THE GREAT UNKNOWN". 



or even heard of his sea-serpent, until my arrival in 

 London. Some other solution must therefore be found 

 for the very remarkable coincidence between us in that 

 particular, in order to unravel the mystery. 



" Finally, I deny the existence of excitement, or the 

 possibility of optical illusion. I adhere to the statements, 

 as to form, colour, and dimensions, contained in my 

 official report to the Admiralty ; and I leave them as 

 data whereupon the learned and scientific may exercise 

 the ' pleasures of imagination ' until some more fortunate 

 opportunity shall occur of making a closer acquaintance 

 with the 'great unknown* in the present instance 

 assuredly no ghost." * 



A few months later, the following letter appeared in 

 the Bombay Bi-monthly Times for January 1849. It is 

 a very valuable testimony : 



" I see, in your paper of the 30th December, a para- 

 graph in which a doubt is expressed of the authenticity 

 of the account given by Captain M'Quhse of the ' great 

 sea-serpent.' When returning to India, in the year 1829, 

 I .was standing on the poop of the Royal Saxon, in con- 

 versation with Captain Petrie, the commander of that 

 ship. We were at a considerable distance south-west of 

 the Cape of Good Hope, in the usual track of vessels to 

 this country, going rapidly along (seven or eight knots) in 

 fine smooth water. It was in the middle of the day, and 

 the other passengers were at luncheon ; the man at the 

 wheel, a steerage passenger, and ourselves, being the only 



* The Times, November 21, 1843. 



