332 THE VARIOUS ACCOUNTS , [N°. 144. | 
The head and tail appeared to have a length, beyond the coils, 
of about thirty feet, and the girth seemed to be eight or nine 
feet. The serpent whirled its victim round and round for about 
fifteen minutes, and then suddenly dragged the whale to the 
bottom head first. Again, on July 138, a similar serpent was seen 
about 200 yards off the Pauline, shooting itself along the surface, 
its head and neck being several feet out of the water. Subsequently 
the head of the animal was shot sixty feet into the air. The de- 
claration was signed by Captain Drevar, Horatio Thompson (chief 
officer), John Henderson Landells (second officer), William Lewarn 
(steward) and Owen Baker (seaman). 
I am so fortunate as to be able to communicate the account as 
it appeared in the newspapers of the 10th. and 11th. of January, 
1877. I have found it in AnpRrEw Witson’s Leisure Time Studies: 
“The story of the mate and crew of the barque Pauline, of 
London, said to have arrived in port from a twenty months’ voy- 
age to Akyab, — about having seen “a sea-serpent” while on a 
voyage in the Indian seas, was declared to on oath before Mr. 
Raffles, the stipendiary magistrate, at the Liverpool Police-Court. 
The affidavit was made in consequence of the doubtfullness with 
which anything about the “sea-serpent’ has hitherto been received; 
and to show the genuine character of the story it has been placed 
judicially on record. The following is a copy of the declaration , 
which will be regarded as unprecedented in its way: — 
“BoroucH OF LivERPooL, IN THE County PALATINE 
OF LANCASTER, TO WIT. 
“We, the undersigned, captain, officers, and crew of the barque 
Pauline (of London), of Liverpool, in the county of Lancaster, in 
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, do solemnly 
and sincerely declare that on July 8, 1875, in lat. 5° 13’ S., long 
35° W., we observed three large sperm whales, and one of them 
was gripped round the body with two turns of what appeared to 
be a huge serpent. The head and tail appeared to have a length 
beyond the coils of about thirty feet, and its girth eight or nine 
feet. The serpent whirled its victim round and round for about 
fifteen minutes, and then suddenly dragged the whale to the bot- 
tom, head first’. GrorcE Drevar, Waster. 
Horatio ‘T'Hompson. 
JouN Henprrson LANDELLS. 
Owen Baker. 
Wm. Lewarn. 
