The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1919-07-21

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ster which, as stated above, will be on
exhibition in Fairmont on board the
yacht Tamiami, anchored at river
front, city wharf, from $500 a. m. to
1880 p. m, is as feet In length and
measures 20 feet Q inches in circum.
ference. 1t weighed when captured 10
tons, or 10000 pounds, and its liver
weighed 100 pounds.
Thing of %harbooning such a mon
ster as this and being dragged through
the water at express train speed for
hundreds OF miles over the ocean for
two days and a night before the game
was up and the capture safely landed.
Think OF catching a fish with a mouth.
! big enough to hold three men of ordi-
nary size and of such strange and pc.
culiar aspect that men Of science stood
astounded. Sounds like a Jonah story,
tionably is the sequel to that story In
the contrary 1t may be and unQues.
tionably is the sequel to that story in
the Bible that for ages has proved the
stumbling block of men of science and
made ministers of every creed use
their wit and ingenuity to logically ex-
plain the story of the big fish that
swallowed the Hebrew prophet some
thousands of years ago.
Captain Thompson Proves Story.
1t remains for Captain 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
I 0rnofnaf nodo ho1 ~ hann {n Tho raf.h-
borhood when the prophet was lost
overheard by the crew of the ship he
was travelling on.
Nobody is better known in the world
of sports than Captain Thompson. For
years he has been and still is the ia.
vored patron of the Vanderbilts, the
Whitneys and other millionaire sports.
men who frequent the lower east coast
and who invariably engage him to &C
! company them on their trips through
the Everglades and through the magic
water of the Florida Keys after big
game fish, for which this section Is
NOTED.
Captain Thompson encountered this
strange fish while cruising off the low
err Florida Keys in that stretch of wa
NCl lhoG " ilOIt ludll d SCuluLS was
the sceen Of countless thrilling adven-
lures and romantic exploits alike of
Spanish explorer and bloodthirsty pi-
rates.
Long the home of romance and mys-
terry, it seems only natural that this
strangest and most mysterious of mon.
sters should have been discovered Turk.
ing in these magical waters. Captain
Thompson has captured many a won
derful inhabitant of these teeming wa
tiers, ranging all the way from preda,
tory sharks to terrible devil fish, but
nothing so strange, so weird, so un.
accountable as this extraordinary Gre
AZURE, 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 achievement
Captain Thompson was flooded with
letters and kilograms from all over the
country, asking for descriptions and
eat that after having the unique speci.
men preserved at great expense by
Prof. j.. S. Warmbeth, who was recon-.
mended by the Smithsonian lnstitu-
ton at Washington. he decided to ex-
hibit the wonder throughout the coun,
try,
Yacht in Fairmont at City Wharf Tues.
day and Wednesday.
To that end he had a 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 500 spectators to view 1t from every
side.
The yacht also carries one of the
finest and most valuable private ma
rine exhibits ever brought together,
consisting Of numerous rare and
strange specimens of marine life, all
of which were personally collected by
Captain Thompson who on his many
cruises in the Florida straits and ada
cent waters.
Captain Thompson's palatial yacht,
for such It is, as 1t was built at a cost
in excess Of $4,000, will anchor at the
river front, where the huge sea mon.
eter will be on exhibition from 500
q. m. to 1880 p. m.
n people OF Falrmont 10 nave
the great privilege for the first time of
seeing this truly wonderful marine ex-
hibit, including the huge monster
known as the Deep Sea Mystery. which
probably has been the subject Of mora
speculation and controversy than any
other creature that ever came out OF
the ocean.
What, then, is the great Deep Sea
Mystery2
No one knows. You must see 1t for
yourself, and your guess will be as
good as anybody's.
You may think it some kind of a
whale. But 1t is not a whale. Whales
are not classed as fish, but are warm
blooded mammals that suckle theii
young like a COW.
Except for It's huge size, the Deep
! Sea Mystery has not a single feature In
LA ~