporting itself and rushing about incessantly, as that
monster does, it exhibits an exceeding sedateness and indo-
lence; and, resting on its in-curved spade-like tail, its body
nearly vertical, its head bent forward and downward, it
will remain for minutes together motionless, with its nose
close pressed against the glass. Occasionally it will put just
its nostrils above the surface of the water and breathe
gently, and then, closing them up with a sort of fleshy lid,
will droop again below water and remain almost motionless
as before. It seldom and only slightly moves its arms—or
rather flippers—legs or hinder limbs none it has; at least,
not visibly, and we leave an account of them, or their
absence, to the anatomists. The head is really rather large
but the eyes are small and set far back. The nose and
mouth project, and, when a little more upturned than
usual, present, with the two round closed nostrils (which
look not unlike eye.), an appearance very similar to a small
human face, and it one has the good fortune to see the
creature raise the upper part of its body and show its breast
above the water, as it will often do in the twilight :or dusk,
one can well fancy how the old legends of the sirens, or
me.rmaids, with their tresses and beguiling songs alluring
navigators to destruction, have found their place in the
accounts by early voyagers and in mythologies and wondrous
tales; the more particularly human must the appearance be
of the animal as seen nursing its voting, which would be
very like a lumpy baby, between its flippers The Manatees
are regarded as very rare animals in these day s, in some
localities having been of late years almost entirely extir-
pated by capture for food, and in the past ten years four
specimens only, we believe, have been brought to Europe:
of these three were dead, while one came to our Zoological
Gardens, but died the day after arrival. We may note here,
after the above record of the pains taken over the travelling
arrangements of the present individual, that an adventurous
Manatee is recorded to have found its way on its own account
many years ago, in its native element, to the Shetland Isles,
but what was its ultimate fate we are not aware. There was
not a Westminster Aquarium in those days.