Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1894-10-16
THAT SEA SERPENT.

becalmed in just about this latitood. AS
there war nothin to be did but wait for
wind, we war loungin about, all bein quiet
and still, when along about six bells the
stiffness was broken by shout from the
lookout aloft
lowell, jackson, what is itp asks the
captain.
'Strordinary appearance on our wealth
er bow, Captain Morgan, sir, says Jack
son.
Whats it look liker
Blowed if can make head or tail Of
1t, captain. Looks as though it might be
sea sarpint, and the biggest of the breed
at that, says jackson, says he.
"Chaw!' says the captain, sea sarpint
nothin. There amt no SIGH thing, he
says, like that, says he. Most like it's an
old hulk coated with sea drift or mebbe a
line o. prancin porpusses,' says he.
"Just at the moment man on the bow
yells out that he sees the critter, and the
captain he ran for'ard with mo after him.
There war some thick clumps of yaller fog
ahead, and the sea sarpint war just agoin
out of sight into one Of 'em. But we
caught a glimpse of the beast, and dash
my grandmother's cats tail if he didn't
leave a hole in the water behind him as
big as a Colorader canyonl
"'Jacobsp the captain yelled turnin
round to one of the men, relieve Bill
Distance at the wheel and send him here
quick
"In minute Bill come runnin for'ard,
and as soon as the sarpint had cut through
the fog bank and war out into view again
the captain says, says he:
Here, Bill, look lively now and tell
us how long the critter is and how fur off. ;
"Bill was curious sort o. chap and
armed his name by bein able to cock his
eye and tell to fathom or two how far
we was from any large object. Bill would
stuff his check with backy tight as ket-
tledrum, stick his old noddlo a one side
like jackdaw squintin into a marrow
bone and then make q calkylatiOn. Just
how he did it, blowed if he could tell, nor
could any one else but the bobstay seemed
to have somethin to do with his figurin,
for he would look at tho object and then
at the stay, and vice versa, when all of
suddint he would sorter wake up, give his
leg tremendous slap and sing out his fig.
ures proud and triumphantlike And
they was most usually correct, they was,
so that's why we called him Bill Distance.
"'How fur, Bill" asks the captain.
"'Half a mile, Captain Morgan, sir,
less IN fathoms, says Bill, says he, which
same, barrin the odd fathoms, should
have answered myself.
"'And how longH'
"'Four hundred and seventy-three feet
by 90 inches through his stummiok.'
''By this time the critter had disap.
I'D Npf nd
looked to see him go through it and sail
out the other side like he did the others,
but he didn't, not a bit of it, no sir
Hang mel yelled the captain, If
don't think he's changed his course and is
bearin down upon us in that screen of yal-
Ter mist. Here lads, git the swivel loaded
and run in q double load of shot, quick
now'
1.-THE thing war no sooner done when
we was struck all abaft with q most tire.
menjous and unarthly smell. 1t seemed
as though we war suddintly pizened OF
paralyzed or something, and as the fog
bank drew nearer we grew wuss and wuss.
1t warn't exactly fear. Blow me if l know
what it was Anyhow there we stood like
SO many shiverin apes, our eyes smartin
and blinkin, our tongues parched like
sticks and our hands a-hangin down limp
and useless. Obedience, you know, sir,
is very strong in us seamen, but blow me
sky high if any of us could have obeyed
the captains orders at that moment, even
If it was to drink his health in glass O.
grog!
ION came that sarpint envelope nearer
an nearer. l looked at the mate and blame
me if he didn't resemble mummy that
had died with the spotted fever, and as for
myself, if I looked as felt, must ha'
been q sight. Then of q suddint down
dropped two old hands all of heap to the
deck their narve completely gone. l grab.
bed my nostrils in my fist, and then felt
better. Bilgo water was vilet parfume
compared to the smell o. that snake BARN
down upon us, and yet it war a sort OF
swedish smell, too, but awful sickish,
and believe that pizenous that a few
minutes more of it would done us all up.
''Suddintly from a short distance ahead
there sounded deafenin roar, louder, by
gracious, than II thunderclaps! The corn
oussion Of it seemed to split the fog bank
right in two, and there busted through
the very heart of it great hOavin green
and shiny mass. The beast was tearin al.
most straight down upon us. His tremen.
jous head was reared as high as our cross
trees, and he glared at us with two fierce
yaller eyes each as big as the headlight OF
q giant lokymoty. His mouth was about
IS feet acrost and curled upward at the
corners into a sort o. grin, while two OF
his front teeth war missin, like as If he
had tried to swallow some vessel end on
and knocked 'em out against the bow an
Choir. That's about all we had time to
notice about the critter, 'cept that he war
of dark, copperish sort of color and had
a lot of long feelers G-sproutin out all
over his head. And then the captain pulled
the lanyard, and bang goes the gun
did we hit the beast? Well, that I
can't say. All's know, there war sud
dint swish, and next minute the Betsy B
went plungin down in such a watery gulf
that the wonder is she warn't left stickin
by her bowsprit into the basement O. the
sea.
"But the fust dash of brine brung us to
our senses, and SO we held on all to what
ever war handy, and presently up we
shoots again, to meet thunderin big wave,
which goes and washes everything loose
off the deck and leaves the hold harf full
o. water.
For minute or two the poor old Bet
sey B. darnced and staggered to it like a
tipsy bear; then the sea gradually grew
smooth again, and we picked ourselves up
and began to arsk one another what had