New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-08-25
or SEA SERpENTS.

OF SEA SERPENTS.
| There are probably few subjects on when Inc
average person Of intelligence Is more sceptica
than that Of the sea serpent just why that
should he we must confess ourselves at loss
10 determine. Perhaps it is because the sea ser
nrnt is 4 sort of forty-second cousin 10 the fishes
and fish stories are proverblaly untustworthy
! Josh Billings" himself one of the most expert
of fishermen. used to say that man who could
catch fish and swap horses and not lie about II
WAS about as good rs any one could nope 10 DE
in this world Perhaps ii is because OF the trad-
tional propensity of seafarng men to spin
| warns" though we doubt if they are sinners
against the truth more than all other men. Per
hans il is because some alleged sea serpentS nave
actually proved to be seaweed, or dolphins. or
some similarly disappointing cattle. Or perhaps
II is simply because 4 comparatively very few
peope have ever seen or professed to have seen
the object in question. Any or all OF these or
some other reasons, may account for this general
sceptic,sm We do not know We can only re-
cord its existence and regret it.
For really. the mass if evidence and the pre-
ponderance Of probability are in favor Of the
existence not merely Of one, but Of many sea
creatures in the sea, Of serpendne or semi-ser-
pcntine form. That is unquestionabe. 1t Is en-
tirely within bounds to suppose that some Of
them still survive. Explorations in recent years
have revealed the existence Of many creatures
especially in the depths Of the ocean, which had
never been seen before. When Victor Hugo
wrote his "Toilcrs of the Sea-" within the
memory Of the present generation. many people
ia, sh x.hi cd
hero as a creature of his Imagination. Nor do we
know that they were altogether persuaded OF It's
reality when Mr.. Jules Verne years afterward
made such Il monster figure in his submarine
romance Yet il Is now we'll authenticated
II not as Familiarity known. the lobster or the
bluefsh. Neither Is It a valid argument against
the sea serpent for people TO say they have never
seen 1t. The testimony Of one man that he has
seen it must count for more than tlat OF mill
ions that they have not
or positive testimony to the existence and ap-
pcarance of such marine monsters there has
been much. 1t has been explicit and crcum-
stantial and has been offered not only by sailors
well supplied with grog. but by persons whose
word on any other matter would be accepted
without hesitation We may leave out OF our
reckoning the statement Of Aristotle the tales
Of the Kraken and the legends of the Burmese;
and likewise the more or less sensational stories
of s,immer-hocl keepers in the last few years,
and still have a mass of evidence worthy Of
mos. serious consideration. A credible eyewit-
ness i'm 1888 declared that he saw huge sea
serpent just off the shore at Lynn, Mass That
was we believe the first recorded instance in
this country. Again. in 1874, Bishop Egale de-
scribed marine monster which he saw in north
crn waters while on his way to Greenland. 1t
was covered with scales. had large, broad paws
or fins and sharp snout, blew water as a
whale does. and was able TO raise its head as
high us the ships maintop. Its form was that
of IA snake. and ii was fully 100 feet long. Cap
tain De Ferry. Of the Norwegian Navy, in 174S,
saw another such object near Mode. Bishop
Pontoppdan. Of Bergen, in his Natural History
| Of Norway in 1155 published the accounts OF
other actual observers Of such creatures and
declared that the dead bodies of SEA serpents
had been found on the Island Of Karmen at
| Amundo Vaagen, and in Nord Fiord. Bishop
Gunner. of Dronthcim, in 1867, also wrote Of
sea serpcns creatures whose existence was
well authenticated. In 1909 the Rev Mr. Me
Lean. Of Eigg. Scotland. saw serpent shaped
sea monster off the coast Of Coll. 1t was about
80 feet long. with broad, oval head, and moved
with snakelike but vertical undulations At
| about the same time the Rev. Abraham Cum
mngs declared that he had frequently seen lust
| such a creature along the coast Of Maine In
1917 the Linnaean Society Of Boston investi-
gated the alleged appearance of n sea serpent
at Gloucester, and got the positive affirmatons
| Of no less than eleven persons, that they had
| seen ii. Here again the unique vertical undula-
tons were observed, and the length OF the
creature was reckoned at 100 feet. The same
learned body Investigated another case at Nh
hant, two years later, and got the testimony OF
two hundred persons. Since that time scores OF
persons AT various times and places have report
ed seeing such monsters, with IA most noteworthy
general agreement as to their size, movements
and appearance.
| Despite all this the sea serpent may be a
myth All these intelligent observers may have
been mistaken. All these honest and truthful
! people may have deliberately lied about It, All
things are possible. But II such be the case.
| II is one Of the most extraordinary examples OF
dclusion and deception OF which the modern
world has record. That so many men. at SO
many remote times and places should all have
| been deceived in exactly the same way and with
exactly the same effect is perhaps credible. That
| they should have uttered falsehoods, separately