change in his manner. "Good heavens, it is alive--LUFF!"

The helmsman obeyed; the news spread like wildfire. Mess kids, grog
kids, pipes, were all let fall, and some three hundred sailors clustered
on the rigging like bees, to view the long-talked-of monster.

It was soon discovered to be moving lazily along, the propelling part
being under water, and about twenty-five feet visible. It had a small
head for so large a body, and, as they got nearer, rough scales were
seen, ending in smaller ones further down the body. It had a mane, but
not like a lion's, as some have pretended. If you have ever seen a pony
with a hog-mane, that was more the character of this creature's mane, if
mane it was.

They got within a hundred yards of it, and all saw it plainly, scarce
believing their senses.

When they could get no nearer for the wind, the captain yielded to that
instinct which urges man always to kill a curiosity, "to encourage the
rest," as saith the witty Voltaire. "Get ready a gun--best shot in the
ship lay and fire it."

This was soon done. Bang went the gun. The shot struck the water close
to the brute, and may have struck him under water, for aught I know.
Any way, it sorely disturbed him; for he reared into the air a column
of serpent's flesh that looked as thick as the maintopmast of a
seventy-four, opened a mouth that looked capacious enough to swallow
the largest buoy anchor in the ship, and, with a strange grating noise
between a bark and a hiss, dived, and was seen no more.