THE FAMOUS PELORUS JACK.

ADVERTISED IN LONDON

The following letter appeared in the London "Daily Mail" last month. It will be noticed that the word Pelorus gains an extra "o" when-it reaches London:—

Sir.—Perhaps your readers may be interested in hearing about a wonderful New Zealand fish. The steamers from this place to Wellington go through a narrow channel, called the French Pass, and after clearing it cross the mouth, of a deep indentation called Pelorus Sound.

For the last twenty years no steamer has been known to pass this Sound unaccompanied, for at least part of the way, by a large white fish, part shark, part dolphin, called Pelorus Jack. Nowadays so many steamers pass that Jack's work is no sinecure. He is first noticed leaping out of the sea in the distance, but in a few moments is swimming through the water just in front of the ship's stem. Sometimes lie remains only a few moments leaping out of the water and swimming just ahead; then he shoots away out of sight. But at other times he stays for quite ten minutes. He is said never to come to sailing ships or wooden-bot-tomed steamers; but no matter which way a steamer crosses the Sound, whether by clay or night, Pelorus Jack is always in attendance as a sort of pilot. He is apparently entirely alone —has been for at least twenty years. His species lias not yet been determined.

He is about nine feet long, with a narrow tail. Few people believe so improbable a fish yarn until they have seen Jack with their' own eyes; but bis bona fides is atested by the fact that he has a Government paper devoted to himself. Boys returning for the holidays from the North Island used to pot at him with pea rifles; the matter was taken up in Parliament, and a Government paper was issued protecting his person.—Yours faithfully, j. McClelland 1. Nelson, New Zealand.

The editor of the "Mail" thus refers to the above communication:—

"In this week's 'Parliament of the Empire ' will be found an interesting letter from a New Zealand reader of tho ' Over Seas,' telling us about an extraordinary fish known locally as the ' Pelorous Jack.' This fish, which is ' part shark and part dolphin,' is to bo seen in the Pelorous Sound, "winchlies to the extreme north of South Island of New Zealand. I have several times heard of ' Jack's ' existence before, but this is the first jnme. that a reader of the ' Over Seas ■'""has written to me concerning this -tihporta^tt personage. Those of my readers .who are not acquainted with New "Zealand, might well imagine, as the* writer of the letter suggests, that the ' Pelorous Jack ' was a;myth; but there is no question as tphis bona fides, and' he holds the unique position or having had a Governments/paper devoted to himself. Should ifliese lines be read by any of my readers who are acquainted with this extraordinary fish, I shall be pleased if they will write to me giving any further particulars concerning ' Pelorous Jack' and his habits?'