352 ANNUAL EEPOBT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1916. 



itself the wrath of the keepers of the works. Palisades were placed before 

 them, but these the polypus managed to get over by the aid of a tree, and it 

 was only caught at last by calling in the assistance of trained dogs, which sur- 

 rounded it at night as it was returning to its prey ; upon Avhich the keepers, 

 awakened by the noise, were struck with alarm at the novelty of the sight pre- 

 sented. First of all, the size of the polypus was enormous beyond all concep- 

 tion ; and then it was covered all over with dried brine and exhaled a most 

 dreadful stench. Who could have expected to find a polypus there or could 

 have recognized it as such under these circumstances? They really thought 

 that they were joining battle with some monster, for at one instant it would 

 drive off the dogs by its horrible fumes and lash at them with the extremities 

 of its feelers, while at another it would strike them with its stronger arms, 

 giving blows with so many clubs, as it were ; and it was only with the greatest 

 difficulty that it could be dispatclied with the aid of a considerable number of 

 three-pronged fish spears. The head of this animal was shewn to LucuUus ; it 

 was in size as large as a cask of 135 gallons and had a beard (tentacles), to use 

 the expressions of Trebius himself, which could hardly be encircled with t)oth 

 arms, full of knots, like those upon a club, and 30 feet in length ; the suckers, 

 or calicules, as large as an urn, resembled a basin in shape, while the teeth 

 again were of a corresponding largeness ; its remains, which v,'ere carefully 

 preserved as a curiosity, weighed 700 pounds. 



Denys Montf ort, who spent many years in ardent study of Cephalo- 

 pods and devoted a whole volume ^ to the publication of his results, 

 cites numerous incidents of marvelous encounters between man and 

 some of the larger members of this group. We shall quote a few 

 selections : 



An old captain named John Magnus Dens, who resided in Dunkirk, related 

 that, sailing once between the isle of St. Helena and Africa, near the coast 

 the ship was becalmed. He took advantage of this calm to send men over the 

 side to clean off the grass which accumulates near the water line on long 

 voyages. The men were standing on stages suspended near the water's edge, 

 scraping with iron scrapers, when suddenly a huge cuttlefish appeared at the 

 water's edge and, throwing one of his arms about tw^o of the men, tore the 

 unfortunates, with their stage, from the side of the vessel and dragged them 

 into the water. At the same time it threw another arm about a man who was 

 just mounting the main rigging ; but here its arm became entangled with the 

 shrouds and ratlines, and it was unable to disentangle itself. The man, who 

 was being severely squeezed, cried out for help, and the crew immediately ran 

 to his assistance. Several threw harpoons into the body of the beast, which was 

 now rising along the ship's side; others with axes cut in pieces the arm which 

 held the man to the rigging and took the unfortunate down on deck. 



This done, the cuttle sank down, but the captain payed out on the lines which 

 were fast to the harpoons, in the hope that presently he would be able to drag 

 the beast up again and recover the two men who had been dragged down. In 

 fact, at first he was able to drag the animal toward the surface ; but presently 

 the huge beast again sank down, and they were obliged to pay out line after line, 

 till at last, having but a little left, they were forced to hold on ; and now four of 

 the harpoons drew out, while the fifth line broke, and thus all hope of saving 

 the unfortunates or killing the monster was lost. 



1 Histoire Naturelle Des Mollusques, Tome 2, Paris, An. X. 



