The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-07-25

serpent IS a creature FdliIly iiiiaS 4AiCN'
a Pigment of the brain, thing born
of after-dinner orgies; it may even
have a semblance of reality, but when
analysed it proves to be nothing more
than a school of porpoises playing at
..follow-my-1eader," a gigantic cutie
fish vainly waving it's long arms in an
endeavor to escape the grip of some
hungry whalei On occasions, indeed,
the sea-serpent has turned out to be
nothing more interesting than float
ing spar decorated with a tangle of
sea-weed!
A vast amount has been written
about the sea-serpent, but of all the
stories that have been told, it is sad
to reflect that those of clergymen
..surpass in wildness of elaboration
even the yarns invented with intent
to deceive At least, so says Mr..
Frank BuIlen-and he ought to know!
One or two of the more serious &C
counts are worth repeating. NO
longer ago than 1891, one Peter Nell
son, a quartermaster, and therefore
IAN honorable man." say from the
deck of the Rotornahana a beast with
the head of an eel and fins ten feet
long rise thirty feet out of the water
II was dark above, and white below
He gave long account of this strange
beast, yet. so far, those whom he in
tended 10 convert only reply that II
was very like whale'-in short,
that he saw nothing more than a
whale preaching"
Captain McQuhae of II. NJ. s. Daed-
aIus. and his officers, in 1913 created
a great sensation in England by a
sea-serpent story which at the time
was discredited by the late Professor
Sir Richard Owen. But time brings
its revenges. for it may turn out that
the Professor was wrong. Briefly, he
reported having seen an enormous ser
pent with head and shoulders some
four feet out of the water and some
sixty feet of it's body on the surface.
It passed rapidly so close to the ship
that a mans features at the same dis
lance could easily have been distin-
| guished. 1t had no fms, but something
/ like seaweed washed about its back
| Now within the last few days the
honor of the captain and his officers
| or rather. their cedit as observers. has
been singularly indicated. for at the
/ last meeting of the Geological Society
/ Mr. E. B. Meade Waldo and Mr.. NJ j
! Nicoli described creature seen by
| them from the deck of the Earl OF
! Crawford's yacht. the Valhalla which
bears a remarkable resemblance &c
that seen from the Daedalus. These
-.rz
Crawford as naturalists during hi:
usual winter cruise Both are vel
| known natura,ists, and one is a mem
| Der of the Council of the Geological
| Society. The story they unfolded to {
breathlessly excited assembly of the
Fellows is briefly this. When off Para
| on December = 1905, at 10 a. m, the.
were standing on the deck of the yacht
when their attention was caught b!
a curious saii-like object Of some
#. long and #. high waving from
side to side in the water. No sOone
had they turned their glasses on t
this strange object than there appear
ed a huge eel-Iike neck. some fl
long and as thick as q mans thigh
and this neck was suTmounted by
great turtle-like head with large eyes
| now borne high above the sea, wtic
was quite calm. It was dark colore
above and silvery white below. Afte
few moments the head and neck wer
slowly lowered and when level wit
the water were violently dashed frov
side TO side. churning up the sea int
a great sheet of foam. and then
vanished.
Adverse winds caused the ship I
beat about so that at midnight the
were only twenty mics from the seen
of the morning. This is noteworthy
because when Mr.. Nicou came on dec
after breakfast one Of the officer
came up and reported that during tn
night he saw a strange commotlon
the water At first he thought 1t wa
a rock 'awash," but most caref'
examination showed that II was
beast of some kind, travelling taste