The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1888-04-06

The sea sometimes yields up part of its
treasures in curious and unexpected way,
as was instanced lately by the discovery of a
richly jewelled ring in the back of a herring
caught at Dunbar. The finder was still
luckier than servant in Port Glasgow, who,
in cutting up some whiting, found silver
coin in one Of them.
Two curious finds connected with nautical
affairs should have an interest for English
men. Some old canvas that had long been
slowed away as lumber, on being unexpected
ly brought to light, was found to be the
main sail of Nelson's ship, the Victory. The
sail was riddled with shot fired during the
battle of Trafalgar. When some men were
saving portion of an old ships mainmast
formerly belonging to u man-of-war at Chat
ham, a thrty-two pound iron shot was OBJ
served embedded in the mast, the aperture
having been plugged up. This was one OF
the largest kind of shot used in those times.
In lake in Berkshire large, misshapen
and unwieldly club was found, SO strange in
appearance and unsightly in its movements,
that the most apt zoologist could not account
for its lineal descent or say if it was piscatory
or amphibious. The creature was found in
d kind OF cage formed by the washed roots OF
an elm tree by this lake When young and
much smaller, this fish must have got into its
strange prison. Limited to mere turn, the
wonder is that as it must have forced its way
in it did not force its way out; but here it
was after years must have elapsed, taking
quite the form of the gnarled and struggling
roots. With no room to develop, the tail
had almost disappeared, the dorsal fin was
altogether obiterated, the body had become
very hard, and the scales like so much incrus-
tation OF mud divided into layers The nose
was so pushed in and the gills so enlarged
that, when looked at full in the face, it had
the appearance Of negro whose face had
been despoiled of its shining and oily surface.
Indeed, its existence was q matter of marvel,
as the water subsidized and increased at times,
so that in dry weather it had only the most
muddy home and a semi-fluid for its sub
stance When removed, it seemed a puzzle
to know whether to class this strange dis
covery as reptile, fish or anything else.
As some workmen were telling timber
near Herne Bay, they discovered In the cen
tire ofone of the trees cavity in which were
the remains of a cat The skeleton was en-
tire, and some hair of sandy color yet re-
manned on the skin 1t is c0njectured that
the animal, having entered hollow part of
the tree, was unable to extricate itself, and
the wood in process of years had grown
around it,
Curious finds have not infrequently been
made in trees. Some wood-cutters in the
forest of Drommlng made strange dscov-
cry. They began to fell venerable oak
which they soon found 10 be quite hollow.
Being halfdecaycl, it speedily came to the
ground with crash, disclosing q skeleton in
excellent preservation even the boots, which
came above the knees, were perfect. By its
side were powdcr-horn, q porcelain pipe
bowl and silver watch. The teeth were
perfect. 1t would seem to be the skeleton of
man between thirty and forty years of age
1t was conjectured that, while engaged in
hunting, he climbed the tree for some pur-
pose and slipped in the hollow trunk, from
which there was no release, and he probably
died of starvation. Another mystery was
found in the heart of an oak. From tree of
this kind, a large block, about eighteen inches
in diameter, that had been kicking about in
various yards and wood-sheds, was split up
lately, and in it was found an auger hole
about three-fourths of an inch in size, con-
tanning bunch of human hair done up in q
piece of printed paper. The hair was near
the centre of the block, and fastened with q
pine plug. 1t was apparently put in when
the tree was quite small, as the tree had
grown over the plug to the thickness of
about four inches, with the grain perfectly
straight and smooth.
A natural curiosity was shown in u timber
merchants workshop; this was the nest and
skeleton of bird embedded in piece of
beech. The timber seemed quite sound all
around the cavity, and there was no sign of
any aperture into it; but the timber being
sawn up, the nest with the bird sitting upon
it was found The nest appeared to be built
of mud, and the bird resembled titmouse
Probably at the looping off of a branch, a
cavity was formed, and the outside subse-
quently grown over; but how the bird was
enclosed seems difficult to imagine.-Cham.
bors' Journal.