The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1878-02-09
Z PACIFIC
81 Y. FEBRUARY 9.
The Devil Fish.

The Devil Fish.
EXTRAORDINARY TALE OF THE SEA- SCHOONER
SEIZED AND SUBMERGED BY a GIGANTIC CUTIE
FISH.
The following story about a veritable sea-
serpent is told by the East India newspaper, the
HOmeurGTd MQll:
haren, had rounded Gale and were well in the
BAY, with our course laid for Madras, steaming
over u calm and tranquil sea. About an hour
before sunset on the 10th of May we saw on our
stat board beam and about two miles of, a small
schooner lying becalmed. There was nothing in
her appearance or position to excite remark, but
as we came up with her [ lazily examined her
with my binocuIar. and then noticed between US,
but nearer her, a long, low swelling lying on the
sea, which from its color and shape | took to be
Il bank of scaweed. As | watched, the mass,
hitherto at rest on the quiet sea, was set in
motion. It struck the schooner, which yisibly
reeled and then righted. Immediately after
wards the masts swayed sideways. and with my
glass | could clearly discern the enormous mass
and the bull Of the schooner coalescing-I can
think of no other term. Judging from their ex-
CARNATIONS the other gazers must have witnessed
the same appearance. Almost Immediately after
the collision and coalescence the schOoner's masts
swayed towards us, lower and lower the vessel
was on her beam ends, lay there a few seconds
and disappeared, the masts righting as she sank,
dLu lIC LldlI CAu4DlIlIS ii lChGIocu SuSlSu clIuS-
Cling towards its peak. a cry of horror rose
from the lOokers-On, and, as if by instinct, our
ships head was at once turned toward the scene,
which was now marked by the forms of those
battling for life-the sole survivors of the pretty
little schooner which only twenty minutes before
hOated bravely on the smooth sea. As soon rs
the poor fellows were able to tell their story,
they astounded us with the assertion that their
vessel had been submerged by a gigantic cutie
fish or %calamary, the animal which, in Il smaller
form, attracts SO much attention in the Brighton
Aquarium as the octopus. Each narrator had
his version OF the story, but In the main all the
narratives Tailed SO remarkably as to leave no
doubt of the fact. As soon as he was at leisure,
| prevailed ON the skipper to give me his written
account Of the disaster, and L have now much
pleasure in sending you a copy of his narrative,
signed james Floyd, late master o. schooner
Pearl: -
Il was lately the skipper of the Pearl
schooner, one hundred and fifty tons, us tight a
little craft as ever sailed the seas, with Il crew of
six men. We were bound from the Mauritius
for Rangoon, in ballast, to return with paddy,
and had put in at Gale for water. Three days
out we fell becaImed in the bay-lat. 80 so N,
long. $40 ) n f.. On the 10th of May, about
five r. NJ, eight bells, L know, had gone-we
sighted Il -ma screw on our port quarter.
about five or six miles off. Very soon after, as
we lay motionless, a great mass rose slowly out
of the sea about halt Il mile off on our larboard
elut, anu IeAdlIlcu epItdu OuIJ do u "tIcs SUI
tionary. 1t looked like the back of a huge
whale, but it slOped less, and was of a brownish
color. Even at that distance it seemed much
longer than our craft, and it seemed to be bask-
ing in the sun. What's that?' [ sung out to
the mate. Blest if knows; barring its size,
color, and shape, it might be a whale replied
Tom Scott and it amt the ser-serpent,' said
one of the crew, for he's too round for that ere
%crittur. | went into the cabin for my rifle, and
as l was preparing to fire, Bill Darling, IL New
foundlander, came on deck, and looking at the
monster, exclaimed, putting up his hand, Have
a care that ere is Il squid, and will capsize us
if you hurt him. Smiling at the idea, | let fly
and hit him, and with that he shook there was
a great ripple all round bin, and he began to
move. Out with all your axes and knives
shouted Bill, and cut at any part of him that
comes abroad look alive, and Lord help us =
Not aware Of the danger, and never having seen
or heard Of such a monster. | gave no orders, and
it was no use touching the helm or ropes to get
out Of the way. BY this time three of the crew,
Bill included, had found axes, and one a rusty
cutlass, and all were looking over the ships side
at the advancing monster. We could now see q
huge oblong mass moving by jerks just under
the surface of the water, and an enormous train
following the oblOng body was at least half the
size of our vessel in length and Just as thick
the wake or train might have been one hundred
feet long. In the time that l have taken to write
this the brute struck us, and the vessel quivered
under the thud In another moment, mOnstrous
arms like trees seized the vessel and she heeled
over, in another instant the monster was aboard.
squeezed in between the two masts, Bill scream
ing, Slash for your lives : but all our slashing
was of no avail, for the brute, holding on by his
arms, slipped his vast body overheard, and pulled
the vessel down with him on her beam-ends we
were thrown into the water ut once, and just as
| went over l caught sight of one of the crew,
either Bill or Tom Fielding, squashed up between
the masts and one of those awful arms; for a
few seconds our ship lay on her beam-ends, then
filled and went down another of the crew must
have been sucked down, for you only picked up
five the rest you know. | can't tell who ran
up the ensign"