NOTES. 
117 
pose that the report of the Linnaean Society of New Eng¬ 
land, with regard to a young serpent of a remarkable appear¬ 
ance, brought from Gloucester to Boston, and exhibited as the 
progeny of the great Sea-Serpent, might not, after all, be so 
far out the way ; indeed, some points here would seem to con¬ 
firm it; but alas l no less an Ichthyologist than Prof. Agas¬ 
siz insists, that that serpent — the bones of which he has 
had in his own hands — was a common black snake, with a 
diseased spine! 
However, there are many witnesses who testify to the fact 
that they have seen the Sea-Serpent on shore. (See Ap¬ 
pendix.) 
Note 6 (Page 45 ) 
Captain Sturgis, of the Cutter Hamilton, informs me, that 
while the cutter was off Boston Light a few years since, on a 
calm day in midsummer, he was suddenly startled, while sit¬ 
ting in his cabin, by hearing a great noise on deck; he ran 
up, and found the men on the quarter-deck, all of them look¬ 
ing extremely frightened. He at once demanded the cause 
of the disturbance. Some exclaimed, “ The cutter is going 
ashore, Sir ! ” Others said, “ There is a strange monster 
close aboard of us forward ; — a serpent, or something else.” 
The gallant captain saw that his men were unusually alarmed, 
and therefore ran forward directly ; he there saw some¬ 
thing like a great snake, but only for an instant, for he dived 
down just as the captain reached the bow. There was an 
account of this published in the papers at that time, but I 
have been entirely unable to find it. If any editor or other 
person remembers seeing it, and can tell where it is, it would 
be exceedingly interesting to have it republished at this time. 
I have alluded to a fight between a sea-serpent and a whale, 
on the 37th page. Since that part of the story was written, 
I have received a letter from Hallowell, in Maine, written by 
a person who knew the particulars of this fight, which I shall 
relate here. My correspondent at Hallowell says he “ men¬ 
tions this affair out of mere desire to have the matter 
