The Savannah morning news., 1902-07-20

in the waist let go the line and ran for
a knife intending to sever the tv,ina
and let the monster go. But the third
man scented some great reward-for
was not the professor from New York
always asking for queer things?
This was a queer thing with a VEN
geance-almost too queer for man tn
tackle. But with a mighty bracing Of
nerve the negro overcame his suner-
stitious terror and held on to the line
Finally he induced the others to helm
him, and at last the devil snake" was
dropped in the live well, where forth
with it dashed and writhed until the
darkies were frightened all over again.
When they got ashore the news Of
their unique capture spread quickly. II
was not long before the Bermuda dark
les had discovered positively that this
was indeed something from the Bot
tomless Pit; and as devil snake" the
creature was known thereafter. The
news reached young naturalist, Now
bray of St. George, Bermuda, who hur-
ried down to the shore and obtained
the fish. He had it transported to a
tidal pool. There it was viewed by
hundreds, and all sorts of legends soon
were told of it. One was that it could
make itself smaller or larger at will.
Mowbray investigated and found that
1t was true. The beast could elongate
ITS uncouth. body enormously or con-
tract it at will.
America Gets 1t.
Prof. c. L. Bristol of the University
of New York is.in Bermuda collecting
specimens for New York's public Aqua
rum. He heard of the find and bought
it at once. He and the other scientists
in Bermuda could not identify it in
their first examination.
They put the creature into a great tin
tank, and it was shipped to New York,
in company with other tanks contain
ing two hideous specimens of octopus,
and several dozens of beautiful gaudy,
graceful angel fish and other tropic
beauties.
Thus in one day the Aquarium was
enriched by a collection that compris-
ed within itself the most ugly and the
most beautiful ocean jewellers that
there are. For as truly as the devil
snake" deserves it's name, so does the
angel fish earn its appellation. Those
are not fins, but wings in truth that
bear it soaring through the transparent
water of it's tropic home. It's face is
wise as that of human being, and it
is as gentle and tame as it is beautiful.
Over it's dainty body there play a doz-
en- colors, all equally rich and all
equally delicate in shading and tint.
Fright blues chase bright greens, vivid
gold Pushes along it's side and fades,
ard gives way to pink so pale that it
may hardly be seen before it is gone,
Like birds, these fishes soar through
the lacing weeds and over the aspiring
ccrals. Out of snug, nest-like retreats
other fish thrust strange heads out
heads that end in a green beak; heads
that are marked with vivid smears of
bright green and crimson, like the
smears on the whitened face of the cir
Gus clown. What are these that seem
half bird, half fish? They are the par
rot fish, most grotesque, most gorgeous
OF tropic fishes.
And amid all these flashing schools.
one more beautiful than the other, Turk
the most horrible creations of the
gloomy fancy of the deep sea. Here
and there the observer, peering
through the water glass in the bottom
of the boat, can see a queer, snaky.
warty tentacle, cropping shyly and as
shyly withdrawn. 1t is the arm of an
octopus, the devil fish of Victor HUI
COS "Toilers of the Sea-" By straining
the sight one can catch glimpses finally
of the whole repulsive creature, strad-
ding in its gloomy lair, waiting for
prey, glazing at the beholder dread
fully with two hideous, CLASSY, staring
eyes that are as the eyes of corpse.
yet horribly instinct with evil intelli-
gence.
And out of this fantastic world,
where unearthly beauty swims and
streams in schools side by side with
things incredibly terrible, the Channo-
muraena was born. to give the people
of the earth an inkling of the real
world that is all around them, yet as
hidden as if it were not