The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1882-07-15
A STRANGE STORY.
A Battle Between Unnatufa! Creatures

j "A Baltic betWttlI unnatural NTeatQTSS.
y wonderful story comes 'r"in the neigh
horhoorl of Iron Hill, Il locality in which
more than one mysterious Incident has oc-
! Cured Of late years y company of three
"r four persons walking toSci herabout dusk
on Sunday evening, while passing "A deep
gorge nr ravinr, 4 dark and rocky place.
"rre startled by an unearthly sound issuing
theretrom, something like the. noise of the
combined squealing Of Il hog and believing
III Il bull, only ten times greater in volume,
accompanied by noise like The Tapping OF
immense wings. While intently gazing in
The direction of the noise. a terrible com
motion was observed, first among TIE heavy
underground in the bottom of the gorge
and then higher up among the heavy trees,
until there emerged from ont of the top of
the timber, such 4 sight as mortal perhaps,
never saw before. Two animals, beasts or
/ birds, whatever they may lie called. both OF
them in form of body pig-likc, one having
the head of Il hog the other that OF a COW,
and both possessing immense bat-like wings
arose some thirty or fifty feet above the tree
tops lighting each other terriically, mean
while emitting the above mentioned sounds
They We're i'll view but for Il moment, when
they fell back into the gorge from which
they came, but long enough for the parties,
frightened AS they We're, to take Il partial III
ventery of them. They We're both armed
with fierce claws which they seemed to use
upon each other vigorously. In size they
were apparently much larger than Il hog
cquallins yearlng heiter in girth of body
but in length would measure perhaps twice
rs much. The witnesses describe them as
the most fearful looking creatures inauin-
able OF couse these persons were too
much frightened 10 attempt to invest gate
the matter, their chief desire seeming to
have been 10 get away from the spot
quick as possible with the least loss oftime
The wings OF the apparitions are described
us bat-like, the base extending about half
the length Of the body, opening like Il fan
presenting a very large surface, though
they state the wings seemed small in pro-
portion to the size of their owners The
wings were not moved deliber ately, like the
HltuueI VI II large DlTN, DuG rapidly, with
violent strokes. One of the party declares
that he saw the tongue of one of the strange
creatures, and says It was extended for an
instant to the length OF two or three feet,
and appeared like 4 double edged s;lw.
Both were armed with fierce teeth which
could readily he seen, their immense mouths
being open AL tine time. The evening of this
alleged occurrence was calm and clear and
every sound arising could be distinctly
heard.
We give the above to our readers as re-
lated 10 us, not vouching in any wise for its
reliability. Our private conviction is, that
the narrators are not deceived in so far as
having witnessed two creatures arise from
wooded ravine, fighting each other as they
arose, but that their startled imaginations
have distorted battle between two large
birds, perhaps eagles, into the fierce conflict |
between unnatural creatures as given above. !
This, however, they stoutly deny and the
story is given for what it is worth