The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-05-15

This strange and mysterious mon
ster which, as above stated. will be on
exhibition in Pensacola, is As feet in
length and measures % feet 9 inches
In circumference IL weighed when
captured 15 tons or 10000 pounds.
and its liver alone weighed 100
pounds.
Think of harpooning such a mon
ster as this and being dragged
through the water at express train
speed for hundreds of miles over the
crean for two days and a night be-
fore the game was up and the capture
safely landed.
Think of catching a fish with a
of ordinary size and of such strange
and peculiar aspect that men of sci
ence stood astounded. Sounds like a
Jonah story, doesn't it? And for all
one knows to the contrary 1T may be
and unquestionably is the sequel to
that story In the Bible that for ages
has proved the stumbling block to
men Of science and made ministers OF
every creed use their wit and ingen-
uity to logically explain the story of
the big fish that swallowed the He
brew prophet some thousands of years
ago.
Capt. Thompson Proves Story.
II remains for Capt. Charles H.
Thompson OF Miami. Fla, to end the
controversy, as TO him belongs the
credit of capturing the monster that
could have swallowed Jonah with the
neighborhood when the prophet was
cast overheard by the crew of the ship
he was travelling on.
Nobody is better known In the
world OF sports than Captain Thomp-
SON. For years he has been. and still
Is. the favored patron OF the Wander
bits, the whitneys and other million
aire sportsmen who frequent the low
er east coast and who Invariably en-
: gage him to accompany them on their
trips through the Everglades and
through the magic waters OF the Flor
ida Keys after big game for which
this section is noted.
Captain Thompson encountered this
strange fish while cruising off the
lower Florida keys in that stretch OF
water that for more than a century
was the scene of countless thrilling
adventures and romantic exploits
alike of Spanish explorers and blood
thirsty pirates.
Long the home of romance and
mystery it seems only natural that
this stranger and most mysterious of
monsters should have been discovered
lurking in these magical waters. Cap
tain Thompson had captured many a
wonderful inhabitant of these tenn
ing waters. ranging all the way from
predatory sharks to terrible devil fish
but nothing so strange, so wferd so
unaccountable as this extraordinary
crea ture, this puzzle to the scientific
world. which has become known as
the Deep Sea Mystery, ever came out
of the sea before.
With the first announcement In the
papers OF the remarkable achieve
ment Captain Thompson was flooded
with letters and kilograms from all
over the country asking for descrip-
tions and articulars OF the wonder.
and the interest became so wide
spread and insistent that after having
had the unique specimen preserved at
great expense with the assistance of
the Smithsonian Institution at wash
ington. he decided TO exhibit the won
der throughout the country.
Yacht Now in Pensacola.
To that end he had large sea-go-
ing yacht constructed, the entire low
er deck OF which was especially de-
signed TO accommodate the monster
fish and was made sufficiently large
to allow for ample SPACE for as many
As l.50o spectators to view II from
every side
al :.
finest and most valuable private ma
rine exhibits ever brought together.