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♦and teat—come of whom have been det nbed as extending it* hr ad ai* igh as the maln-top-mast of a ship, its skin variegated like a tortoise shell, and its excrement corrosive.The Salem Gazette of yesterday says, ** We are informed that on Sunday this creature was seen play, iog sometimes within fifteen or twenty feet of the shore, affording a better opportunity to observe him than had before olt; curred. Gent«e-men from Gloucester state, that he appeared to them of even greater magnitude than had before been r^pr* «ented, and should judge from their own observation that he wjs as mu. h as 15 ) feet in length, at big round as a barrel. Theyaawh mopeii an enormous mouth i and are of opinion that he it cased in shell. Toe cfance for taking or ki'ling tms creature set ms tube small ( it requires not merely the club of a Hercu es, but ihe cunning contrivance of a Vulcan. We understand. however, that it is proposed to make a number of strong nets, in the hope of entangling and t m barrassing him, so as to be able to get him in a situation to kill him ; m which we rather wish than ex-pect they may prove successful.1*Corroboration.—Capt. Obear, who has arrived at Beverly, reports, that on Sunday last he put into Cape-Ann harbor, where he and his crew were astonished at the sight of a monstrous creature lying upon the water, which appeared to have the form of a serpent.Whatever doubts may have existed on the subject, there are hundreds who can ustify to the existence of some creature of a very uncommon bulk and form, aid such as was never before seen upon our coast.The bold adventurers (says the Salem Gazette) who are fishing foi the Sea-Monster at Cape-Ann, ought to be furnished with the implements mentioned in the following lines.From thefBoston Centinel, Jivg. 20. f SEA SERPENT.FatThejappearance in Gloucester (Cape Ann) harbor of an uncoin Rioa Animal has been the topic of conversation and wonderment for pveral days past. A number of gentlemen ot informutitfh and veracity have asserted that*#icy have seen such an animal off and in the harbor, reposing at times on a smooth sea; and had thereby an opportunity to see and judge of its form and dimension. Their ac-counts, though in some instances dissimilar, all agree, that this animal is bf the species called the Sea Serpent. It is described as having its head (like those given to serpents in prints) at times, out of wa-ter • that to some it appeared as large as the head of a horse—to others, varying, perhaps, according to distance, as that of a large dog— that its body was round like a snake’s, but connected by joints, which to some appeared like a row of ten gallon kegs, and to others like barrels; that its length was es* t mated by some to be 40 feet, by Others 110, 100, and over that its motion was serpentine, erratic, and f ;pid for an animal of i JJbulk ; that it had been seen lying^cy*the sur face of the water, with parts of its body from 6 to 18 inches out of the water, and its tail nearly on a line with its head;—that it frequently forms circles in its movements ; ar.d in its progress sometimes leaves a wake of half a mile in lengthv Measures have been talfen^ and others are contemplated, for k.bing and exhibiting this animal, jit i: hoped they^will succeed. The En cyclopedists have doubted the exis tence of such ammals as Seapents ; which have been d scnl^jn.icularly Tyby some navigators, part Egede, as frequenting the Green“ the giant angling.His angie-rod made of a sturdy Oak His line a Cable that in storms ne'er broke;His hook he baited with a Dragon’s tail, And sat upon a rock and bobb’d for whale.”By the following account, copied from a file of the Salem Gazette, printed in 1793, it appears tha^ one at least of these extraordinary^ inhabitants of the deep, has before ppeared on our own coast:Portland, Jug. 3, 1793, Sea Monster.-—Captain Crabtree, who lately arrived at Frenchman’s hay, and now in this town, gives the following extraordinary account of a sea-serpent, the authenticjy of which may be depended on:“ On the 23th ot June last bding 1 my p ssage from the WesiJln dies, in the morning, havineyjust made Mount Desert Island, cfstant nearly 10 leagues, I suddenly got sight of a serpent of an jnormous s ze, swimming on the /urface of the ocean, its head elev/ited about or 8 feet out of water, rather prone forward. Thai’ part of the body which was out of the water, 1 judged to be about*the size of a barrel in circumference, but the head larger, having some blance of a horse’s. Accord!’ the most accurate computation which I made/in my mind of hisFnIs;dui ir ren rctfi% ilength, I thinkLit than from 55 Tocould not be less 60 feet, and perhaps longer. /That part of the body which w%s not elevated, but of which I hac^a distinct view several times, was/larger than the part out of watert The body of .a dark brown, jI war within two hundred yards of it sfear an hour; during which time Jls it discovered r.o inclination to njplest us, myself and the whole cre^r observed it with the minutest attention;—nor was its attention less* fixed on us. The eyettsvere perfectly black, sharp and piUring, i was so near it as to observe clearly thattf here were no fins or external appendages to the body; but thac its motion-was by the writhing of the body, like other serpents. During the time it was with us, several flocks of birds flew near, which it eyed very narrowly. I observed in it the greatest agility and quickness of motion.”There is no doubt but this 13 one of two which have been seen in these parts. AH atcounts agree respecting their size'and appear-tute. Two of them (perhaps the same) were once seen ort* the shore the Cranberry Islaiid, hjpt iinnie-taieiy took to the water on being scovered.—These are tl£ first ver seen in our seas, that w? k; my account of, though they *h ueen seen on the coast of Norway.
Newspaper Details
Annapolis Maryland Gazette And Political Intelligencer
Annapolis, Maryland, US
Thu, Aug 28, 1817
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Rin K.
NA, 01 Dec 2024
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