Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-18

port by the commanding officer Cap
tain McQuhae, in IS4S He stated
that August E of that year in latitude twenty
four degrees and fortyfour minutes SOUTH and long
tude nine degrees and twenty minutes east of
his midshipmen, Mr.. Sartoris saw something very
unusual rapidly approaching the vessel. He re
ported it to the officer of the watch Lieutenant
Dr,nnmond, with whom and Mr. William Barrett the
master, Twas walking the quarter deck On atten-
ton being called to the object it discovered to
be enormous serpent, with head and shoulders
kept constantly about four feet above the surface of
the sea, while nearly could approximate,
there at least sixty feet of the animal visible
beyond. 1t passed so close under lee quarter
that had it been of my acquaintance l
should easily have recognized his features with the
naked eye. 1t held its at twelve to fifteen
miles an hour, apparently on some determined
purpose. Behind the head, which without
any doubt that of snake it was fifteen or sixteen
inches in diameter Never, during the twenty
minutes it continued in sight of our glasses was it
once below the surface of the water. In color it
dark-brown but yeowsh- white about the
throat 1t had fins, but something like the
name of horse. The monster seen by the
quartermaster, the boatswains mate and the man
at the wheel, in addition myself and the officers
aforementioned.
This, it must be admitted is testimony which
cannot be explained away cast aside as of no
importance We cannot attribute it to Illusion to
ignorance, or to wilful deception. British naval
officer does not go out of his way invent living
report for the entertainment of the Admiralty
and it will be noticed that Captain McQuhae
took good care to back up his statement with
the evidence of number of his officers and men,
who also signed the document.
Leaving aside the question to what sort of
animal this actually was, and admitting that it
must have been monster of some kind not familiar
easily identified the fact is worth mentioning
that two months and half later on September TO-
the officers and crew of the American brig Daphne
in latitude four degrees and eleven minutes south and
longitude degrees and fifteen minutes east behed
extraordinary creature, which to have
resembled IN all important respects the
by the mariners of the DRdalus. One of the deck
guns was brought to bear upon it, charged with
spikes, nails and whatever other pieces of iron
could be got at the moment, and was fired at a
reared its head in the air and plunged violently with
its body, showing that the shot had taken effect"
The Daphne then stood toward the brute, which
''foamng and flashing the water at fearful
rate" However, as the brig approached, it made
off at rate of fifteen sixteen knots
hour. It's length was estimated at one hundred
feet.
We have mentioned a possible mammal and
not unlikely mousk corresponding with
able accuracy to the description of the conventional
sea-serpent. But may it not be a fish? DR..
Theodore Gill of the most famous of living
naturaists, while not himself an advocate of the
sea-serpent, suggests that possibly the actual
original of the monster may be giant seachan
related to the basking- shark with an elongated