THE KRAKEN. 
7 
possible ; for these monsters, like the sea-snake, never appear at 
other times." 
Pontoppidan then reviews the stories of floating islands 
which suddenly appear, and as suddenly vanish, commonly 
credited, and especially mentioned by Luke Debes in his 
* Description of Faroe/ 
" These islands in the boisterous ocean could not be imagined," 
he says, " to be of the nature of real floating islands, because they 
could not possibly stand against the violence of the waves in the 
ocean, which break the largest vessels, and therefore our sailors 
have concluded this delusion could come from no other than the 
great deceiver, the devil." 
This accusation, the good bishop, in his desire to be 
strictly impartial, will not admit on such hear-say evidence, 
but is determined to, literally, " give the devil his due ; " 
for he warns his readers that " we ought not to charge 
that apostate spirit without a cause ; for," he adds, " I 
rather think that this devil who so suddenly makes and 
unmakes these floating islands, is nothing else but the 
Kraken." 
Referring to a monster described by Pliny, he repeats 
his belief that This sea-animal belongs to the Polype, or 
Star-fish species ; " but he becomes very much " mixed " 
between the Cephalopoda and the Asteridce, between the 
pedal segments, or arms, of the cuttle radiating from its 
head, and the rays of a Star-fish radiating from a central 
portion of the body. He evidently inclines strongly 
towards a particular Star-fish, the rays of which continually 
divide and subdivide themselves, or, as he describes it, 
" which shoots its rays into branches like those of trees," 
and to which he gave the name of " Medusa's Head," a title 
by which, in its Greek form, Gorgojiocephalus, it is still 
known to zoologists. " These Medusa's Heads," he says. 
