Reptiles, 2309 



I have no doubt, contains the full particulars, which, I suppose, will be made 

 public. 



" There are letters from Captain Trelawney to a friend in Liverpool, which will 

 probably contain some further particulars, and I have written to get a copy for the 

 purpose of getting the full account. James Henderson, Master, Broomielaw, Berth 

 No. 4."—' Times; October 23, 1848. 



[Doubtless the sagacious production of some self-styled philosophical naturalist, 

 who is pledged to one of the hypothetical modes of explaining away the existence of a 

 sea-serpent, and who hopes by a hoax of this kind to throw discredit on Captain 

 M'Quhse's statement. — E. Newman^ 



The Great Sea-Serpent. — " What an extraordinary creature the Daedalus seems to 

 have fallen in with ! The description recalls to my mind an extraordinary appearance 

 we witnessed in the Blossom, in crossing the South Atlantic. I took it for the trunk 

 of a large tree, and before I could get my glass upon deck it had disappeared, and I 

 could nowhere find it — fresh breezes at the time. Captain Beechey to Sir Francis 

 Beaufort." — 'Illustrated London News,' October 28, 1848. 



The Great Sea- Serpent.—" 13, Great Cumberland Street, October 25, 1848. 



" My dear Sir, — I regret that I have not found the volumes referred to in our 

 conversation respecting the recent authentication of the existence of the sea-serpent 

 by Captain M'Quhag, of H.M. frigate Daedalus, but I will give you that part of the 

 information which I remember best. Several years ago, a museum was established at 

 Bergen, in Norway, the directors of which have, amongst other subjects of interest, 

 turned their study to Natural History in general, and to the elucidation of some of 

 its more doubtful or less known subdivisions. The question of the sea-serpent's exist- 

 ence had previously attracted the attention of several scientific men in Northern Eu- 

 rope ; and my friend, the late Dr. Newmann, Bishop of Bergen — a man much and 

 justly respected for his learning, research and energy — made it the subject of inquiry 

 within the last twenty or twenty-five years among his clergy and those of the adjoining- 

 dioceses. The amount of proof thus collected was sufficient to convince any one, 

 however sceptical, as it is not mere hearsay evidence, but the testimony of known and 

 respectable persons in various walks of life. One of the most striking statements is 

 made by some fishermen, who saw the animal quite close to them, and of whom one 

 more hardy than the rest struck it with a boat-hook, upon which it immediately gave 

 them chase; and, had they not been very near a small island or rock, on which they 

 took refuge, in all probability they would have been destroyed. 



" The size of the sea-serpents seen in the Norwegian fjords varies much ; and I 

 do not now remember what the dimensions of the largest are said to be. As far as I 

 can tax my memory, none of them lately seen are larger than that described by Capt. 

 M'Quhae. The one seen by the fishermen above alluded to was, I think, not above 

 70 feet long. I have written to my colleagues in the direction of the Bergen Museum ; 

 and as soon as their answer arrives I will give you a more full account. 



" There are, I believe, several varieties of the reptile known as the sea-serpent, but 

 almost all the accounts agree as to the existence of a mane, and as to the great size of 

 the eye. In several of the fossil reptiles somewhat approaching the sea-serpent in size 

 and other characteristics, the orbit is very large ; and in this respect, as well as in 

 having short paws or flappers, the descriptions of the northern sea-serpents agree with 

 the supposed appearance of some of the antediluvian species. A great part of the dis- 

 belief in the existence of the sea-serpent has arisen from its being supposed to be the 



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