[ N°. 41. ] REPORTS AND PAPERS. ya 
“If [ saw his head, 1 could not distinguish it from his body ; 
though there were seafaring men near me, who said that they could 
distinctly see his head. I believe they spoke truth; but not having 
been much accustomed to look through a glass , I was not so fortunate.” 
“T never saw more than seven or eight distinct portions of him 
above the water, at any one time, and he appeared rough; though 
I supposed this appearance was produced by his motion. When 
he disappeared, he apparently sunk directly down like a rock.” 
“Captain Beach has been in Boston for a week past, and I am 
informed that he is still there. An engraving from his drawing of 
the serpent has been, or is now, making at Boston, but I have 
not been able to ascertain how far his drawing is thought a correct 
representation.” 
“Respectfully , Sir, 
Your most obedient, . 
Lonson Nash.” 
Mr. W. D. Peck says of this declaration (Alem. Am. Acad. Arts 
Beavoel 1V. Pt. 1.) 
“The account of it by Lonson Nash Esq. Justice of the Peace 
in Gloucester, from his own observation, 1s perfectly free from pre- 
judice, and as clear and satisfactory as can be expected of an 
object at a distance of two hundred and fifty yards.” 
Remarkable in this testimony is again the considerable wake the 
animal leaves behind it when swimming rapidly. Easy it is to 
explain why the speed is greater under water than when partly 
visible above the surface of the water. ‘Those parts viz. which are 
above the surface must be borne by the body hidden under water, 
consequently this carries a burden, and the speed, it is evident, 
cannot be so rapid as when the animal is quite under water, in 
which position each part of the animal’s body is carried by the 
water itself, and not by the individual. It has no burden to carry, 
it is specifically lighter, and the speed can reach its maximum. — 
Remarkable too is the fact that the animal, when swimming under 
water, does so just below the surface, and causes the rippling of 
it. This is a habit of Pinnipeds. 
Where Mr. Nash thinks that the apparent roughness is produced 
by its motion, I am convinced that he is right. He could not 
distinguish its head from its body, which cannot surprise us; both 
are of the same thickness, when seen from aside, and I believe 
too that the seafaring men, more accustomed to look with a glass, 
distinctly saw the difference between head and neck. Moreover the 
