“The universe in my department, captain?”

“Haw! haw! haw!” went Fitzroy and two more.

“No, you rogue, the serpent.”

Dr. Staines, thus appealed to, asked the captain if he had ever seen small snakes out at sea.

“Why, of course.  Sailed through a mile of them once, in the archipelago.”

“Sure they were snakes?”

“Quite sure; and the biggest was not eight feet long.”

“Very well, captain; then sea-serpents exist, and it becomes a mere question of size.  Now which produces the larger animals in every kind,—­land or sea?  The grown elephant weighs, I believe, about five tons.  The very smallest of the whale tribe weighs ten; and they go as high as forty tons.  There are smaller fish than the whale, that are four times as heavy as the elephant.  Why doubt, then, that the sea can breed a snake to eclipse the boa-constrictor?  Even if the creature had never been seen, I should, by mere reasoning from analogy, expect the sea to produce a serpent excelling the boa-constrictor, as the lobster excels a crayfish of our rivers:  see how large things grow at sea! the salmon born in our rivers weighs in six months a quarter of a pound, or less; it goes out to sea, and comes back in one year weighing seven pounds.  So far from doubting the large sea-serpents, I believe they exist by the million.  The only thing that puzzles me is, why they should ever show a nose above water; they must be very numerous, I think.”

Captain Hamilton laughed, and said, “Well, this is new.  Doctor, in compliment to your opinion, we will go on deck, and inspect the reptile you think so common.”  He stopped at the door, and said, “Doctor, the saltcellar is by you.  Would you mind bringing it on deck?  We shall want a little to secure the animal.”

So they all went on deck right merrily.

The captain went up a few ratlines in the mizzen rigging, and looked to windward, laughing all the time:  but, all of a sudden, there was a great 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.”