S8 Mermaid of the Shetland Seas. 



take it into the boat, and keep it for some time : but, on per- 

 ceiving its pectoral mammae, and on seeing it gasp (or " yawn," 

 as they simply style it), certain superstitious fears, as to its being 

 " unlucky*" to kill a mermaid, prevailed ; and, in an evil mo- 

 ment, they slipped it overboard. On hearing of the circum- 

 stance. Sir Arthur Nicolson of Lochend, a most intelligent Shet- 

 land proprietor, and a Justice of the Peace in the county, called 

 the men before him, put them upon oath, and took down their 

 description of the animal. The crew consisted of three persons, 

 William and Daniel Manson, and John Henderson, all residing 

 in Cullivoe, parish of North Yell. Sir Arthur bears testimony 

 to the character of these men for honesty and integrity, though, 

 in point of information, they are not superior to the common 

 class of peasantry of the country. 



The animal seems to have been a female, the two pectoral 

 mammae being described as prominent and full. The skin was 

 smooth and shmy ; light grey on the back, and pure white on the 

 belly. On the outside of the mammae were two swimming-paws, 

 terminating in webbed fingers. The eyes were small, and of a 

 blue colour. The mouth was so large, that, when opened wide, 

 it would admit a man'*s fist. The neck was remarkably short. 

 The body was not measured, but was guessed to be little more 

 than three feet long ; and the circumference, where largest, or 

 near the swimmingpaws, was estimated at two feet and a half 

 From the middle the body tapered rapidly towards the tail, 

 where it appeared to be only about four inches in circumference. 

 The tail was horizontal, and of a semicircular shape, or resem- 

 bling that of a halbert. 



It is certainly to be regretted, that the fishermen (as they 

 candidly state) " did not observe what kind of teeth the creature 

 had ;*" as on these the generic character chiefly depends. But 

 their general description, which it seems unnecessary farther to 

 det£dl, accords very well with that of the smaller herbivorous 

 cetacea. Some parts of their description, it must be confessed, 

 are very imperfect ; and, as might be expected, the honest men 

 fall into some evident inaccuracies. They say, for example, 

 " the animal had no nose, but two holes for blowing through." 

 It doubtless had no nose resembhng the human, and the sup- 

 posed blow.holes must have been the nostrils ; for the herbivo- 



