Part 81

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=144=.--1875, July 8.--In the Illustrated London News of November 20th., 1875, appeared the following engraving and account:

“Our Engraving is an exact representation of a sketch we have received, with the following letter from the Rev. E. L. Penny, M. A., Chaplain to H. M. S. London, at Zanzibar, Oct. 21:--

“I send you herewith a sketch of the great sea-serpent attacking a spermwhale, which I have made from the descriptions of the captain and crew of the barque Pauline, and they have, after careful examination, pronounced it to be correct. The whale should have been placed deeper in the water, but I should then have been unable to depict so clearly the manner in which the animal was attacked.”

“Captain Drevar, of the barque Pauline, bound with coals for her Majesty’s naval stores at Zanzibar, when in lat. 5 deg. 13 min. S., long. 35 deg. W., on July 8 last, observed three very large sperm whales, and one of them was gripped round the body, with two turns, by what appeared to be a huge serpent. Its back was of a darkish brown and its belly white, with an immense head and mouth, the latter always open; the head and tail had a length beyond the coils about 30 ft.; its girth was about 8 ft. or 9 ft. Using its extremities as levers, the serpent whirled its victim round and round for about fifteen minutes, and then suddenly dragged the whale down to the bottom, head first. The other two whales, after attempting to release their companion, swam away upon its descent, exhibiting signs of the greatest terror.”

“On July 13 this or another sea-serpent was again seen, about 200 yards off the stern of the vessel, shooting itself along the surface, 40 ft. of its body being out of the water at a time. Again, on the same day, it was seen once more, with its body standing quite perpendicular out of the water to the height of 60 ft. This time it seemed as if determined to attack the vessel, and the crew and officers armed themselves with axes for self defence.”

“Captain Drevar is a singularly able and observant man, and those of the crew and officers with whom I conversed were singularly intelligent; nor did any of their descriptions vary from one another in the least--there were no discrepancies.”

This report translated into German appeared in the Illustrirte Zeitung of Dec. 4th. 1875.

We observe that the so-called fight between the sea-serpent and the spermwhale took place in 5° 13′ S. lat., 35° W. long, i. e. near Cape San Roque (Eastern coast of Brazil), and that the barque Pauline on October 21 of that year was at Zanzibar, laden with coals. The reports were evidently copied from the Captain’s journal or log-book, and the figure was drawn by the Rev. E. L. PENNY, at Zanzibar. The barque did not return directly to England, but steered for Akyab (British Burmah); from where she sailed home, for we read in the Illustrated London News of January 13, 1877 (p. 35, third column):

“The great sea-serpent will not be ignored. He has now appeared, by affidavit, in a police court. The captain and crew of a vessel called the Pauline which has arrived in the Mersey from Akyab, report that in July, 1875, off Cape San Roque, on the north-east coast of Brazil, they saw the great sea-serpent. On Thuesday, the captain, whose name is Drevar, appeared before the stipendiary magistrate of Liverpool, Mr. Raffles, and expressed a wish, on his own behalf and that of his crew, to make a declaration affirming the truth of their statements respecting the serpent. Mr. Raffles desired Captain Drevar to prepare a written declaration and bring it before him. This captain Drevar did, on Wednesday, accompanied by a number of his crew. The declaration is to the effect that he and others on board the Pauline, on July 8, 1875, while in latitude 5 deg. 13 min. S., longitude 35 deg. W., observed three large spermwhales, one of which was gripped round the body with two turns of what appeared to be a huge serpent. The head and tail appeared to have a length, beyond the coils, of about thirty feet, and the girth seemed to be eight or nine feet. The serpent whirled its victim round and round for about fifteen minutes, and then suddenly dragged the whale to the bottom head first. Again, on July 13, a similar serpent was seen about 200 yards off the Pauline, shooting itself along the surface, its head and neck being several feet out of the water. Subsequently the head of the animal was shot sixty feet into the air. The declaration was signed by Captain Drevar, Horatio Thompson (chief officer), John Henderson Landells (second officer), William Lewarn (steward) and Owen Baker (seaman).

1 am so fortunate as to be able to communicate the account as it appeared in the newspapers of the 10th. and 11th. of January, 1877. I have found it in ANDREW WILSON’s Leisure Time Studies:

“The story of the mate and crew of the barque Pauline, of London, said to have arrived in port from a twenty months’ voyage to Akyab,--about having seen “a sea-serpent” while on a voyage in the Indian seas, was declared to on oath before Mr. Raffles, the stipendiary magistrate, at the Liverpool Police-Court. The affidavit was made in consequence of the doubtfullness with which anything about the “sea-serpent” has hitherto been received; and to show the genuine character of the story it has been placed judicially on record. The following is a copy of the declaration, which will be regarded as unprecedented in its way:--

“BOROUGH OF LIVERPOOL, IN THE COUNTY PALATINE OF LANCASTER, TO WIT.

“We, the undersigned, captain, officers, and crew of the barque Pauline (of London), of Liverpool, in the county of Lancaster, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, do solemnly and sincerely declare that on July 8, 1875, in lat. 5° 13′ S., long 35° W., we observed three large sperm whales, and one of them was gripped round the body with two turns of what appeared to be a huge serpent. The head and tail appeared to have a length beyond the coils of about thirty feet, and its girth eight or nine feet. The serpent whirled its victim round and round for about fifteen minutes, and then suddenly dragged the whale to the bottom, head first”.

GEORGE DREVAR, Master.

HORATIO THOMPSON.

JOHN HENDERSON LANDELLS.

OWEN BAKER.

WM. LEWARN.

Again, on July 13, a similar serpent was seen about two hundred yards off, shooting itself along the surface, the head and neck being out of the water several feet. This was seen only by the captain and one ordinary seaman, whose signatures are affixed.”

GEORGE DREVAR, Master.

OWEN BAKER.

“A few moments after it was seen elevated some sixty feet perpendicularly in the air by the chief officer and the following able seamen, whose signatures are also affixed.”

HORATIO THOMPSON.

WILLIAM LEWARN.

OWEN BAKER.

“And we make this solemn declaration conscientiously, believing the same to be true, and by virtue of the provisions of an Act made and passed in the sixth year of the reign of his late Majesty, entitled “An Act to repeal an Act of the present Session of Parliament, entitled an Act for the more effectual abolition of oath and affirmations, taken and made in various departments of the State, and to substitute declarations in lieu thereof, and for the more entire suppression of voluntary and extra-judicial oaths and affidavits, and to make other provisions for the abolition of unnecessary oaths.” Severally declared and subscribed at Liverpool aforesaid the tenth day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.”

GEORGE DREVAR, Master.