The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-01-20
A WONDER or THE DEEP.
y Marine Frog fifty Feet Long Follows aBrit-
ish Steam,hip

y Marine Frog fifty Feet Long Follows Brit
ish steamship.
In the month OF October last the British
steamship Neslor arrived at Shanghai from
the Straits OF Malacca. Shortly after the an
churng of the vessel at Shanghai, John X
Webster the master, and James Anderson
the ships surgeon, appeared before Mr.. Don
aid Spence, acting Law Secretary in Her
BrltanIc Majesly's Supreme Court, and made
affidavit TO the following marvellous statement
of facts:
We, John Keller Webster, of Liverpool,
and James Anderson surgeon, of Liverpool,
do solemnly and sincerely declare as follows
And, first |, the said John Keller Webster,
in command of the steamship Nes'or, do de-
clare that, on Monday, the llth day of Sep.
tember, at 20 80 A. NJ, fifteen miles northwest
OF North Sand Lighthouse, IN the Malacca
Straits, the weather being fine and the sea
smooth, The air also perfectly clear | saw a
! little forward OF the beam, on the starbOard
side, about two hundred yards distant from
the ship, an object first pointed out to me by
nv third officer who remarked There is
shoals" Surprised at finding a shoal 10 such
Il well known track, | watched the object and
| found that ii was IN movement, keeping up
the same speed with the ship, and retalnin Z
about the same distance as at first seen. The
speed of the ship was nine and three quarter
knots, and the object was moving parallel
with us during six minutes. Just as OBJ
served it, the Chinese deck passengers discov-
cred 1t and raised great cutlery, and about
the same moment il WAS described bv three
saloon passengers and the surgeon. The
shape of the creature, for that il was alive
there is no doubt, would compare to that of
gigantic frog. Referring to The head and
body, so far AS they were apparent above the
water--the head of n pale or yellowish pale
color, was about twelve feet in length. and six
! tee. of the crown was above the water. Occa.
sIonally the head subsidized until only foot or
foot and half remained above the water
i | tried ~ vain 10 make out the eyes and
mouth the mouth, however, nav have been
below water. The head was Immediately
connected with the body, without any indica.
ton Of neck. The body was abnut f,rty.
five or fifty feet in length, and Of an oval
shape, perfectly smooth, but there may have
been slight ridge along the spine. The back
rose some llve iert above The surface An i'm.
mense ,ail, fully one hundred and ffiy feet IN
length, rose few inches above th; ,,ter
THIS tail saw distinctly from is ioncr,on
J with the body TO lis extremity; 1, seemed evil
indrical, with very slight taper. and es,i
mate It's diameter NJ four feet The body and
tail we're marked with alternate hands n,
stripes, black and pale yellow in color Tn,
stripes were distinct TO the very extremity u
) The tail. cannot say wLeih,r the tail Ter
min0ted In fin or not. examined il care
} fully at the above mentioned distance I'm
could not satisfy myself how The tail iermin
ated. The creature possessed no fms or rad
dies as far as We could perceive. never hayin,
seen any part OF lis belly canned sa If !
had legs. II is very possible that N, cTca,ur
was much broader and more massive thai
the dimensions above given, for the create
part oil IL was evidently under wafer. and VI
, never caught n glimpse of an, bu, The *
IRENE upper parts. IL appeared To- me 10 prt
gress by means of undulalory motion 81 III
tail in a vertical plane The ttil sc, med d
have an Independent motinn: ila, b. a. cav
i quicker aId different enc iIou. III. bud,. III