Morning journal and courier., 1886-09-20
ave described the so-called sea serpent

have described the so-called sea serpent there is undoubtedly basis of truth. Indeed what reason is there to doubt that such an animal exists? The only considerable argu- ment against it's existence is that advanced by Professor Owen, who objects that if it existed we should be able to find either it's separate bones or it's complete skeleton. Such objection, however, has no validity, be- cause we never find the bones of whales or seals save on beaches where men have killed them; nor do we ever discover the skeletons of the countless thousands of birds that die in the forests. Nature is her own scavenger; we never come upon her burying places. We may not, therefore, deny the existence of a sea monster simply because it's skeleton is not obtainabls for the museums.
 On the contrary, the fact of the existence of some snake-like marine animal unknown to the present zoologist is attested by throng of witnesses. We may not rehearse here the long list of circumstantial and de- tailed narratives of those more or less em1- nent men, from Diodorous Sicu1us to the president of the Gloucester Common Coun- cil, who profess to have seen the monster in question. Any librarian can furnish the in- quiring reader with a sufficient number of these accounts to keep him in interesting reading for two days at least. The narrators include clergymen of all nationalities and creeds, physicians, experienced travellers, hard-headed business men, naval officers of such repute as our own Commander Preble and host of others equally disinterested. Many of these accounts must be set aside as obviously colored up for effect. But even then there remains an accumulation of evi- dence too weigIty to be withstood. There is of course much exaggeratian; but after sst-- ting aside the 'personal error" for which trained observers always allow, the general coherence of the details given in these vari ous accounts is indeed remarkable. All the observers have found the animal only in northern attitudes; all agree that it's color is blackish brown above and white beneath; that it's prominent eyes are on the top of it's fattened head; that it moves at the rate of five or six knots an hour; that it is harmless and even timid, and that it's undulatory movement is caterpillar-like, that is vertical and not lateral. There is too substantial agreement in placing it's size at seventy feet in length and twelve in circumference. This concurrent testimony from hundreds Of wit nesses. strangers to each other and often sep arated by centuries of time, sufficiently proves the existence of such animal as they describe. A line of porpoises, 8 school of horse mackerel, a mass of sea weed, an old mass covered with barnacles and tossing on the waves, have each been mistaken for a sea serpent many times. Nevertheless un- less all the laws of evidence are at fault, there is in actual existence precisely such 8 marine monster as is now reported near Cape Ann. The so called sea serpent is not 6 myth.
 What however, as matter of fact is the animal which bears in popular phraseology this alliterative name? We may boldly sert that it is not q serpent. All observers agree that it undulates vertically like a cat erpillar. But anyone who takes the trouble to examine the structure of the vertebre of serpents will see at once that they are capable of no other undulatory movement than a lateral one. There are plenty of | 1H t,, length, and all have their tails hattened sideways that they move through the water like cells. We have then, as described by it's observers, animal utterly un- known to the zoologist, at least a con temporary form. The only inference there fore is that it is survival from some group of animals now on the verge of ex- l tinction. When, however, we ask what | this group is there are two equally good | answers. It may be a survivor of the saul rians-probably the enaliosaurian-to to whose l form, as known to the paleontologist, it corresponds with sufficient exactness. Or it may be survivor of some snake-like ceta- cean such as the zeuglodon, to whose habits | it largely conforms. Most scientists-nota- bly, Professors Proctor and Agassiz-incline
 to the former supposition. There is, how ever, considerable ground for the latter l All it's motions are cetacean; 1t is uniform | ly described as thrUsting it's head out ot
 
 are much addicted: it's undulatory move ] ment may be seen illustrated by every school of porpoises; it rises suddenly to the surface, or sinks like lead to the bot tom, as every whaleman knows his victim | can from the peculiar structure of it's lungs; l and it's harmlessness is also cetacean, as l whales seldom attack save under exception | al circumstances.
 | But whether the so-called sea serpent is $
 zeuglodon or an enaliosaurian, we shall nev-
 CT know for surety till we secure it's skeleton for the zoologist to classify. And very pos ! sibly this may yet be done. The existence
 of the devilfsh was long denied, but finally | a specimen was obtained that silenced all ca | villers. Heretofore observers of the sea ser pent have either stared in childish wonder l run away in abject fear or peppered the monster with harmless shot. Some day al 1 old whaler With a harpoon may make cap | ture that will bring him fame. In the mean | time we may as we'll admit that the man | who announces the reappearance of the so- | called sea serpent is not necessarily deluded 1 ignoramus or a falsifier Doubtless many ot
 the monsters reported by summer excursion | ists have no more real existence than the
 semblance of whale which Polonius saw ir | the clouds, but nevertheless there is in actu
 al life and presumable vigor curious, bu
 harmless, marine animal enormously called
 the sea serpent. To believe all the stories
 that are told of it is credulity, but to deny
 the possibility of it's existence is presump
 ton.