New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-07-16

and sat down on the break Of the poop, smoking
his pipe. He was almost sober, and lad quetei
way with him than usual but suddenly he dropped
his pipe, and gave two or three wild 5hreks, like
a frightened woman The mate ran to linn and
asked what was the matter.
Look there look there!" he said, pointing
to the water, about boats length from the
| big.
Ilooked at the place and saw queer whirl on
the ahrface, and the stain of blood, just as if a
whale had been lanced and sounded.
" There was big shark there" says the SKIP
per his ewes staring and trembling ali over "there
was big shark there lying quiet on the surface,
and suddenly 3 great pair OF jaws opened ana
seemed to swallow him as you might sWaiio"
shrimp.n
tain )" said the mate. I've often seen them bite
each other"
The skipper called ont for rum andlay down on
the deck, shaking as if he had the ague. The
mate looked at me, shook his head, and said,
:" Gone mad at last" and certainly thought that
| Jiquor had turned the captains brain. We soon
learned what good reason be had for his terror.
| at was not more than an hour afterwards that
he rose alongside, and with his head as high as
mainyard, looked down on the deck, opening and
shutting that horrible mouth the skipper had first
| SEEM
-" What rose alongside Jake?" said I.
"The sea-serpenT,n said Jake, in the solemn,
earnest tones he had used when speaking to me
first on the subject.
had the conviction that the man was in ear.
i,
first, what length and thickness might he have
beenN
Judging by the length Of our brig sir think
he must have been good two hundred feet and ne
looked more like monstrous eonger-eel than any
thing else I can think of. His body was as thick
as cart-horse, and his head was as fat cells,
and couple of fath0ms long. He had great gals,
too, like an eel. His eyes were big and bright
and when he lifted his head, opening and SHIFTING
those trightful jaws, as he had habit OF doing
every few seconds, he was the most awful sight
you can fancy. Some Of the men said they saw
his teeth and that he had a double row like a
shark, but can't say that saw them myself. II
was his eyes, sr-his eyes was always looking at,
and always with fear that should md them
looking right at me.
His skin was dark and glossy, like the skin Of
whae--I didn't see any hair anywherea about him
and when we afterwards saw him swimming
about, he wriggled through the water eel-iashion;
and you could see that the dark color o. the back
got gradually lighter on the sides, and the belly
was nearly white. But those matters, ! noticed
afterwards, for at the time speak Of, when he
rose alongside and started down on our decks, as
i've told you ! was sitting on the deck cleaning
some brass work, and when I looked up, and saw
that dreadful head, just sat where was, and
AIRED HIM with my mouth open, Till he sank down
gently out of sight.
Ny head felt dizzy and my eyes dim for half
minute, and then heard the captain bowling, and
saw that he was lying on the deck fiat on his
face. The mate and myself lifted him up, bus he
kept shreking, and wouldn't open his eyes; SO we
l
the cabin table was the captains case bottle of
rum, and the mate filled himself full glass and
drank it off, then he filled glass for me, but his
hand shook 80 that good part OF IT was spilled
When went on deck again found that the men
had shut themselves up in the torecaste, IN spite
of the heat and two Of them, who had been III
with coast fever for some days, were now out Of
their senses. Well sir that night the steward got
so frightened by what he had seen, and by the
horrible yells of the skipper, that he went forward
among the men, taking a small keg of rum with
him; and the hands were soon all drunk and fight,
| ing among themselves like devils.
al The mate and myself took it in turns to mind the
| skipper; and about daylight, | was awakened
from short snooze by sudden quiet coming
over the ship, and there was the captain quite
dead, his chin fallen and his eyes wide open. The
same afternoon, the two men who had been i'll of
coast fever died, and there were three others in
their berths raving. Twice that day we saw the
! great snake--once about mile from US, and the
n ext time some six miles out to seward, and we
hoped he had left US altogether; but the next day
he rose about two hundred yards from our star
hoard beam, and moved his head about as he had
i d Jne at first
Eight times in all we saw him, sir and once
the steward who was wild with drink, got the cap
tain's gun out, and would have fred at him, but
the mate took itout of his hands, On the seventh
day from the time we came to anchor, the weather
suddenly changed and heavy tornado came on
and blew us right out to sea. We lost most of our
spars, being so short-nanded; and as soon as the
gale moderated, we hove overheard the captain
and four of the hands who had died in that bay
but whom we had been afraid to bury before, les
the snake might take fancy for human flesh. A
last we reached Sierra Leone, nearly dismasted
and with only three hands on board fit for duty
We got help from another vessel before we coulr
bring the ship to anchor; and after that | coulC
remember nothing, till found myself recovering
from fever in the Sierra Leone hospital, my heat
shaved and my limbs as weak as a ohild's.
The brig had left the port with a new crew
and the few survivors of her former crew had re
turned to England in another ship. They laughed
( at me when told them about what we had see
and gone through: they told me it was only m
: dreams when had brain fever. / wish / coul
have thought so, too. But it was all too true to
true"
Again the sharp, sweet sound of the ships bell
again the hoaTse call Of the watch, and old Jak
: the Whaler and parted company