276 CURIOUS CREATURES. 



either by vertical or horizontal undulation. It passed 

 rapidly, but so close under our lee quarter that, had it been 

 a man of my acquaintance, I should have easily recognised 

 his features with the naked eye ; and it did not, either in 

 approaching the ship or after it had passed our wake, 

 deviate in the slightest degree from its course to the S. W., 

 which it held on at the pace of from twelve to fifteen 

 miles per hour, apparently on some determined purpose. 



" The diameter of the Serpent was about fifteen or 

 sixteen inches behind the head, which was, without any 

 doubt, that of a snake ; and it was never, during the 

 twenty minutes that it continued in sight of our glasses, 

 once below the surface of the water. Its colour, a dark 

 brown, with yellowish white about the throat. It had 

 no fins, but something like the mane of a horse, or 

 rather a bunch of seaweed, washed about its back. It 

 was seen by the quartermaster, the boatswain's mate, 

 and the man at the wheel, in addition to myself and 

 officers above mentioned. 



" I am having a drawing of the Serpent made from 

 a sketch taken immediately after it was seen, which I 

 hope to have ready for transmission to my Lords Com- 

 missioners of the Admiralty by to-morrow's post. I 

 have, &c., PETER M'QuH^E, CAPTAIN." 



Space will not allow me to chronicle all the other 

 appearances of Sea-Serpents from 1848 to the present 

 time. Suffice it to say, they are not very uncommon, 

 and as for veracity, I will give another instance of its 

 being seen on board the Royal Yacht Osborne, on 2nd June 

 1877, off Cape Vito, Sicily. Lieutenant Haynes made 

 sketches, and wrote a description, of it, which was con- 

 firmed by the Captain and several officers. He wrote : 



