Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-03-14

maps hundTSxiS, OF trustworthy mariners OF
oil ranks, in both the naval and mercan-
tile services, have seer what they believe
to be such g Creature, but they refuse t.
publish any account of their ohseTvGtiols,
knowing they viii be insulted and
PUBLICLY eIBBErEp As FOOLS
And liars if they do" The foolish laughed
in the same wgy over the krakea, Us you
point out, and the monster they rejected
as impossible has been killed and Inoas-
ured. Whether the sea-serpent or any
creature whose prey is chiefly sought at a
considerable distance below the surface,
will ever ks captured or killed, IS very
doubtful. f;ut their existence ought never
10 have been regarded rs doubtful AFTER the
evidence gathered in Massachusetts, il
1917, snd'.he report Of the Captain of the
DsadSlus. There are probably several va
rieties Of Fea-creatures which look Ike ser
penis ard among these varieties some may
quite probably be really s@poutine. Bat
some Ct the supposed sea-Sarpen:s must
have really propelled themselves other
wise ;han SIS sorpentire sea-crt atUres do.
Fer they moved rapidly along the surface,
without percoptihe indications, and 10th
ing bat concealed paddles could hare urgsi
then on in this way. In EIy article q.
! Strange Sea-creatures, which appeared
eleven years ago IN the Ge1Iter.ea's Mega
efme, several singular ly.habiJants Of thec3l
-and in particular a nonstrous skate seen
in the East lndies-are described, and ev-
idence given to show that even Sncng
comparatively familiar species new vgrio-
ties are from time TO time being discovered.
Taus, though no sea-serpout 30 large as
THIS sEA-oRN OR sBa-woRa,
Described by Bishop Pontcgpidan as six
hundred feet in length, have as yet been
seen, it does not follow that Uone such eX-
ist, albeit ! cannot doubt STAT the good
Bishops sccounts are yery largely exag-
gerated. lie was &c. quite 50 foolish as
.4he modera critic who, though he perhaps
has never left his native toxin, undertakes
TO contradict men who describe what x cy
have seen. But iea- BE erred IL far Ia
the opposite direction. The boa-crnstrgct-
OF and the condor ha &c beeu described in
such terms by comparatively modern tray
;-elers las Humboldt has shewn) IS would
suggest treasures akin 70 thesorrent which
went for 9irlbad, and the roc which also
-adorns Smdbad's narrative md appears
in tales Of TIE East. Bat to, eEaggerate is
one thing, to invent is another. The man
who is foolish enough 10 jse about hk
travelling experiences Is not pable Of in
venting q new animal worth iige minutes
consideration, hut OF the other hand, the
plan who, berg sensible, is honest aud
truthful, is yet very apt to err in the way
CT uuintenti0nal eXaggera.ion. | think
poor Captain Dsavar's narrative Of q
1oNG-NEGBED BA-H0NaTF,H
Which captured N It's folds end .ool down
a sperm whale sas little exaggerated,
though he and his mates swore to:he truth
Of the story before q magistrate, and he
himself was most gafairly punished ny his
employers for telling what he had seen
he was, in fact, ruiRa1 for life. g would
not.!ell about it" saia an old salt 20 Capt.
Dresar, Of ] saw 6ve hundred sea-sar-
penis" Blu. no luc.e believe that these
men would have invested such an animal
if they could, or could have invented i. II
they would, than I bel:eve that an utterly
ignorant man could have devised the "a
nous Lunar Hoax-the clever story re-
speeding powerful telescope showing li7-
ing creatures in the moon. Yet the story
did not, Is was alleged, tri.a IN Araso ne
one acquainted with optical laws could
have been deceived By il for an instant.
To imagine that sailors could accomplish
the far more difficult ieat Of inve1ting
new kind Of animal, without Immediately
exposing their ignorance to every one &C
qIainted with the laws d comparative
anatomy, is 70 imagine the i.aPss BE.