CAPTAIN STEELE'S TESTIMONY. 337 



28th of August, in long. 40 K, lat 37 16' S., about 

 half-past two, we had all gone down below to get ready 

 for dinner, when the first mate called us on deck to see 

 a most extraordinary sight. About five hundred yards 

 from the ship there was the head and neck of an enor- 

 mous snake ; we saw about sixteen or twenty feet out of 

 the water, and he spouted a long way from his head ; 

 down his back he had a crest like a cock's comb, and was 

 going very slowly through the water, but left a wake of 

 about fifty or sixty feet, as if dragging a long body after 

 him. The captain put the ship off her course to run 

 down to him, but as we approached him, he went down. 

 His colour was green, with light spots. He was seen by 

 every one on board' My brother is no naturalist, and I 

 think this is the first time the monster has been ever seen 

 to spout." 



The second statement is contained in a letter from one 

 of the officers of the ship : 



" You will be surprised to hear that we have actually 

 seen the great sea-serpent, about which there has been so 

 much discussion. Information was given by a sailor to the 

 captain just as we were going to dinner. I was in my 

 cabin at the time, and from the noise and excitement, I 

 thought the ship was on fire. I rushed on deck, and on 

 looking over the side of the vessel I saw a most wonderful 

 sight, which I shall recollect as long as I live. His head 

 appeared to be about sixteen feet above the water, and he 

 kept moving it up and down, sometimes shewing his 



enormous neck, which was surmounted with a huge crest 



y 



