5990 



Reptiles. 



The Sea-Serpent. — In your paper of the 5th inst. is a letter from Captain-JHar- 

 rington, of the ship ' Castilian/ staling his belief that he had seen the great sea- 

 serpeiit near St. Helena. His confidence is strengthened from the fact of something 

 similar having been seen by Her Majesty's ship 'Daedalus' near the same position. 

 The following circumstance, which occurred on board the ship ' Pekin,' then belonging 

 to Messrs. T. and W. Smith, on her passage from Moulmein, may be of some service 

 respecting this " queer fish.'' On December 28th, 1848, being then in lat. 26 S., long. 

 6 E., nearly calm, ship having only steerage way, saw about half a mile on port beam 

 a very extraordinary-looking thing in the water, of considerable length. With the 

 telescope we could plainly discern a huge head and neck, covered with a long shaggy- 

 looking kind of mane, which it kept lifting at intervals out of the water. This was 

 seen by all hands, and declared to be the great sea-serpent. I determined on knowing 

 something about it, and accordingly lowered a boat, in which my chief officer and 

 four men went, taking with them a long small line in case it should be required. I 

 >vatched them very anxiously, and the monster seemed not to regard their approach. 

 At length they got close to the head. They seemed to hesitate, and then busy them- 

 selves with the line, the monster all the time ducking its head, and showing its great 

 length. Presently the boat began pulling towards the ship, the monster following 

 slowly. In about half an hour they got alongside ; a tackle was got on the main yard 

 and it was hoisted on board. It appeared somewhat supple when hanging, but so 

 completely covered with snaky-looking barnacles about 18 inches long, that we had it 

 some time on board before it was discovered to be a piece of gigantic sea-weed, 

 20 feet long and 4 inches diameter, the root end of which appeared when in the water 

 like the head of the animal, and the motion given by the sea caused it to seem alive. 

 In a few days it dried up to a hollow tube, and as it had a rather ofi'ensive smell was 

 thrown overboard. I had only been a short time in England when the ' Daedalus ' 

 arrived and reported having seen the great sea-serpent, — to the best of my recollection 

 near the same locality, and which I have no doubt was a piece of the same weed. So 

 like a huge living monster did this appear, that had circumstances prevented my 

 sending a boat to it T should certainly have believed I had seen the great sea-snake. — 

 Frederick Smith; Newcastle-on-Tyne^ February 10, 1858. — From the ' Times! 



The plants of this family (Laminariaceae) are almost all of large size, and many 

 of them gigantic, greatly exceeding in bulk any other marine vegetables. The Oar- 

 weeds and Tangle of our own coasts have frequently stems six or eight feet long, and 

 fronds expanding from their summits to as great a length ; and the Sea-thong (Chorda) 

 often measures forty feet in length. But these dimensions are small, compared with 

 their kindred on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. The Nereocystis, a plant of this 

 family inhabiting the north-western shores of America, has a stem, no thicker than 

 whipcord, but upwards of 300 feet in length, bearing at its apex a huge vesicle, six or 

 seven feet long, shaped like a barrel, and crowned with a tuft of upwards of fifty 

 forked leaves, each from 30 to 40 feet in length. The vesicle, being filled with air, 

 buoys up this immense frond, which lies stretched along the surface of the sea : here 

 the sea-otter has his favorite lair, resting himself upon the vesicle, or hiding among 

 the leaves while he pursues his fishing. The cord-like stem which ancliors this floating 

 tree must be of considerable strength ; and, accordingly, we find it used as a fishing- 

 line by the natives of the coast.'' — Harvey s British Algce^ p. 27. — Ed.] 



