PORT OF WELLINGTON.

Southland Times, Issue 1153, 25 October 1869, Page 2

PORT OF WELLINGTON.

ARBIVBD. October 23— Claud Ha Milton, from Melbourne. SAILED. October 23 — Alliance, for Newcastle. October 23 — Keera, for Mauukau. i

Captttbe op a Mebmaid. — The Petit Moniteur givea the following veracious narrative, professed to be extracted from the log of a Norwegian vessel :— At 2 a.m., 31st December, 1868, sea calm and moon shining brightly, while lying-to a few miles from Cape Sojoten, in the Philhpine Islands, watch forward cried out that he saw a man swimming ahead. The rest of the crew on deck ran to the bows, and perceived at about a cable's length from the vessel a human form raising itself out of the water. They hailed loudly, but were anawered by a species of bark resembling that of a little dog ; but the supposed man at once Bwam towards the vessel, and the life buoy was thrown towards him. However, one of the crew, thinking it might be some kind of sea monster, armed himself with a harpoon. ar>d stationed himself on the figure head. The being swam steadily on, and as it passed beneath his post, the seaman, recognising by the moonlight that it was no human creature, launched hie weapon with unerring aim. A wailing groan was the result, and the eea was reddened with blood. Several fathoms of line weie run out in a minute, and at some distance the object was seen struggling to free itself from the spear. However, the line was hauled in rapidly, and the seaman, to his infinite astonishment, found that he had hooked a genuine " mermaid." She was about the size of a ! child ten years old ; her arms were thoroughly human, except the hands, which were webbed, and the upper part of her form waß of ravishing beauty, while the lower part terminated, as usual, in a double fi6h tail. The wound inflicted by the harpoon was mortal, and in a few minutes the mermaid expired, casting a melancholy look of TepTOach. upon her slayer. Her body has been carefully preserved by the captain, who is a skilful naturalist, and has been taken to Manilla. We hope that this bonnie Jaesie__with a seal'" " fiid "to Tier "will Qnfl some enterprising Barnum to brin» her mortal remains to Europe.