his Book De Terr£ Motu apud Athenium, Lth. 6. faith, 
Congros multos in Sky one capi qms Homo vtx ferat^ ho^ 
rumque ali^uos etiam ejfe plaujiraks feu plauflrt magnitu^ 
dine. And Straho^ Lih. ^.Geog, affirms, in exteriori!- 
bus locis augentur fupra minarum ocloginta : k\ hole Autho- 
rities I ihall not concradift, altho' neither by the Obfer- 
vacions of the Worthy Mr. Ray, nor any other Modern 
Author, can I find any to acquire near that Bigoefs. 
Yet to find very large Eels, notwithftanding what is 
faid both by Pli»y and Solinusy of thoft found in the 
Gauges Thirty Foot long, is that which is rare and fet 
dom (in England at leaft wife) to be found, and there- 
fore having lately met with Relations of Two very large 
Eels cought upon the Coaft of EJfex, I thought the 
Communication thereof to the Curious, would not be 
altogether unacceptable. 
Thefe both had all the Charalierizing Notes of thtEel, 
and wanted thofe Barhles which the Eel fometimes 
hath not, but the Conger is never without. The Firft 
was taken fome where about Crickfea, and for its ra- 
rity was made a prefent of to a Nohle Peer of this 
Realm : Its Length from Tip of the Nofe to Tail's End, 
was Five Foot Eight Inches, and In Gireumference it 
was Two and Twenty Inches but as for the Weight, 
no Perfons could inform me w hat it was, tho' perhaps 
it might not exceed Twenty Pound, of which Aldfo- 
vandus (aith, that in Italy they come up to, but ne- 
ver exceed it. And for Length it agrees with thofe 
mentioned by Rondeletim to be fometimes caught in the 
Lake of Later a, which were Three or four Cubits longo. 
