The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-04-06
THAT SEA SERPENT.
Scientists Are Much Interested in the
Story.


Washington, April 5.-Scientists in the
government service are very much inter-
ested III the sea serpent story which
comes by the way of France with de-
gree of authority unusual in such narra-
| tives. The French Geological society. in a
bulletin issued, appropriately enough,
from a building in the Rue Serpente, gives
to the world a mass of information re-
garding an animal which was a few years
ago denounced as a sort of mythology and
the summer resort reporters imagination.
but is now recognized as at least a posi-
BILE reality and actually given the Latin
name of Megophias magophias. As Emile
G RacOvitZa, assistant director of the
Arago laboratory, remarks in his paper
! leading up to the new evidence now pub
lished. very few naturalists go to sea,
and that is the reason why sailors yarns
! have been the only foundation for such
scientific inquiry as has been made thus
far regarding the sea serpent Making
allowances for inaccurate observation and
downright romancng. the stories put On
record from time to time in the last 400
years have agreed on so many points that
il has been possible to make rough com
pcsite picture of the creature in question.
Now to the story. The French gunboat
Avalanche was. in 1897 in the bay of
Fai-tsi-long on the coast Of Tonkin. Her
commander. Lieut.. Lagersille, declares
that on one July day of that year he saw
IN the waters Of the bay two greet swim
ming creatures. twenty metres long and
two or three in diameter He could not
fntn M at m
the instinct of a hunter. he Immediately
took a shot at them at a range Of 500
metres. whereupon they sank under water
and did not appear again. On the 18th of
the following February. however. while
again crossing the bay. he saw a pair oi
the same creatures. possibly the same in
dividuals. and gave chase for an hour and
a half firing at them from time TO time
Once, he is sure one of the creatures was
hit but the ball glanced of harmlessiy
Racevitza Is skeptical about this invul-
nersbility, and suggests the more probable
theory that the shot ricOchetted from the
surface OF the wsteI The chase was
given UP, as the lieutenant quantity puts
IT. because the sea serpent had greater
endurance than the Avalanche. But some
observations were made The animal was
gray in color. and il seemed to him that II
had many fippers Here again the scien-
fist remarks that probably IL had only
four. but that they moved too rapidly 20
be counted. It swan with an undulstory
movement in vertical plane. its body
not being rigid like that of a whale. bat
extremely flexible. Nine days later. when
the Avalanche had on bOari the com
narder and eight officers of the French
shin Psyard. another Of these monsters
was encountered and pursued for thirty
five minutes This time the boat came
close enough for the men 70 see that the
crea.rfres 3 head was Ike that Of seal.
tbourh very much larger in dimensions.
When il came UP fter diving. II blew ws-
ter into the air as q whale does. but this
was in the form Of cloud spray. and not
a single 5et. The oricers of the BaysrS
/ had Photographic apparatus with them
/ and when trey had recovered from tEesr
surprise ran at once 20 get their cameras.
bu, before they rad secured any pictures
4 the creature. with tne shyuezs recorded az
/ ore q the invzr3sois eharzctertstics q
T the sr.4cses. divee and was seen ~ rsore
A. oricer q the Bsysra rSefgily rsTnsrs-
I Cd In \ letter that the apparatus Ess
. -Nr small tI~ tfG&% 49, 80 Na*a -
{ movements too unexpected Blst he ac1-
+ 81 TIE observation tnzt there was sort
F OF a crest zio-E IRE a-ir1sgs back
The popular s5ea that there ~ tut ors
sea ssrp7ut. \ solitary rnonsrrh ., tse
deep. ss upeet - the coDciuEson ~ascn
( Rzsovitza 6raxs from ths story toEt tod
( TIE NegopAias. be thinks. Is actually
Z abuntazt. Ia ths regioa % the eoazt q
+ Tonkin which bears the gsse-al nAfSr
4 % the Bay q Along Il t. ys-y important
therefore that zav ons vso gees 70 mat
r~Sfon or 20 pofzts O. TIE rsofzs Atlantic
I another % it's haun;k. shoza1 bed 70
| directions Skieh this sele1t-ss S4ysS ~ %