.308 THE GREAT UNKNOWK 



weather was fine, the sea perfectly smooth, and Mr Lee 

 and myself were seated on a point of land which projects 

 into the harbour, and about twenty feet above the level 

 of the water, from which we were distant about fifty or 



sixty feet 



" In a few moments after my exclamation, I saw on 

 the opposite side of the harbour, at about two miles' dis- 

 tance from where I had first seen, or thought I saw, the 

 snake, the same object, moving with a rapid motion up the 

 harbour, on the western shore. As he approached us, it 

 was easy to see that his motion was not that of the com- 

 mon snake, either on the land or in the water, but evidently 

 the vertical movement of the caterpillar. As nearly as I 

 could judge, there was visible at a time about forty feet 

 of his body. It was not, to be sure, a continuity of body, 

 as the form from head to tail (exce23t as the apparent 

 bunches appeared as he moved through the water) was 

 seen only at three or four feet asunder. It was very evi- 

 dent, however, that his length must be much greater than 

 what appeared, as, in his movement, he left a considerable 

 wake in his rear. I had a fine glass, and was within from 

 one-third to half a mile of him. The head was flat in the 

 water, and the animal was, as far as I could distinguish, 

 of a chocolate colour. I was struck with an appearance 

 in the front part of the head like a single horn, about 

 nine inches to a foot in length, and of the form of a mar- 

 linespike. There were a great many people collected by 

 this time, many of whom had before seen the same object, 

 and the same appearance. From the time I first saw him 



