40 
SEA MONSTERS UNMASKED. 
the French despatch si^dirnQv, Alecton, commanded by Lieu- 
tenant Bouyer, describing their having met with a great 
calamary on the 30th of November, 1861, between Madeira 
and Teneriffe. It was seen about noon on that day floating 
on the surface of the water, and the vessel was stopped with 
a view to its capture. Many bullets were aimed at it, but 
they passed through its soft flesh without doing it much 
injury, until at length "the waves were observed to be 
covered with foam and blood." It had probably dis- 
charged the contents of its ink-bag ; for a strong odour of 
musk immediately became preceptible — a perfume which I 
have already mentioned as appertaining to the ink of many 
of the cephalopoda, and also as being one of the reputed 
attributes of the Kraken. Harpoons were thrust into it, 
but would not hold in the yielding flesh ; and the animal 
broke adrift from them, and, diving beneath the vessel, 
came up on the other side. The crew wished to launch 
a boat that they might attack it at closer quarters, but the 
commander forbade this, not feeling justified in risking the 
lives of his men. A rope with a running knot was, however, 
slipped over it, and held fast at the junction of the broad 
caudal fin ; but when an attempt was made to hoist it on 
deck the enormous weight caused the rope to cut through 
the flesh, and all but the hinder part of the body fell back into 
the sea and disappeared. M. Berthelot, the French consul at 
Teneriffe, saw the fin and posterior portion of the animal on 
board the Alecton ten days afterwards, and sent a report 
of the occurrence to the Paris Academy of Sciences. The 
body of this great squid, which, like Rang's specimen, was 
of a deep-red colour, was estimated to have been from 
16 feet to 18 feet long, without reckoning the length of its 
formidable arms.* 
* In the accompanying illustration, the size of the squid is ex- 
aggerated, but not so much as has been supposed. 
